Devils Bridge Hike
It was still dark and a little before 6am when we left our hotel for the Devils Bridge Hike and headed to the Mescal/Chuckwagon Trailhead parking lot. We had the route downloaded in all trails and our headlamps ready to go, as it was still fairly dark.
The hike is a little over 4 miles roundtrip and relatively easy. It starts on a dirt road and continues on an old access road. Once you turn off the dirt path to the actual bridge, the trail narrows and there are sections of rock steps to go up. It can be a little bit of a scramble up, but it’s quick and relatively easy. There are parts that require you to go single file and I would imagine might take a long time if there are many people there.
We made it up to Devils Bridge before the sunrise and it was just us and 3 other people, a solo trail runner (who ran right by us on our way) and another couple. It was amazing. We had about 20 minutes to take photos and relax before it started to get crowded.
This was my number one must do hike for our long weekend in Sedona. We woke up super early, which is not my favorite thing to do on vacation, but were able to enjoy a breathtaking sunrise with only a few other people.
Sunrise at the devils bridge
We took photos on the bridge as the sun was just starting to come up and the red rocks glowed with light from the sun.
As we headed back down we passed at least 20 people on the stairs coming up and many more on the road to the hike itself.
Another reason to do this hike early or late is the road that you walk along is one of the roads that the jeep tours use, so if you plan to go midday it gets crowded with people, jeeps, off road vehicles, mountain bikers and lots of dust. Also parking can be an issue, since we arrived early we were able to park in the lot, by the time we returned to our car, about 2 hours later, the lot was full and cars were already lining the streets.
If you haven’t done this hike, add it as a must do to your Sedona plan! Going to Sedona, check out these 8 tips for a long weekend in Sedona
0 Comments