5 Gorgeous Hikes in Sedona

Five gorgeous hikes to take in Sedona, Arizona for any level of hiker!  Read on to find out the hikes that are for more fit hikers and ones for those who might need assistance.  Read our Travel Guide to Sedona here!

Written by Ashley Hasty

My family and I traveled to Sedona, AZ with my family in March. The weather is cool, if not downright cold, so prepare with having lots of layers. My husband and I fell in love with hiking. It is important to note that we are amateur hikers with no gear or even hiking boots, so these hikes are really for the average person. We do exercise regularly, so I’d consider us in good shape. Most of the hikes took anywhere from 1 to 4 hours, depending on the length of the hike and how often we stopped to take pictures.

Adobe Jack, Coyote, and Crusty Loop

I read that this was a great pre-breakfast hike, which I thought sounded like a lovely way to start the day. It was an easy 1.8 miles, making it a perfect morning hike. I actually snuck this one in on our last day in Sedona so that I could get one last hike in before heading home. I wasn’t ready to say good-bye just yet, and this hike definitely satisfied that craving. At times the trail wasn’t super clearly marked, but we never got off track...there was just some discussion about which way to go.

Little Horse Trail

This was my favorite hike of the trip. We didn’t really know what we were getting into, we kind of stumbled on this one when we couldn’t find parking at another one. The trail was pretty crowded with people at the beginning, but it quickly thinned out and at the end, we were the only people at Chicken Point. Speaking of, it is worth going a bit beyond Little Horse Trail to Chicken Point for great views. It looks like a major climb from down below, but it really wasn’t too strenuous. At 3.4 miles, this was one of the longer hikes we did.

Slim Shady and Made in the Shade Loop Trail

I’m going to be completely honest here, I chose this hike for the name. I laughed about it most of the hike, too. This was a 2.3 mile loop with amazing panoramic views. There was one large flat rock that was my favorite lookout point, I could have stood there for hours just soaking it all in. I think that was the moment I got “red rock fever” as they call it in Sedona.

Seven Sacred Pools via Soldier Pass Trail

My whole family took this hike to Seven Sacred Pools and we spanned all fitness levels. There is some navigation over a creek early on that could make some people a little nervous, but the creek was low while we there and we didn’t have any problems. We had no trouble at all spotting the pools, it is a wide open area, but some say they walked right by them without noticing. This hike has beautiful mountain views...they all do, but this one especially. This hike is just 1.1 miles out and back.

Devils Bridge Trail

This was one of the busier trails we hiked while in Sedona - everyone wants their picture on Devil’s Bridge (not surprising - it is an amazing view!) There is a short scramble at the end but worth it! The trail head begins at the parking lot, but the first part of the hike continues on a trail (which looked more like a road) for off-road vehicles. This was a little annoying as we had to keep getting out of the way of vehicles driving by. Eventually it turns into a traditional trail that was much more pleasant. But the crowds never thinned out, it was busy from beginning to end. This trail was a total of 4.2 miles out and back.

Do you have a favorite Sedona trail?  We all love it there and I would love to know your personal recommendations.