Devil’s Bridge Trail is the largest natural sandstone arch in the Sedona area and arguably the most popular trail in Sedona. For many visitors to Sedona, it is a true bucket-list experience and for Instagram models it’s practically the Mecca of the Southwest.

But what can you expect on this trail and is the experience truly worth it? In this article, I’ll break down everything you need to know about Devil’s Bridge.

Devil’s Bridge Trail Overview

This is a great trail for someone looking for an iconic Sedona experience. The trail has great views and it doesn’t require too much effort although it offers enough of a climb to be rewarding. You will likely want to get an early start on this trail because of the crowds and potential high temperatures.

• Distance: 4.2 miles
• Elevation Gain: 564 feet
• Route Type: Out and back
• Pets: Yes
• Difficulty: Easy to Moderate
• Time needed: 1 to 3 hours

Getting to the trailhead(s)

Devil’s Bridge is located in the northern area of Sedona.

It took us about 40 minutes to get to the trailhead from where we were staying which was in the Village of Oak Creek in South Sedona, but if you are staying in the heart of Sedona, you are probably about 15 to 20 minutes away.

There are few different ways you can hike to Devil’s Bridge.

• Long version: Dry Creek Road to Devil’s Bridge Trail (4.2 miles round trip) 
• Short version: Off-roading to Devil’s Bridge Trail (1.7 miles roundtrip)
• Alternate Route 1: Chuckwagon to Devil’s Bridge Trail (5.8 miles round trip)
• Alternate Route 2: Mescal trailhead to Chuckwagon to Devil’s Bridge Trail (4.0 miles round trip)

Long version

The popular long version begins at the Devil’s Bridge Trail Parking Lot around FR-152 — just before Dry Creek Road turns into a dirt road. (If you can’t find a parking place at Devil’s Bridge Trail Parking Lot, overflow parking also takes place down the road before you turn off.)

The long version will be more moderate, especially if you are dealing with higher temperatures because a lot of the trail is exposed to the sun. As you hike on this route, you will likely encounter some people off-roading until you reach the trailhead.

Short version

The popular short version of Devil’s Bridge Trail is only for people with off-roading capabilities.

On this route, you will drive in on the rocky Dry Creek Road until you get to the trailhead. Since we had our Jeep Grand Cherokee Trailhawk, we decided to drive in and do a little bit of off-roading which was pretty fun but I would only recommend it if you have confidence in a high clearance vehicle. Not only will you be off-roading but you will need to be mindful of hikers.

If you do this version your round-trip will be around 1.7 miles. You could knock it out in just under an hour pretty easily.

Alternate one

You can opt for an even longer hike on the Chuckwagon Trail which departs from the Devil’s Bridge Trail Parking Lot. This trail should have fewer people on it so you can escape the crowds better but it will be longer at just under 6 miles round-trip.

Alternate two

The Chuckwagon Trail also connects from the Mescal trailhead. This is a great approach if you want to keep the trail on the shorter side around 4 miles but want to avoid the crowds as best you can.

Devil’s Bridge is such a popular hike that I would highly recommend getting a very early start, regardless of which route you choose.

We started just after sunrise and there were already about six or eight people at the bridge when we arrived. And as we came back, we came across dozens of others.

Trail conditions

The trail is largely in great condition. As you approach Devil’s Bridge, the trail gets much rockier but for the most part it is very manageable.

There are quite a few signs and cairns to guide you along the way so navigating is not very difficult. However, there were a couple of trails that were not shown on my trail map so make sure you don’t venture down the wrong path.

Route description

While we drove in for the first portion of the hike, I could tell that it was a pretty easy walk if you chose to hike in from the parking lot. The path is quite sandy at times so be ready for that. But you’ll have some pretty good views along the way.

After you’ve gone about 1.4 miles on the dirt road, you should be able to see the Devil’s Bridge Trail sign and if you are driving an off-road vehicle simply turn into that path and you’ll see a parking lot.

The actual trail to Devil’s Bridge is marked with a small sign (#120) that you will see at the end of the parking lot.

From the Devil’s Bridge trailhead, the trail starts off with a very gradual incline. Along the way, you’ll have some spectacular views of the red rocks.

There’s also a ton of vegetation including juniper and prickly pear cactus, which all help to create that stunning contrast of red rock and lush green that Sedona is known for.

Once again, I would recommend hiking in the morning or evening to take advantage of the great lighting during golden hour. It also felt very cool in the morning even on a hot summer day that would reach the mid 90s in the afternoon.

At about .4 miles in from the second trailhead, you will start noticing bigger steps and rocks that you have to navigate. I personally did not feel like the grade was that challenging but if you are an inexperienced hiker or hiking the longer route on a hot day, you might start to feel some fatigue at this point.

The views will continue to impress as you ascend.

For the most part, the trail markers should help guide you along the route.

At about .7 miles in, you’ll come across the steepest parts of the trail. Here, there will be a couple of sets of semi-steep scrambles you will need to climb to get to the top.

After the first little scramble you come upon a sweeping view of the neighboring red rocks. Take a moment to savor the view.

After that you will make your way up the steepest portion of the route. There are stairs built into the rock but you can also scramble up another path. While this part is steep, I would not consider it to be very difficult or strenuous.

There were some people perched on the trail at this point which I don’t recommend because it causes bottlenecks and it’s not exactly conducive to social distancing.

Once you make it to the top, it’s a short stroll over to Devil’s Bridge.

If you are visiting Devil’s Bridge during a popular time, there likely will be a line here.

When we were there, one or two people would venture out onto the bridge, get some photos, and then come back and then someone else would step out.

I imagine this is how it normally works but I’m not sure how it goes when there are swarms of people here. It’s very possible that in some cases you will be waiting quite a while to get out on the bridge, especially if people are doing their Instagram photo shoots.

If you don’t have somebody to take your photo, you can probably ask and just about anybody will be willing to help you out.

The area around Devil’s Bridge is a pretty cool place to relax and take in the view so even if you don’t want to venture out onto the bridge you might still want to hang out for a while.

To actually get across the bridge, you will basically wrap around the cliff and walk right onto the bridge. There is one point when you are approaching the bridge that is pretty exposed so be mindful of your steps.

Once you make your way onto Devil’s Bridge, you can size up the width of the bridge a lot better.

The first half of the bridge is very wide and you can easily walk out on it and feel pretty safe while taking a photo or two.

While the bridge is pretty wide, there is a section in the middle where it narrows and that is a pretty rocky with some wide crevices. A stumble there could be catastrophic. So this is definitely not a spot that you want to play around on.

It’s about 60 to 75 feet to the rock/trees below so you definitely don’t want to fall off this thing. In case you were wondering what the view looks like looking down, here you go.

If you can make it to the end of the bridge, the views are great.

The climb down is a little tricky because it is so steep at the top so you might have to scoot down some sections. But overall, I would rate this as a very doable hike even for people who don’t do a lot of hiking.

Tip: When you make your way down, look for a trail spur that will take you below Devil’s Bridge.

We passed a lot of hikers on our way back. There had to have been at least 40 hikers that we spotted heading towards Devil’s Bridge. So if you are like me and prefer hikes with lots of solitude, this hike may be a little bit too touristy for you. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still worth trying but I would prioritize doing it in the early morning or later evening when crowds are thinnest.

Final word

Overall, I would consider this a must do a hike in Sedona. The drawback is how crowded it can be but the views and unique natural arch make it worth dealing with.