Field guide · Phoenix
Choose-Your-Adventure Ridge Day
Start on a gentle, low-exposure pathway with an easy bail-out option, then decide how much red rock you're up for based on what the sky's doing.
This one is built with flexibility in mind given the storm chance. Begin on a wide, mostly flat path that's easy to retreat from if weather turns, and use it to scope conditions. If things look calm, tack on a short, sharp climb to a red-rock viewpoint for the payoff view. Either way, you finish the day the same place everyone should on a warm day near Sedona: knee-deep in cold creek water.
The stops
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1
Bell Rock Pathway
Flat and easy to turn back on if clouds build — good first stop to gauge the weather before committing to anything more exposed.
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2
Cathedral Rock Trailhead
Back O' Beyond Rd, Sedona, AZ 86336
Small lot fills by 8am and this climb is fully exposed slickrock — only do this if skies are clear and you can be off it within an hour or so.
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3
Slide Rock State Park
6871 N AZ-89A, Sedona, AZ 86336
End here regardless of how the morning went — cold water, shade, and a good place to sit out any afternoon storm before the drive back.
This outing lives in Jaha
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