Mescal Trail: Sedona's Best Views-to-Effort Hike

By The Lowdown Guide Editorial Team · Visited April 2026 · Updated May 2026

Trailhead: Long Canyon Road Access and Parking

The Mescal Trail trailhead is off Long Canyon Road (FR-152D) in northwest Sedona, in the Boynton Canyon corridor. From AZ-89A, turn west onto Dry Creek Road. Continue west and then turn left (south) onto Long Canyon Road. The paved trailhead lot is on the right side of Long Canyon Road. The access road is paved all the way to the lot — this makes Mescal Trail one of the most accessible west Sedona trailheads for standard passenger vehicles, with no dirt road navigation required.

The lot holds approximately 30 vehicles. A Red Rock Pass is required: $5 per day or covered by an America the Beautiful annual interagency pass ($80/year). Compared to nearby trailheads — the Boynton Canyon lot fills by 8:30 AM on spring weekends, and the Fay Canyon lot by 9 AM — the Mescal lot tends to have capacity later into the morning due to its lower profile. However, on peak spring weekends, arriving by 9 AM is still advised.

The same lot serves as an alternative access point for hikers approaching Devil's Bridge Trail via the longer northwest back-route, which bypasses the crowded main Devil's Bridge trailhead on FR-152. If you see the lot more crowded than expected, that cross-use with Devil's Bridge traffic may be the cause on high-demand weekends.

Trail Character: Rolling Slickrock at Mescal Mountain's Base

Mescal Trail rolls across packed sand and open slickrock at the base of Mescal Mountain's north face. Elevation change is modest at approximately 200 feet over the full 5.2-mile round trip — there are small undulations across the slickrock terrain but no sustained climbs. The Coconino National Forest rates the trail moderate rather than easy, largely because of rocky and uneven sections rather than elevation gain. Trail surface transitions between compacted sandy soil and smooth Schnebly Hill sandstone slickrock, with the slickrock sections offering the most panoramic view opportunities.

The trail is shared with mountain bikes, which is the primary etiquette consideration. Mountain bikes approach fast and quietly on slickrock; hikers should stay alert on blind corners and step to the trail edge when bikes pass. The standard yield protocol is hikers yield to uphill bikes, and downhill bikes yield to hikers. In practice, both parties stop when in doubt. Weekend mornings between 8 and 11 AM see the highest mountain bike volume. Families with young children should keep them close to the trail edge during this window.

The views justify the effort: the north face of Mescal Mountain rises directly above the trail to the south, and the open terrain provides unobstructed northward views over the Lost Wilson Wilderness. To the west, the mouth of Boynton Canyon is visible between the red rock formations. These panoramas are accessible within the first half mile of the trailhead, so hikers who don't want the full 5.2-mile round trip can still get the payoff on a shorter out-and-back. Given the rocky, uneven terrain the Forest Service notes, this is a better fit for capable walkers than for hikers with mobility limitations.

Trail Breakdown: Mile by Mile

Connecting Trails: Long Canyon, Chuckwagon, and Devil's Bridge

Mescal Trail is a worthwhile moderate hike on its own, but its connector potential makes it the gateway to a full northwest Sedona day. At its own end, 2.6 miles from the trailhead, the Long Canyon Trail junction extends the route into the Long Canyon corridor — a 7.2-mile round-trip, easy hike that runs parallel to Boynton Canyon with significantly fewer hikers. Long Canyon is one of the best-kept secrets in west Sedona for experienced hikers who have already done Boynton and want the same terrain profile with far fewer crowds. Combining the two into one day makes for a long outing -- plan accordingly on distance and water.

The Chuckwagon Trail connector links Mescal into the broader northwest Sedona trail network, eventually connecting toward Devil's Bridge via the back-approach from the northwest. This back-approach to Devil's Bridge (versus the main FR-152 approach from the south) is longer and less-traveled, making it the preferred route for hikers who want to see the arch without fighting the main trailhead crowds on summer weekends. The combined Mescal-to-Chuckwagon-to-Devil's-Bridge route is approximately 5 to 6 miles with moderate accumulated gain.

For a two-hike day in the Boynton Pass area, pairing Mescal Trail (5.2 mi, moderate) with Boynton Canyon Trail from adjacent trailheads covers two of the corridor's signature landscapes. Start Mescal early while legs are fully fresh — the slickrock views come quickly — then drive to the Boynton Canyon trailhead for the canyon portion later in the morning. Both require Red Rock Pass. See the passes guide for current fee details.