Weather: 67ยบ, overcast, breezy
About this Hike: Thanks to joining the Arizona Hiking Facebook group I discovered the Soilders Arch and cave along the Soilders Pass trail in Sedona. As I read up on the hike, I realized it's not a very long or difficult hike. Good thing, because I was on time constraints today. I had strict orders to be back at my parent's hotel for a timeshare presentation this afternoon...some non-sense about me attending would get an additional free gift. I'd much rather have been hiking.
I've traversed Soilders Pass trail several times, visiting the obligatory sinkhole and the Seven Sacred Pools of Sedona. Each time parking at the tiny Soilders Pass trailhead has been very difficult. On-street parking in the tony neighborhood that surrounds the trailhead is forbidden, as numerous signs point out.
Angry and frustrated, I worked my way over to the Jordan Road trailhead. This ended up being a blessing in disguise. About one mile over dirt road is required, but it's in very good shape and passable with a passenger car. Just exercise care on the smooth, flat rock portion that mimics pavement––toward the end are some nasty ruts.
Jordan Road is a much bigger parking area than Soilders Pass. An additional 20 - 30 minutes of hiking through relatively level, Arizona Cypress-dotted Sedona landscape is all that is required to reach Soilders Pass. If you want some elevation gain, a shorter, steeper alternate trail deviates from Jordan and goes over Cibola Pass.
So on to the arches... If you use HikeArizona.com, be warned––it says the turn off for the arch/cave is 1/8 of a mile from the Seven Pools. In reality it's at least a mile from there. HikeArizona.com does get it right regarding the wilderness boundary sign. It's small and on a tree, but it marks the well-defined fork in the trail. At this point bear right and begin the steep ascent to the arch.
I covered the majority of the ~1/4 mile climb to the arch in five minutes. I have my Piestewa and Camelback climbs to thank for that, I suppose. Toward the end it gets a bit treacherous and more care is required.
At the actual cave you have to step on a rickety pile of rocks and then hoist yourself up. There are OK hand/foot holds cut into the rock, but standing on that quaking rock pile just didn't work for me. Much as I wanted to go into the cave, I only poked my head in. There is a tin box where you can sign the visitor log, and I actually saw another hiker doing just that. While he admonished me to go into the cave because, "It's not that bad," I couldn't do it. That rock pile took me back to the scene from Home Alone 2 when the burglars attempted to build a ladder of sorts out of household junk...
Regardless, the area around the cave is magnificent. The centuries-old sandstone under the arches is laced with huge fissures. Sunlight streams thru in places. Gigantic boulders are caught in the fissures, dangling precariously. Under the arches the sandstone has become so brittle as to peel like old wallpaper.
I've explored a lot in this area in recent years. Discovering Jordan Trailhead was a silver lining in a frustrating situation early on. I look forward to continued exploration along Soilders Pass, Jordan Trail, and Brins Mesa.
About this Hike: Thanks to joining the Arizona Hiking Facebook group I discovered the Soilders Arch and cave along the Soilders Pass trail in Sedona. As I read up on the hike, I realized it's not a very long or difficult hike. Good thing, because I was on time constraints today. I had strict orders to be back at my parent's hotel for a timeshare presentation this afternoon...some non-sense about me attending would get an additional free gift. I'd much rather have been hiking.
I've traversed Soilders Pass trail several times, visiting the obligatory sinkhole and the Seven Sacred Pools of Sedona. Each time parking at the tiny Soilders Pass trailhead has been very difficult. On-street parking in the tony neighborhood that surrounds the trailhead is forbidden, as numerous signs point out.
Angry and frustrated, I worked my way over to the Jordan Road trailhead. This ended up being a blessing in disguise. About one mile over dirt road is required, but it's in very good shape and passable with a passenger car. Just exercise care on the smooth, flat rock portion that mimics pavement––toward the end are some nasty ruts.
Jordan Road is a much bigger parking area than Soilders Pass. An additional 20 - 30 minutes of hiking through relatively level, Arizona Cypress-dotted Sedona landscape is all that is required to reach Soilders Pass. If you want some elevation gain, a shorter, steeper alternate trail deviates from Jordan and goes over Cibola Pass.
So on to the arches... If you use HikeArizona.com, be warned––it says the turn off for the arch/cave is 1/8 of a mile from the Seven Pools. In reality it's at least a mile from there. HikeArizona.com does get it right regarding the wilderness boundary sign. It's small and on a tree, but it marks the well-defined fork in the trail. At this point bear right and begin the steep ascent to the arch.
I covered the majority of the ~1/4 mile climb to the arch in five minutes. I have my Piestewa and Camelback climbs to thank for that, I suppose. Toward the end it gets a bit treacherous and more care is required.
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| Rock pile I wasn't climbing... |
Regardless, the area around the cave is magnificent. The centuries-old sandstone under the arches is laced with huge fissures. Sunlight streams thru in places. Gigantic boulders are caught in the fissures, dangling precariously. Under the arches the sandstone has become so brittle as to peel like old wallpaper.
I've explored a lot in this area in recent years. Discovering Jordan Trailhead was a silver lining in a frustrating situation early on. I look forward to continued exploration along Soilders Pass, Jordan Trail, and Brins Mesa.
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| One of the smaller cave arches |
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| Striated sandstone |
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