jppe

We've just had an opportunity come up for a week long visit to Sedona, AZ in early May that we can't pass up. Very low trip expense using airline credits for air and rental car plus almost free accommodations and we just love the area. And it's NOT a timeshare pitch!! We've been there several times but I don't think I've ever ridden my bike around there. I debating getting a bike out there (I've shipped bikes a lot) and maybe riding over to Jerome and back or even up 89A past sliding rock. Any thoughts or suggestions on those or other routes for a 2-4 hour ride?

I will probably play a round of golf as well...maybe I could just rent clubs instead of taking my own. I'm wondering if I have too many interests and hobbies......

I-Like-To-Bike

Not if you can afford them and don't neglect important domestic/family responsibilities in their pursuit.

Mountain Mitch

Try mountain biking. Some pretty good trails just outside of town.

big john

https://www.bikeforums.net/southwest...ad-riding.html

diphthong

i don't think it would be worth the time/expense/cost/hassle of packing/shipping/airplaning your bike to the sedona area. if you are driving, that's another matter. you will be more likely to
find mtb/gravel/hybrid rentals than roadie options but, if memory serves, there are one or two places that rent road bikes in the area.

ridden a few of the roads around there. definitely worth doing at least once. early may could be kinda toasty so mornings sunrise-9am might be your best friend.

riding from sedona south to cottonwood is a definite slog. you'd be better off maximizing your time by throwing the rental bike in the rental car and driving
to either cottonwood or clarkdale to do the challenging climb up to jerome (5,000 ft) and beyond to the road's summit (a little over 7,000 ft). the road up the hill from jerome has a few tricky sightlines and if
you bring some good rear lights to strap onto the rental bike and wear something high viz, it'll be a better ride. steepest part is a half mile stretch climb up to the outskirts of jerome
(you'll see it in advance-no surprises) and a few stiff, out of the saddle moments in jerome itself. after you clear jerome, it's a steady grade. even tho it'll be may, i'd seriously consider
bringing a windbreaker for the descent as it's a decent length and moderately technical coming down from road's summit. because of vehicular traffic, would not do this ride on a weekend/holiday, regardless of the time of day.
i'd save it for the weekdays < 10am...especially if you're a plodder/grinder/slogger like me.

riding from sedona north to flagstaff via hwy 89a is challenging as well. pretty much climbing the entire way with few turnouts, a narrow road and questionable sightlines. super scenic but i can't recommend it
except as a descent (with a potential buddy car shuttle). again, early morning weekdays would be your best bet. if you're still wanting to ride that stretch, i recommend driving it first to know exactly what you're
getting yourself into.

plenty of scenery in and around sedona on either side of the 89 for roadies along with less traffic. haven't done any gravel or dirt riding there tho. my biggest concern doing mtb or gravel would be the cavalcade of backcountry
jeep/4wd tours traffic. a quick visit to the local shop would likely go a long ways to minimizing any/most 4wd traffic interactions if you do gravel/mtb.

even if you don't bring/rent the bike or clubs, there an absolute bleepton of scenic hiking in the area. given the choice between bringing the bike, hiking boots or clubs for sedona? hiking boots for sure.

596

I used to live in Sedona. I lived at Casa Sedona B&B, my wife and I owned it. Right at the base of thunder mountain. My main ride was West out of town to cottonwood and back up. The loop that starts at 89a at the high school is down red Rock loop and back up again. It's a nice ride with beautiful views of cathedral rock. As mentioned earlier the ride from cottonwood up and beyond Jerome is a blast. Also the ride up 89a toward Flagstaff is a beautiful ride. Just ride up to the switchbacks and back down. Just be very careful of the tourist traffic. Also if you ride South toward the village of oak Creek the road is double lane in each direction with a bike lane in each direction. Just ride down to Bell Rock and back.

Mountain biking is fantastic there. Single and double track every where. I never had any problems with the Jeep tours. In fact, in 8 years I only was passed by one Jeep. There's tons of trails the Jeeps can't go on.

I also did tons of trail running.

Good luck if you are still going.

jppe

Thanks and all that sounds perfect......unfortunately we’ve had to cancel the trip. Everything was free including flight, rental car and resort so it was a tough decision! Just bad timing. Unfortunately we’re unable to reschedule the resort so a real bummer. We love that area.