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Twin Buttes Loop

RECOMMENDED ROUTE
Difficult Difficult
 4.4 (73)
  1. Areas
  2. AZ
  3. …Flagstaff and Northern AZ
  4. …Sedona
  5. Courthouse Butte
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“Spectacular scenery covering many singletrack trails. ”

Nick Wilder
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Map Key

8.6

Miles

13.9

KM

90%

Singletrack

4,609' 1,405 m

High

4,234' 1,290 m

Low

764' 233 m

Up

755' 230 m

Down

3%

Avg Grade (2°)

13%

Max Grade (7°)

Dogs No Dogs

E-Bikes Not Allowed

Features Technical · Views

Overview

A great link-up of several of Sedona's most scenic trails. There is a great variety of riding: smooth flow on dirt, some slickrock fun, and many challenging rock drops and climbs. There are no sustained climbs or descents, and no sections are very easy (or too difficult) for very long. Though sections of the trail are rated Advanced, this loop is suitable for an intermediate rider willing to hop off the bike regularly - and it's worth it!

Need to Know

Use extra caution watching out for other trail users on Broken Arrow and and Little Horse trails. These have two-way bike traffic and are popular with hikers. Broken Arrow also crosses the OHV trail a few times. Though most sections are not super high speed, there are blind corners and committing technical moves, so stay on your toes and respect the right of way.

Description

Start out with Broken Arrow Trail, a wide singletrack with some flowing sections, but lots of tricky rock steps. They're not large, but the rocks are slick and some are tough to climb up. Going down them is definitely easier.

In less than a mile, take a left on the Submarine Rock Trail and follow smooth singletrack to an intersection with a dirt road. Cross the road and watch your speed as you hit a stone staircase down to a ravine. Hike up the other side and there's more singletrack that curves around the side of the submarine-shaped rock all the way to the backside. Here you'll find a ramp system that you can ride up to the top of the rock and play around on the slickrock. There's fantastic scenery in all directions. Enjoy the view, then turn around the return the same way.

Continue on Broken Arrow Trail until it ends at Chicken Point - and another great view that's worth pausing to enjoy. Pick up the Little Horse Trail, which is significantly smoother, faster, and easier than most in this area. It's fun to open it up a bit on the beautifully banked turns through Juniper forests. Just watch out for oncoming traffic on the occasional rocky section! The scenery is spectacular, as is the norm for this area.

Follow the wide Bell Rock Pathway for a short section until you arrive at the Mystic Trail, which has three distinct sections: The southern end (near the start at the Bell Rock Trail) suffers from highway noise and overhead power lines and is not very aesthetic. The middle section is actually on paved roads through a neighborhood. The USFS has put up carsonite trail markers, but they're very hard to follow. Use the MTB Project mobile app to stay on the path!

The northern section is very nice, fast, and flowy singletrack. Very fun and well built, this part of Mystic is the only one that's worth the riding on its own. But much better terrain awaits on Hog Wash and Pigtail trails. From Mystic trail, turn on Hog Wash and follow it briefly until the junction with Pigtail.

Pigtail is a real treat. This is is a twisty bermed trail that's much flowier than anything else on this loop, and built jumps give ample opportunity for airtime. Just be aware that hikers and riders could be coming uphill. Pigtail is over all too soon, and then you'll pedal Peccary trail back to Hog Wash. The fast flow is pretty much over, but Hog Wash still delivers very fun sections and great scenery on unique slickrock ledges that dip in and out of gullies.

This will end back on the Broken Arrow Trail. Take a left and you'll be back at your car after crossing the OHV road. There are ways to extend this into a longer loop. Check out the Llama Trail for an idea.

Contacts

Local Club: Sedona Red Rock Trail Fund

Land Manager: USFS - Coconino National Forest Office

Shared By:

Nick Wilder with improvements by Justin Smith and 1 other
Full Details

Trail Ratings

  4.4 from 73 votes

#2

in Courthouse Butte

#181

Overall
  4.4 from 73 votes
5 Star
58%
4 Star
33%
3 Star
5%
2 Star
4%
1 Star
0%
Recommended Route Rankings

#2

in Courthouse Butte

#13

in Arizona

#181

Overall
157 Views Last Month
30,204 Since Feb 18, 2014
Difficult Difficult
0%
0%
6%
9%
80%
5%
Add a Photo

Photos

Dropping down Little Horse from Chicken Point.
Feb 18, 2014 near Sedona, AZ
Biking around Submarine Rock with a view of the Twin Buttes doesn't get much better than this!
Jan 20, 2017 near Sedona, AZ
Heading north on the Mystic Trail.
Feb 18, 2014 near Sedona, AZ
We enjoyed this cloudy day on scenic Chicken Point.
Jan 20, 2017 near Sedona, AZ
A rider rolls down Submarine Rock to gorgeous views of Twin Buttes.
Jan 20, 2017 near Sedona, AZ
Short connection for Little Horse to the HT trail.
Feb 20, 2014 near Village…, AZ

3 Comments

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Weather

Current Trail Conditions

All Clear 32 days ago
Add Your Check-In

Check-Ins

Feb 20, 2025
Patrick Blalock
Park at Broken Arrow TH- hog heaven, hog wash, broken arrow, little horse, clockwise. Tech flow, among the best trails I've ridden. Strava 2/19/25
Apr 12, 2024
Megan Wolfe
May 14, 2022
Beau Rennix
Trish and my first trip and my first ride
Apr 25, 2022
Joshua Heath
Apr 17, 2022
Todd Rinaldi
Apr 13, 2022
Sheri Vernier
Feb 20, 2022
Arturo Davila C
Best scenic trail
Feb 12, 2022
Amber Williams
Beautiful trail. I'm a beginner and was able to successfully complete the loop. Lots of walking involved. Steep climbs. Beautiful

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