Little Horse Trail to Chicken Point

LITTLE HORSE TRAIL to CHICKEN POINT

View of Cathedral Rock from Little Horse Trail

There are myriad reasons why the Little Horse Trail No. 61 is one of the most popular hiking routes in Sedona.  

Cliff-rose emit a pungent fragrance April- Sept.

Epic vistas, connectivity with the Bell Rock Pathway system of trails, iconic rock formations and rich botanical diversity combine for a classic Red Rock Country trek.

Featherplume bloom March - June

 

Little Horse Trail culminates at Chicken Point

The well-known and heavily-travelled path in Coconino National Forest really draws the crowds and finding parking at the trailhead can be a challenge, especially on weekends. 

Fragrant cliff fendlerbush bloom March - June

The recently introduced Sedona Shuttle service offers a convenient solution to parking quagmires at many of Sedona’s most beloved trails, including this one. So, grab a seat and avoid the headaches as well as the trailhead parking fee.

Smell Gregg's ceanothus March - May

Springtime is the optimal window to experience Little Horse in its full-blown wildflower color storm.

Situated just outside of Munds Mountain Wilderness Area, the hike begins with a 0.3-mile walk on the wide Bell Rock Pathway where views of Cathedral Rock tower above vivid russet cliffs to the west. This sunny segment is fringed with globemallow, antelope horns, blackfoot daisies, sego lilies, evening primroses and fuzzy fleatherplume shrubs.  Head left at the signed Little Horse junction and follow the trail as is descends into a steep-walled drainage.

Evening primrose bloom April - September

 

Scenic point over a gorge on Little Horse Trail

Once through the stony corridor, the trail begins a steady uphill climb on staircase-like sandstone slabs, twisting among blooming cliff-rose shrubs that emit a pungent fragrance that most folks either love or hate. This polarizing aroma competes with the softer lilac notes of the Gregg’s ceanothus bush and the subtle orange bouquet of cliff fendlerbush. 

Antelope horns bloom April - August

Waxy yucca flowers blooms April - July

The desert blooms provide olfactory distractions worthy of taking a moment to breath in.   Ducking among pockets of cypress, pinon and fir, breaks in the tree cover frame views of Chapel of the Holy Cross plus the iconic Madonna and the Nuns, Bell Rock and Courthouse Butte rock formations before meeting the turnoff for an optional side trip up to Chicken Point.  The not to be missed spur path flanked by yucca and gangly agave stalks culminates on a rounded sandstone mound bolstered by striated, weather-worn spires and views that extend to the distant Bradshaw Mountains.

Sandstone spires surround Chicken Point

A stream of visitors doing handstands and yoga poses on a stone outcropping is the closing act at trail’s end. 

Globemallow color the trail April - September

Sego lilies can be white or pink and bloomApril - July

LENGTH: 3.6 miles roundtrip

RATING:  moderate

ELEVATION: 4,240 – 4,400 feet

GETTING THERE:

From Interstate 17 north of Camp Verde, take the Sedona-Oak Creek exit 298 for State Route 179. Continue on SR 179 to milepost 308.9 (3.6 miles south of the SR 179/89A traffic circle in Sedona)  and turn right into the Little Horse trailhead parking lot. There is a restroom at the trailhead. You can park either at the trailhead or at the North SR 179 Park & Ride and take the Sedona Shuttle for free.

FEE: A Red Rock Pass or America the Beautiful Pass is required to park.

There is a self-serve permit kiosk at the trailhead.

https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/coconino/recreation/recarea/?recid=54892

INFO & MAPS:

COCONINO NATIONAL FOREST

https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/coconino/recarea/?recid=55336

SEDONA SHUTTLE

https://sedonashuttle.com/

RECTOR CONNECTOR

RECTOR CONNECTOR

The Rector Connector opened in January 2018.

Silverleaf nightshade grows in sunny spots on the trail.

Scenic spot on Rector Connector.

A new trail has debuted in a hub of Red Rock Country old standards.  Lodged in the middle of the Big Park Trails system just north of the Village of Oak Creek, the Rector Connector fills a void in the loop-centric routes that orbit iconic Bell Rock and Courthouse Butte. 

Rector Connector spins off Courthouse Butte Loop.

For years, trail users who were unhappy that the Coconino National Forest trails went around, but not between the massive rock formations along State Route 179 had been blazing their own routes creating unsustainable, dangerous paths that damaged the sensitive environment. 

View of Bell Rock from Rector Connector.

In January 2018, Friends of the Forest—a non-profit Sedona organization that promotes stewardship of area public lands through financial and volunteer labor support --under the tutelage of the Forest Service, remedied the dilemma by wrangling a former social trail into a system-sanctioned route.

Rector Connector passes below Courthouse Butte.

Named for Gene and Darl Rector who have logged thousands of volunteer trail-work hours over more than 20 years, the mile-long path follows a gorge and slick rock passages in the space between the sedimentary stone behemoths. 

A slick rock passage on Rector Connector.

To find the new connector from the Bell Rock Vista trailhead, hike 0.6-mile north to the Courthouse Butte Loop junction. Turn right and go 0.2-mile to the junction.  The trail spins away from airy high-desert savannas and dives into a cypress-and-pine-shaded corridor with steep drop offs on the west and the hulking form of Courthouse Butte to the east. Roughly halfway through, the trail enters Munds Mountain Wilderness and begins a steady ascent on bare rock to an exposed saddle. 

The trail passes between Bell Rock and Courthouse Butte.

A wide landing of rounded sandstone at this highpoint gap provides a perfect platform to enjoy views of Horse Mesa to the south and the familiar forms of Thunder Mountain (Capitol Butte) Cathedral Rock and the flat-topped profiles of Wilson Mountain and Brins Mesa in the north. 

Use Bell Rock Pathway to make a loop hike.

From this point, the route winds down the smooth north flanks of Bell Rock where basket carins (rock wired into drum-shaped posts) mark the way among sparse vegetation and stony bends.

Watch for lizards sunning themselves on sandstone ledges.

Where the trail exits the wilderness area, pick up Bell Rock Pathway heading south for a 3-mile loop. Otherwise, consult the forest service map for dozens of add-on opportunities. 

Stay on designated trails to protect the wilderness.

Looking south from Rector Connector.

Part of the trail is in Munds Mountain Wilderness.

LENGTH: 3-mile loop

RATING: easy

ELEVATION: 4130 - 4411 feet

GETTING THERE:

Bell Rock Vista Trailhead, Oak Creek.

From Phoenix, go north on Interstate 17 to exit 298 (Sedona/Oak Creek). Veer left (west) and follow State Route 179 to just past milepost 307 and turn right into the parking area.

INFO: Red Rock Ranger District, Coconino National Forest

https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/coconino/recreation/hiking/recarea/?recid=72017&actid=50

Friends of the Forest:

http://www.friendsoftheforestsedona.org/

LLAMA TRAIL

LLAMA TRAIL

Sedona

Madonna and Two Nuns as seen from Llama Trail

Some of Arizona's most beautiful hiking trails reside miles beyond the vestiges of civilization along impossibly convoluted, tire-eating backroads. For those with a vehicle robust enough for the journey, the payoff is a kind of solitude unique to Arizona's remote regions. If you're driving a compact sedan, your destination options are more limited, but there are places where its possible to park at a groomed trailhead off a paved byway and still unplug from the masses. Once such destination departs from the heavily used Little Horse trailhead in Sedona.

Cathedral Rock on horizon

A quick assessment of the crowded parking lot might lead you to doubt the claim that peace and quite lie beyond the throngs of camera totting tourists and scampering kids. However, in less than a mile, the Llama Trail veers away from the mobs of hikers who mostly stick to the main routes leading to Chicken Point and Bell Rock. Originally blazed by mountain bikers, this alternative route covers much of the same territory as the big name trails but without the elbow-to-elbow traffic. It's still a major thruway for bikers, who relish the fast slick rock and wavy earth, so stay alert especially near blind turns. Although not entirely insulated from the hum of vehicles on Highway 179, Llama Trail rubs the boundary of Munds Mountain Wilderness and the plumb walls of Lee Mountain. It's just rough around the edges enough for a feral yet familiar ambiance. You'll never feel lost here because world famous rock formations visible throughout the hike help with orientation. Madonna and the Nuns plus Capitol Butte guard the north, while Courthouse and Bell Rocks anchor the southern horizon. To the west, the unmistakable spires of Cathedral Rock blush pink at sunset. There are several ways to tie the trail into a day hike. Here's one to try.

From the trailhead, follow Bell Rock Pathway 0.3 mile south and turn left onto Little Horse Trail. Hike 0.6 mile to the Llama Trail junction on the right. Hike 2.6 miles to Baby Bell Trail, turn right and go 0.2 mile back to Bell Rock Pathway and follow it 1.7 miles back to the trailhead.

Take this turn to bypass the crowds

LENGTH: 5.4 mile loop

RATING: moderate

ELEVATION: 4240' - 4400'

FEE: A Red Rock Pass is required to park.

http://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/coconino/home/?cid=stelprdb5416207

GETTING THERE:

From Phoenix, travel north on Interstate 17 to the Sedona-Oak Creek/State Route 179 exit 298. Head west (left) on SR179 and continue to the Little Horse trailhead on the right at milepost 308.9.

INFO: Coconino National Forest

http://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/coconino/recreation/ohv/recarea/?recid=74312&actid=50

PINE VALLEY RIDGE TRAIL

PINE VALLEY RIDGE TRAIL

Village of Oak Creek

Pine Valley Ridge Trail

2021 UPDATE: THIS TRAIL HAS BEEN REROUTED AND RENAMED the Rabbit Ears and Little Rock Loop. See April 2023 blog entry for update. Sometimes there are just not enough parking spaces. This is conspicuously expressed at the Bell Rock Pathway trailhead in the Village of Oak Creek. Even though there's room for dozens of vehicles, the lot fills up quickly especially on weekends and during winter visitor season. That's because it provides access to the Big Park system of trails that includes some of Red Rock Country's most scenic, easy paths around iconic Bell Rock (a famous vortex site) and Courthouse Butte. If you encounter a packed lot, don't give up on your hiking ambitions----there's another way in. The system can also be accessed via the Pine Valley Ridge Trail that begins at the Jacks Canyon/Hot Loop Trailhead to the southeast. This relatively new route climbs 440 feet on a rocky backbone skirting subdivisions and the border of Munds Mountain Wilderness. Although the trail is obvious, it's not marked with signs. The toughest navigation involves finding where the route begins. From the trailhead gate where there's a sign for Jacks Canyon #55, hike about 20 feet down the road you came in on (do not pass thru the gate) and look for a red dirt single track on the right. Follow this trail 0.1 mile to the gate at Jacks Canyon Road, carefully cross the street, pass through a second gate and begin hiking uphill. At a third gate, turn right and from here, the path is clear although sketchy in some places. Just pay attention and you'll be fine.

At roughly 1.5 miles, beautiful views of the mesas of Jacks Canyon and Sedona's celebrated sandstone formations begin rolling out on all sides. From the high point, the profiles of Cathedral Rock, Capitol Butte and Cockscomb stand out from seldom seen perspectives. The trail then heads downhill to the junction with the Big Park and Courthouse Butte Loop Trails at the 2.4 -mile point. A map sign shows options for joining the wide-eyed masses orbiting Bell Rock, or you can skip the crowds by simply retracing your steps for a mellow 4.8-mile out-and-back hike.

LENGTH: 2.4 miles one-way to Big Park

RATING: moderate

ELEVATION: 4,270' - 4,710'

GETTING THERE:

From Interstate 17, take the State Route 179 Sedona exit 298, turn left and go 6.5 miles on SR179 to Jacks Canyon Road. Turn right and continue 1.9 miles to the trailhead turnoff (Forest Road 179G) on the right directly across from Canyon Ridge Trail.

INFO: Coconino National Forest

http://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/coconino/recreation/hiking/recarea/?recid=72017&actid=50

MORE PHOTOS:

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BELL ROCK PATHWAY

BELL ROCK PATHWAY Coconino National Forest, near Sedona For a casual stroll among Sedona’s gorgeous red rock formations that never strays far from civilization, try this wide, sunny trail. Although most of the trail is within earshot of busy Highway 179, a very scenic segment bends away from the commotion and skirts the edge of Munds Mountain Wilderness for peaceful vistas and up-close views of Courthouse Butte and the world-famous Frank Lloyd-Wright masterpiece, Chapel of the Holy Cross. LENGTH: 3.7 miles one-way RATING: easy ELEVATION: 4,050 – 4,370 feet BEST SEASONS: September - May FEE: a Red Rock Pass (or equivalent) is required to park and is available at the Oak Creek Ranger station and most local convenience stores. $5 for the day pass. http://www.redrockcountry.org/passes-and-permits/index.shtml, (928) 282-4119 GETTING THERE: NORTH TRAILHEAD: From Phoenix, go north on I-17 to exit 298 (Sedona/Oak Creek). Veer left (west) and follow SR 179 to just before milepost 310 and turn right into the parking area. This is the “Little Horse” Trailhead. Follow the signs that lead to the trail heading south. SOUTH TRAILHEAD: From Phoenix, go north on I-17 to exit 298 (Sedona/Oak Creek). Veer left (west) and follow SR 179 to just past milepost 307 and turn right into the parking area. INFORMATION: http://www.fs.fed.us/r3/coconino/recreation/red_rock/bell-rock-pathway.shtml (928) 282-4119