OLD POST-CARROLL CANYON LOOP
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| View of Capitol Butte (Thunder Mountain) from Ridge Trail |
Recent trail development in the southwest corner of Sedona
has added miles of fresh dirt in the hilly terrain between Airport Mesa and Oak
Creek.
Routes like Skywalker, Scorpion
and Pyramid are terrific supplements that connect to a maze of old standards,
providing additional access points and myriad opportunities to create loop
treks.
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| Wilson Mountain seen from Carroll Canyon Trail |
Before exploring the new and
shiny, take a walk on the original, well-worn Carroll Canyon Area Trails for an
overview of the what makes this pocket of high desert and deeply scoured gullies so special.
Downloadable forest service
maps and signs posted throughout make the system easy to navigate the core
trails--Carrol Canyon, Ridge, Herkenham and Old Post.
Whichever way you lace this one up, be sure
to include the 1.8-mile Carroll Canyon Trail because you won’t want to miss the
best part—a dizzying traverse above a twisting limestone valley.
Here’s one circuit to try.
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| Smoke Tree |
From the Old Post trailhead, hike 1.1 mile uphill through patches of thorny
Smoke Trees and yuccas with big views of Courthouse Butte, Bell Rock and
Cathedral Rock on the southern horizon.
Turn right onto Carroll Canyon Trail and get ready for more stunning
beauty. The route ascends along jagged sandstone and rough-cut steps to emerge
at a scenic vista point. Here, glimpses of Capitol Butte (a.k.a. Thunder
Mountain) and the flat-topped form of Wilson Mountain appear to the north.
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| View of famous Sedona formations seen from Old Post Trail |
The trail then ducks into juniper-cypress
woodlands before rounding a bend where the contorted course of Carroll Canyon rolls
out below.
A short passage hugs the lip
of the steep-walled gorge that plunges 200 feet with views of Oak Creek and its
surrounding floodplains peeking through the cracks.
It’s a queasy, edgy walk that ends with a
descent into the first of several boulder-cluttered wash crossings.
Once through the wash, the route enters a
savannah-like grassland, fringed with mesquite and the occasional
cottonwood.
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| One of several wash crossings on the route |
At the next junction, pick
up the Ridge Trail, hike 0.7-mile north and reconnect with the Old Post Trail
for the final leg of the loop.
But the
scenic wonders aren’t done yet. The back end of the circuit keeps delivering surprises.
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| The limestone abyss of Carroll Canyon |
Sunny plains sliced and diced into a jigsaw
puzzle of flat fields, abrupt climbs and a web of water-whittled muddy ravines
define the trail as it brushes past suburban homes before a powerline signals the
final descent back to the trailhead.
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| A Shady passage of Carroll Canyon Trail |
LENGTH: 5.5 miles
RATING: moderate
ELEVATION: 4090 to
4440 feet
GETTING THERE:
From the State Route 179/89A traffic circle in Sedona, go 4
miles west (toward Cottonwood) on 89A to Upper Red Rock Loop (Forest Road 216).
Turn left and continue 1.8 miles to Chavez Ranch Road (Forest Road 216A), turn
left and go 0.1 mile to the Old Post trailhead on the left.
INFO: Coconino National Forest
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