Bell Rock Pathway
The best first hike in Sedona. Bell Rock Pathway is rated easy, family-friendly by the Forest Service — 185 feet of elevation gain on a mostly wide, hard-surfaced trail with three trailheads along SR 179. Expect a few steep hills and rough, rocky stretches around Bell Rock. You can walk 10 minutes or the full 3.5 miles and turn around whenever.
No shuttle restriction, so drive up and display a Red Rock Pass. Vault toilets at Courthouse Vista and Bell Rock Vista. Leashed dogs welcome. Open and outside the fire closure area.
Climbing onto Bell Rock itself is a completely different, much harder thing — there's no maintained route up.
The facts
- Open right now?
- Open (not in the current closure order)
- Forest Service trail
- Bell Rock Pathway No. 96
- Distance
- 3.5 miles one-way — walk any portion as an out-and-back
- Elevation gain
- 185 ft
- Difficulty (USFS)
- Easy, family-friendly (USFS)
- Time needed
- Entirely up to you — it's a turn-back-anytime trail
- Trailhead elevation
- 4,192 ft
- Pass required
- Red Rock Pass or America the Beautiful, at all three lots
- Sedona Shuttle
- No direct stop. Route 15 (Thursday–Sunday) serves Little Horse, whose trail begins on Bell Rock Pathway.
- Parking
- Three lots on SR 179. Capacity not published by USFS.
- Dogs
- Yes, leashed. Mountain bikes also use the pathway.
- Restrooms
- Yes — vault toilets at Courthouse Vista and Bell Rock Vista; the Forest Service trail page also lists the northern lot
- Shade
- Minimal, but the trail is easy to cut short
Getting there
Get directions →Three trailheads
Northern trailhead — 34.8243, -111.7758. On SR 179 about 1.6 miles north of Courthouse Vista, on the east side.
Courthouse Vista (midway) — 34.8058, -111.7666. Milepost 308.2, 5.2 miles south of the SR 89A/179 junction; turn left across the northbound lane. The Courthouse Butte Loop starts here, and the trail meets Bell Rock Pathway about ¼ mile toward Bell Rock. Paved, with vault toilets and a pass vending machine.
Bell Rock Vista (southern) — 34.7915, -111.7617. 1.1 miles south of Courthouse Vista at the north end of the Village of Oak Creek, 8.3 miles from I-17 exit 298. Vault toilets.
The Forest Service trail page also lists restrooms at the northern lot. Forest Service pages disagree on horses: the Bell Rock Pathway page allows them and notes a designated horse-trailer space, while the Courthouse Butte Loop page says horses are prohibited on Bell Rock Pathway. Riders should confirm with the Red Rock Ranger District (928-203-2900). Mountain bikes share the trail, so expect to step aside occasionally. The Forest Service publishes no space count for any of the three lots.
Who this trail is for
Sedona's famous hikes have a common problem: they're short, which makes them sound accessible, and then they turn out to involve scrambling on exposed rock. Bell Rock Pathway is the exception, and that makes it disproportionately useful.
It works for kids, for grandparents, for a leashed and possibly nervous dog, and for mixed groups where the strong hikers can scramble higher while everyone else stays on the pathway. The Forest Service notes it's heavily used partly as an access route to the wider trail network — so it's rarely lonely, but its width and length spread people out far better than a single-destination trail like Devil's Bridge.
One caution: minimal shade. That matters less here than elsewhere because you can turn back at any point, but bring water anyway.
Frequently asked questions
Is Bell Rock Pathway suitable for kids?
Yes — it's the Forest Service's own 'easy, family-friendly' rating, on a mostly wide, hard surface with 185 feet of gain and a few steep hills, and you can turn around at any point.
Can I bring my dog?
Yes, leashed. At developed recreation sites such as the trailhead lots, federal rules require pets other than service animals to be on a leash no longer than 6 feet or otherwise physically restrained (36 CFR 261.16). The mostly wide, hard surface makes it one of Sedona's better dog trails. Expect to share it with mountain bikes.
Do I need the shuttle?
No. There's no shuttle stop at Bell Rock's own lots and no private-vehicle restriction. Drive up with a Red Rock Pass.
Are there restrooms?
Yes. The Forest Service lists vault toilets at Courthouse Vista and Bell Rock Vista; its trail page also lists restrooms at the northern lot.
Can I hike to the top of Bell Rock?
There's no maintained trail to the summit and the true top requires technical climbing. Scrambling onto the lower tiers is common, unmaintained, steep, and exposed.
Facts on this page last verified October 16, 2026. Fees, hours, and access rules change seasonally — confirm with the official source before a long drive.