2.5 miles

Distance

167 ft

Climb

-240 ft

Descent

00:32:20

Avg time

Supporters, Builders, Maintainers & Land Managers of Mescal Trail

Over the Edge Sports (Sedona)
since 2017
Sponsor
Biermann Construction
since 2017
Sponsor
Absolute Bikes - Sedona
since 2017
Sponsor
Avenue 25
since 2017
Sponsor
Singletrack Futures Foundation
since 2017
Sponsor
Verde Valley Bicycle Company
since 2017
Sponsor
MBAA
since 2017
Sponsor
Trail Sports AZ
since 2017
Sponsor
Coldwell Banker Sedona
since 2017
Sponsor
USFS
Land Manager

Mescal Details

Activities
- Mountain Bike
- Hike
- Trail Running
Riding Area

Dry Creek
Sedona, Arizona
Difficulty Rating

Blue rate
Voted Difficulty

Blue (7 votes)
Trail Type

Singletrack
Bike Type

AM, XC, Adaptive MTB
Direction

Both Directions
Dogs Allowed

Yes
eBike Allowed

No
Global Ranking
#433 in Mountain Biking [+]
- #5465 in Trail Running
- #1420 in Hiking
Local Popularity
85 in Mountain Biking [+]
- 70 in Trail Running
- 80 in Hiking

The trail is 2.6 miles long and is one of the most popular trails in Sedona. The south end of the trail starts at the Chuck Wagon intersection on the south side of Long Canyon Rd. The north end of the trail starts at the Deadmans Pass trail.

The actual trail tread is on both slickrock and dirt. Some of the route is on slickrock ledges which adds to it's uniqueness. During the ride there are two alternate lines for higher skilled riders to enjoy. If you are an advanced skilled rider you will love this ride. If you are a lesser skilled rider you will walk a few sections, but will hopefully be able to improve your skills for the next time you ride it.

Disclaimer

Equestrians Restricted

Adaptive Bike Info

aMTB 3 Rating: Major obstacles exist. You will not be able to ride this solo. Support rider needed.

About 100 yards of Narrow Exposed Off-Camber w/ledge drop-off though middle section. One major rock pinch spot from north end. An out and back from either end of trail is possible for adaptive but middle section is a no go.

Local Trail Association

Verde Valley Cyclists Coalition
Sedona Red Rock Trail Fund
Arizona Trail Association
Mountain Bike Association of Arizona
Please consider joining or donating to the local trail association to support
trail development & maintenance.
donate to earn trail karma!

Traditionally Indigenous Territory

More Stats for Mescal bike trail trail

Altitude change

-71 ft
Altitude min

4,479 ft
Altitude max

4,699 ft
Altitude start

4,561 ft
Altitude end

4,488 ft
Grade

-0.5%
Grade max

-21.8%
Grade min

24.1%
Distance climb

4,967 ft
Distance down

1 mile
Distance flat

2,162 ft
Avg time

00:32:20
Avg reverse time

00:40:09
view trail stats

Status:

on May 20, 2022

Dry

Avg: 4.6 (70 votes)

Your vote: 0

view (3,608)

Directions to mescal trailhead (34.911110, -111.843620)

update trails status or condition

Mescal Trail Reports

status	date	description
	May 20, 2022 @ 8:47am May 20, 2022
	Mar 6, 2022 @ 9:40am Mar 6, 2022	Pretty wet. It will dry, but ride with care.
	Jan 2, 2022 @ 2:04pm Jan 2, 2022
	Nov 17, 2021 @ 7:57am Nov 17, 2021
	Oct 10, 2021 @ 10:18am Oct 10, 2021

view all reports »

Recent Ridelog Activity on Trail

Past Week

4 rides
10 miles avg distance

6 Months

449 rides
14 miles avg distance

All

3,394 rides

Technical Trail Features (TTF)

Mescal

Photos

27 |

Nov 28, 2021 @ 11:21am

Nov 28, 2021

19 |

Nov 26, 2021 @ 8:00pm

Nov 26, 2021

347 |

Dec 7, 2016 @ 6:38am

Dec 7, 2016

| 4 comments

575 |

Mar 3, 2015 @ 9:02pm

Mar 3, 2015

Routes with this trail

title	distance
Roam Fest Sedona - DRYCRK 1 - Chuchwagon (Short)	8 miles
Westside Sampler	9 miles
Western Gateway Loop	24 miles
DRYCRK 4	9 miles

12 Reviews & Comments

Score Time

theshonen8899

(May 2, 2022 at 8:54)

Beautiful trail with amazing views. I don't agree with the blue rating, either this needs to be black or Aerie, Cockscomb, Rupp, Girdner, Chuckwagon need to be green because there's a very clear jump in difficulty. Quite a bit of technical climbing and exposure.

[Reply]

Escottimilhizer

(May 15, 2021 at 8:56)

This trail is only worth riding for the aesthetics. The trail is an intermediate (at best) and marked as such by the signs around the route. There are a few short punchy climbs but otherwise it’s unremarkable. Unless you are looking to take an inexperienced rider on a visually appealing trail, its not worth it.

[Reply]

jamesapdx

(Mar 31, 2021 at 10:00)

Views are epic. Total fun slickrock with some exposure. A bit of hike a bike for beginners/intermediates in places, but not to be missed if in the area. Was serenaded by a bagpiper! darkislepiper.com

[Reply]

gnarflow13

(Jan 19, 2021 at 11:12)

Some real fun flat slickrock sections, great rock rolls, and a little bit of nice flowy ST. Super fun trail, on par with Canyon Of Fools for being the best trail in West Sedona.

[Reply]

madmax237

(Dec 29, 2020 at 8:04)

I felt that 95% of the trail is intermediate or below, but there is some exposure. Honestly I felt this trail was a little over hyped in terms of the actual fun of riding, but it's definitely worth it for the views.

[Reply]

iabductaliens

(Jul 23, 2020 at 10:10)

What is the best direction to ride this trail?

[Reply]

Jaimelynn44 (May 25, 2020 at 14:27)

This is an amazing trail! Well worth it. Don’t let the black scare you. Should be blue.

[Reply]

twowheeledwanderer (Nov 16, 2019 at 7:42)

I think this is one of the most beautiful and unique trails in Sedona. It runs along the base of Mescal Mountain and a good portion of it is on red slickrock. There are some techy sections, but they're easily walkable if you don't feel comfortable. I wrote up a blog post about the 8 best trails in Sedona (in my opinion) and Mescal is one of them twowheeledwanderer.com/posts/my-eight-favorite-mountain-bike-trails-in-sedona-arizona

[Reply]

cemoorelife

TRAILFORKS (Jul 10, 2019 at 15:41)

Really great trail, a bit of a grunt of a climb initially but not too bad then the trail opens up to go around the inside of a fab red rock structure. Nothing super hard. Great views and a great fun trail.

[Reply]

otbspecialist

(Jan 20, 2019 at 16:58)

I'm intermediate and loved this trail. Off bike walking a few sections but no real hike a bike.

[Reply]

szed3

(Jan 4, 2019 at 21:30)

Good warm-up/Sedona intro ride if it's your first time here. A little bit of everything: slick rock tech, cornering over loose rock and the infamous Sedona 'dirt'. More intermediate/blue with a few challenging slick rock techy sections.

[Reply]

grampa

(Nov 29, 2018 at 12:56)

A must if you're in the area. kinda black, but nothing gnarly so more like a blue with a few feet of technical single moves then carry on with some fun riding in beautiful terrain.