Snake-Anaconda-AZ Cypress Loop

SNAKE-ANACONDA-AZ CYPRESS LOOP

High desert vegetation on the Anaconda Trail

If there’s such a thing as an underside of Sedona’s trail systems, it must be where the snakes are.

A velvet ash tree shades a crossing of Dry Creek

Reptilian only in their stealth and serpentine courses, the Anaconda and Snake trails are

tucked into the core of the Upper Dry Creek Area Trails which is about as close as one can get to an underside in Red Rock Country.

Agave are plentiful on the Anaconda trail

 The two short singletracks serve as customizable legs for various linear and loop hike options in a hilly parcel of Coconino National Forest not far from the juggernauts of Bear Mountain, Devil’s Bridge and Boynton Canyon.

Juniper and prickly pear cacti on the Snake Trail

The trail duo is best accessed from the isolated AZ Cypress trailhead that sits like an ignored middle child about a mile north of the congested Dry Creek Vista trailhead on Dry Creek Road.

Beehive cactus on the Anaconda Trail

View of Red Rock Secret Mountain Wilderness

One way to try these twisting paths is to tie in with the AZ Cypress trail for a moderate-rated, 3.3-mile trek.

Mescal Mountain (center, red) seen from hike high points

The benefits of hiking in this woodsy pocket begin at the roomy trailhead that’s usually free of parking quagmires.  The circuit starts with a 0.1-mile hike to the AZ Cypress/Snake junction. 

Trails are well signed

The route is well signed throughout with directional and map signage. The half-mile Snake trail marks the beginning of a mild 650-foot climb up the east flanks of a knoll above the Dry Creek drainage area. 

Doe Mountain (left) and Bear Mountain

Willows at a crossing of Dry Creek

Gradually, fantastic views of Mescal Mountain and the colorful rock formations of Red Rock Secret Mountain Wilderness peek out over a sea of junipers, fir and cypress trees. The edgy route bends to the south, exposing views of iconic Lizardhead, Chimney Rock and Courthouse Butte before connecting with the Anaconda trail. 

Shady passage of AZ Cypress Trail along Dry Creek

Over its 1.7-mile length, Anaconda lives up to its name with relentless kinks, bends and sinuous curls that land hikers at the loop’s highest points overlooking the Cockscomb formation, Doe Mountain, Bear Mountain and the distant double mesas of Wilson Mountain to the northeast. The hike’s apex territory is dominated by classic high desert vegetation. Cacti, manzanita, yucca, agave and a smattering of mesquite trees thrive among scrub oak and junipers. 

Most of the climbing happens on the Snake Trail

Heading due west, Anaconda trail stairsteps down red earth ledges to meet the AZ Cypress trail, the final leg of the hike, at the edge of Dry Creek. 

Yellow menodora bloom April - September

Now in a moister microclimate, the environment shifts from sunny and spiny to shady and succulent.  Tracing the creek for its entire 1-mile length, AZ Cypress trail is like a green tunnel replete with massive tree cover with water loving species like willows, velvet ash and sycamores tossed in for variety.

Mountain lion? Measured about 5" high.

The narrow path clings to shelves above the ephemeral waterway which flows after rains and during snowmelt season.  While this Eden-like scene undoubtedly includes actual snakes, encounters are rare. Like anywhere in Arizona, hikers probably walk by a few snakes on every trail, oblivious to their presence. Preferring to hide in brush and under rocks during the day, snakes value their peace and quiet--not unlike hikers who gravitate to places like this.

Cockscomb formation seen from Anaconda Trail

LENGTH: 3.3-mile loop

RATING: moderate

ELEVATION: 4,329 – 4,678 feet

GETTING THERE:

From the State Route 179/89A traffic circle in Uptown Sedona, go 3.2 miles west (toward Cottonwood) on SR 89A to Dry Creek Road. Follow Dry Creek Road 2.7 miles to the turnoff for Forest Road 9589 (not signed) on the left. This hidden turnoff is located a few yards south of the Boynton Pass Road/Long Canyon Road “T” intersection.

Continue 0.2-mile on FR 9589 (good dirt with a few potholes) to the end and the parking circle at the AZ Cypress trailhead. 

INFO:

Coconino National Forest
https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/coconino/recreation/hiking/recarea/?recid=71954&actid=50