The lower West Fork of Oak Creek is one of the easiest, highest traffic and most spectacular hikes in the Red Rock Country of Sedona, or perhaps in all of Arizona.

Devil's Bridge is the largest natural sandstone arch in the Sedona area. The arch is 50 feet high. There are two trails, one takes you to the base of the arch and the second takes you to the top of it.

Canyon de Chelly National Monument is centrally located within the Navajo Reservation and access to the bottom of the canyon is controlled by the Navajo Nation. Breaking with the National Park System tradition, there is no entrance fee for entering...

This is a quick hike up an un-named box canyon off of Dry Creek Road. There is a ruin this is mostly intact, and the box canyon is majestic. Well worth hiking if you are doing other hikes off of Dry Creek Road.

Some authors rate the hike as Moderate but you must account for the 1100 foot decent and climb in the 1 1/2 miles from and to the Hualapai Hill Top, coupled with an overall 10 mile hike through very loose, powdery soil to the campground. If you...

There are two trails at Palatki Heritage Site, one trail that takes you to the Sinagua cliff dwellings, and a second that goes to the rock art alcoves. These ruins and the Honanki Heritage Site, Sedona ruins can be done at the same time.

This trail is not maintained and it is hard to follow. There is no water between the trailhead and the Colorado. The hike drops 1100 feet in the first 1/2 mile from the trailhead and leads to the Colorado River in Marble Canyon.

The Honanki Heritage Site cliff dwelling and rock art site, the Sinagua, ancestors of the Hopi, lived here from about AD1100 to 1300. The road getting into the site is very rough. These ruins and the Palatki Heritage Site, Sedona ruins can be done...

Bell's Trail is a very popular and relatively easy trail which follows along and above the Wet Beaver Creek for a distance of approximately 3.25 miles before reaching Bell's crossing. The trail initially follows an old road until it reaches...

A relatively flat hike from the trail head to Parsons Spring. The hike crosses the Sycamore Creek several times and goes through a densely wooded habitat that includes Cottonwoods and Sycamores. Summers Spring is found approximately 1.2 mile from...

Walnut Canyon National Monument is a part of the National Park Service and is a use-fee area. There are two trails leading away from the Visitor Center, the 0.7 mile Rim Trail and the 0.9 Island Trail. The Island trail leads down 240 steps to...

Sedona offers numerous opportunities for some fantastic day-hikes, most of which are easy to moderate in difficulty. Quoting Robert Stone from his book listing his 25 favorite hikes (near Sedona), "There is an old saying that God created the...

West Clear Creek is reported as the longest drainage system on the Mogollon Rim making this trek of about 4.5 miles just a short introduction to the canyon. The trail leaves from the Bull Pen camping area on the left side (North) of the creek which...

The road to the Painted Rock State Park petroglyphs is a good paved road. There are camp sites available at the recreation area but the only facilities are out-house type toilets. No water is available. There is no use-fee for this State Park.

The trail into Red Mountain is an enjoyable and popular walk. The trail is easily followed, joining and following a dry wash emanating from the mountain.

There is no water available at the trailhead or on the trail and the summer months can be deceptively hot so bring plenty of water if you intend to hike up to the ruins on Strawberry Crater. The elevation gain during the hike is not severe, but the...

Cherry Creek Canyon and it's tributaries of Devil's Chasm, Cold Springs, Pueblo Canyon and Cooper Forks (on the East bank) and extending further North is an extremely dense archeological area. There are numerous ruins and old mines located...

There are three ruins within the Tonto National Monument. As you take the path to the "lower" ruin, you should be able to see another ruin slightly to the right of the "Lower" ruin. The public is not allowed in that ruin and...

Antelope Canyon is located on Navajo lands and payment of a fee to the tribe is required in order to visit these slot canyons. In addition you must "hire" a guide who also collects a fee. The Antelope Canyons are divided into upper and...

Lee's Ferry is not really a destination point, but rather it is a departure point. Fisherman fish the Colorado locally or launch their boats to fish up stream toward the Glen Canyon Dam. But more significantly, the boat launch ramp at...

The Wave is an amazing hike. The name comes from the sandstone formation that folds on itself like a wave. The trailhead is in Utah but the hike traverses south and crosses the border into Arizona just a few hundred yards before reaching this...

The ruin on Black Mountain is indicated on your Topo Map. A rule of thumb seems to be that if a ruin is listed on topography maps, there is not much chance of finding artifacts.

Fossil Springs is a wonderful riparian community supported by several springs which reportedly produce a combined million gallons of water per day. The water is a consistent 70 - 72 degrees F. year round which supports a rich variety of flora and...

Horton Spring is wonderful - the water literally gushes from the side of the mountain to flow immediately into a picturesque pool. The habitat is lush - it is well worth the trip. The pool and spring are fenced off to keep cattle away. Close the...

It is reported that the Mazatzal Wilderness north of the East Verdi river contains numerous ruins which are so rich in artifacts that two fulltime rangers are employed in the area to deter would be poachers. My initial trek was an exploratory...

The bridge is believed to be the largest natural travertine bridge in the world. Travertine is calcium carbonate rock that "grows" by the action of the growth and decay of organisms and micro-organisms living on its surface. The life...

The semi-precious gemstone is Merikanite Obsidian. Obsidians are nature's glass which forms in conchoidal shapes (convex exterior but fractures concave) and the nodules are found in sizes as small as peas to the size of softballs. Walking...

The Black Mesa trail is an easy climb to an interesting plateau which is covered by a "forest" of jumping Cholla and Mesquite. The Black Mesa trail then proceeds down to the South Eastern corner of the Garden Valley basin were it joins...

The Seven Springs picnic and campground is a fee-use area. The Cave Creek trail receives high traffic from the throngs of people who can easily reach the popular area from Phoenix. The trial is easy to find and follow with the portion that I hiked...

Without a doubt, this is one of the best "un-managed" ruin that I have been able to visit. Many of the walls are well preserved (either reconstructed or natural - I wasn't sure) and the Mesa is impressive in general.

Peralta Trail is a popular trail in the Superstition Mountains. It is a popular, busy trail which is crowded with hikers and frequent horseback riders. The trailhead is a use-fee area - parking cost $4.00. There is limited parking at the...

Surrounded by encroaching housing developments, the Rock Art Center is an amazing collection of over 1500 petroglyphs, of which more than a hundred are visible from the path. The short dirt trail is totally handicap accessible making this an easy...

The Buena Vista Lookout is just North of the parking circle at the end of the road. The lookout is the trail head for Geronimo trail which heads down the ridge in a northerly direction and is now called Hieroglyphic Canyon trail. The trail is easy...

The ruin at St Clair looks to be about as large as the ruin at Tuzigoot National Monument but it has not been restored. Most of the walls have been leveled, none-the-less it is easy to see how extensive this settlement was and pottery shards are...

From the top, you will be treated to a spectacular panorama of the Phoenix Valley. When soon as you reach this Phoenix City Park, the trail is easy to find, just follow the crowd! This trail is used by all kinds of people, for all kinds of...

There are a number of really nice hikes in the area known as the "Arizona Strip" which is located East of Page, AZ., along the Arizona/Utah border. This is a very special part of the world - enjoy!

This hike is a short, easy hike along the bottom of the Sterling Canyon to the Vultee Arch. The hike is in the Coconino National Forest, within the Red Rock Secret Mountain Wilderness. The arch is about 40 feet high spanning 50 feet.