Road biking in Sedona, AZ
 

I'm thinking about taking a trip to Sedona, AZ and am wondering if there is a good network of Class I bike paths there. I did some searching on this site and Google and didn't see much to suggest that Sedona would be a good destination for casual roadbiking.

Can anyone offer some first-hand experience/observations?

Thanks,

Rick

I ride MTB there sometimes, which is FANTASTIC!

Road riding, however, didn't strike me as the best. The road towards I-17 is very beautiful, but I've always thought it was narrow and full of idiots. Rich people in expensive cars going as fast as they can are not big in the "share the road" mentality. Oak Creek Canyon is beautiful, but now think of a narrow twisty two-lane with RVs. There is a nice wide shoulder on the road to Cottonwood, but that bypasses the best of Sedona.

I wouldn't say "hell no", we know that some folks do it but they're braver than me. There are a couple of local bike shops you might inquire with, both Mountain Bike Heaven and Bike 'n' Bean have websites

Sedona rides
 

I would agree with Sandlzrd - the maine road through Sedona and Oak Creek Canyon offer spectacular views, but it's very narrow and there are a lot of idiots who don't mind the speed limit.

I found MTB very disapointing out there - Bike and Bean is the best, they will hook you up with a bike and map of the trails across the street, but I found there were only about 5 miles of wide open trails, and then you need to go single track (which I quickly learned wasn't for me) -

But for MTB riding, I would start with Bike and Bean.

You might want to check Flagstaff to see what they have for rides.

Another fine option is riding a cyclocross type bike on the network of forest roads in the area.

15-10yrs. ago I used to often visit the area, but much less in recent years due to overcrowding on weekends.

Personally I'd much rather hike in the area than ride, trail or road.

Al

Sedona crowded!?
 

Well, I just planned the return trip from Flagstaff to the Phoenix Airport through Sedona, not a very good idea? 1, 2 and 3 May (midweek) is hopefully less crowded. Any seceneric alternative, not to miss the Red Rocks?
Thanks.

Arie

Good plan. I've done this route a few times when I had visiting freinds in town. Mid-week shouldn't be bad (at least it wasn't 5yrs ago)

Al

I'm in Flagstaff, just up the hill from Sedona. I've ridden through Oak Creek Canyon before. It wouldn't be too bad this early in the season and the earlier in the day the better. The highway from Sedona to I-17, as mentioned above, is a beautiful area but the traffic can be pretty fast moving. The road from Sedona to Cottonwood is also quite nice and you could continue all the way up to Jerome and beyond. Some of the locals from Flagstaff head down and do that very ride when it is too cold to ride up here. The weather here today was in the mid 70s (unseasonably warm) and the riding was perfect. There are a number of nice scenic routes up here.

Joe C

Well, thanks noisebeam and jcrouse.
Fortunately I ride pretty fast mysef...accommodate to the traffic-colleagues in more impressive vehicles is not so bad...

Riding gtrom Flag 'down' Oak Creek Canyon on a weekday early in the season should be OK. Have ridden it in October (on a tandem). Careful on the switchback descents . . . you will be braking; yes road is narrow, scenery is spectacular. Traffic in Sedona itself can be a crapshoot and yes, roads are narrow and no, there are no type of bikelanes and lots of gawking turistas!
You can also go from Cottonwood UP (!) to the town of Jerome and over Mingus Mountain to Prescott. Done that too on a tandem . . . a real workout!
Well worth the trip!

Zonatandem, too, thanks for additional info. I'll make this tour, Grand Canyon, Flagstaff, Sedona, Cottonwood, Jerome, Prescott and then to Cave Creek.

Please some advice:
1. Hostel in Flagstaff and camping in Prescott has been arranged, looking for lodging in Cottonwood to break this part of the itinerary and to have time to enjoy.
2. Best itinerary Prescot to Cave Creek (pretty long, so don't prefer to meet (too many) steep mountains)