Our final day in Sedona we hiked from the time the sun came up until about 3:00 in the afternoon. My legs and feet were exhausted by the end of it, but I’m so glad I pushed myself to complete the almost 7.5-mile loop to see some of Sedona’s well-known sites and a 360-degree view of Munds Mountain.
We hiked Little Horse Trail to Chicken Point, The Broken Arrow Trail, Mystic Trail, Submarine Rock Trail, back around to The Chapel of the Holy Cross and then took the Chapel trail to meet back up with the Little Horse Trail to hike back to the car.
There was not one cloud in the sky and it seemed like the sun was right overhead the entire day. We started out to only hike the Little Horse Trail to Chicken Point so we didn’t take any water or snacks with us for the journey. BUT, when we saw the views from Chicken point and saw that there were multiple trails that you could link up with that would take you all around the rocks (one giant loop) we decided to press on.
I will say by the time we made it around to the Chapel of the Holy Cross I was so thankful that they had a gift shop that sold water… I needed it!
What I like so much about this collection of trails was not only the sites along the way, but the nice people who would show you offshoots to other trails, warn you about certain areas or just stop and have a conversation with you. Let’s face it I liked to stop and talk because I got to catch my breath.
One thing I saw that just blew me away, was the number of mountain bikers out on the trails. There were places that were only 4-6 inches wide with huge drop offs, places I was a little nervous to walk and the bikers just whizzed on by like it was no big thing. I guess that’s why they call it extreme sports.
While we enjoyed hiking the trails to hit the high points and scenic views, there is another way to get around if you don’t have as much time, have small children or have elderly folks with you. The Pink Jeep Tours will take you all along the red rocks to see some pretty amazing sights. Although they cannot go quite as high as the walking trails go, you still get a pretty view and don’t have to worry about navigation and a 7.5-mile hike. I will say if you want to hike like we did… start out as early as you can, because once the pink jeeps start coming, they don’t stop for most of the day!
This was our final hike in Sedona before we made our way out-of-town. Thanks to Miss Jackie Sherwood for telling us to take the scenic route back to Phoenix, through Jerome and detour through Prescott… that experience will be a post for later!!
