Arizona Day 1: Dancing with Wolves

 In mid -March 2024, my youngest daughter and I traveled to the Sedona area for a week during her spring break from The Ohio State University Master's program.  It was such a blessing to have this one on one time together - a gift parents don't often get to experience with their adult children.  I really wanted to make this trip special and create some forever memories with my daughter.

Our combined love of nature and also our respect for it makes us a great traveling duo.  My daughter and I had a long conversation about what we wanted to see and do and created a trip advisor joint "Plan" for our trip.  This allowed us to separately add locations and activities that interested each of us and also provided us a map of their locations. One place that caught my eye was  Sedona Wolf Sanctuary  . On their  website they are described "As a uniquely spiritually-infused wolf sanctuary and non-profit organization that happens to be at a sacred ranch, we’ve helped countless numbers of people attracted from all over the world with our wolf encounter experiences and spiritual retreats. " We were both curious of the direct contact with wolves, one of my daughter's favorite animals, and I was also intrigued by the history of the spiritual beliefs of the culture. The biggest draw for us was the fact that this sanctuary was not using the animals as a prop. If interested, the wolves would come to you and would not be posed for a photo op. We were respectfully entering their home. Yes, I wish these creatures could be in the wild, but because they were raised from pups as pets they would likely not survive. Wolves are magnificent creatures, but they are not dogs and should not be raised as such.

Our small tour began with an explanation of the native Americans beliefs of the healing power of wolves and the vision of Healingwolf, a local sha-woman to create a place where wolves and people could truly find peace. We participated in a smudging, burning and passing of sage around the medicine wheel cleansing our negative thoughts and allowing us to come to peace before entering the enclosures. Once in the enclosures we could sit on the benches or the ground and allow the wolves to interact with us, if they chose. In the first enclosure there were two wolves. The older wolf came up to me first thing and allowed me to pet him. The other was newer to the pack and was shy. We sat there on our bench and watched as the wolves kept their distance and though a little disappointed, this is also what we had hoped for. We were happy to experience their beauty on their terms. We sat a while in their enclosure for a spell, but when it was clear they didn't want to interact we exited and offered them their solitude.

When entering the second enclosure, I was reminded that though they remind me of Bear, my German Shepard, they were not dogs. The size of Larka's paws and girth of her legs, quickly reminded me that she was a wolf. I had a connection with Larka, which is one reason I can remember her name so well. She came over to me and remained for a considerable amount of time along me to scratch her hip. She sidled right up to me and her weight, as she sat on my foot, reminded me yet again - wolf, not dog. I allowed her to sit on my foot. It was an exciting and peaceful experience. The connection with her was not when I pet her or when she sat on my foot, but when we looked into each other's eyes. She even allowed the stare to continue as I raised my phone to take a photo. I could have sat their for hours with her, but it was time to move on.

We went to another ancient medicine wheel that had been created by a local tribe, many years ago. though the tribe was no longer on the land, we could see their tribal flag waving high above on the mountain top on the other side of the river. We received another explanation about the medicine wheel before us and how it represented the different life stages of a person. I walked around the wheel reflecting on the different areas of my life over the past 53 years, stopping it my current stage. What does it mean that when I lifted my head I saw barren dead trees? Well that wasn't pleasant. It was time to move into the third and final enclosure. This enclosure housed a black grey wolf, who loved belly rubs and loved my daughter. Even giving her a kiss before moving on to the next person. This was a man with a clean shaven head, who compared this wolf to his large dog at home. He was very encouraging to the wolf's kisses all over his head. Until the wolf playfully took the licking his head like a lollipop to a little teeth action. The man was startled, but fine. Remember they are wolves, not dogs. The sanctuary had recently received Cody, a nine month old wolf. Cody is going to be a big boy, but he was still a bit timid, but he did come up the my side and allowed me to pet his head with the safety of having the arm of the bench between us. Cynthia, the wolf whisperer and guide, want to try something. Larka, though a female, is the alpha of the group and leads the howls for the group allowing others to join in. Since his arrival, Cody, still finding his place, would howl when Cynthia howled. This would cause Larka to take over and all the wolves would join in. Cynthia asked us to howl which triggered Cody's howling, which had Larka begin and soon their was a choir of wolf howls around us. (Please pardon my coughing in the video, I was getting over a bad cold).

I loved this unique and peaceful time at the wolf sanctuary. They hope to remodel a part of the lodge (originally built by Morgan Earp, Wyatt Earp's brother) into an overnight experience. I hope that on return trip to the area that I can visit again as an overnight guest.