The Sedona Keyhole Cave hike is 2.5 miles round-trip, out and back with getting into the cave being the most challenging and dangerous part of all. You are able to see the cave from the trailhead and there is a pretty steep climb at the very end of the hike (hence the monkey crawl). This will definitely help you know you are going the right way especially if you get off track. Use the eroded rocks to place your hands and feet in gaps. Hiking Sugarloaf Mountain via Teacup Trail. I especially appreciate this trail because it is not for everyone and takes a level of commitment to truly the unlock the majesty of this trail. Winter is a fantastic time to avoid both.Where to stay in Accommodation is expensive in Sedona, but there are plenty of very high quality places to stay including Matterhorn Inn, Lantern Light Inn, Arabella Hotel, Whispering Creek B&B and The Suites at Sedona.Popular things to do Sedona is one of the best places to hike in the US, but it is also a wonderful place to get off-road in a jeep, shoot stunning photography, visit historic sites and drink wine. Required fields are marked *. The sun had already moved so far round to the south that the cave was in dark and deep shadow. If you cant get into the most convenient lot, where will you park? Subway Cave is one of the harder cave hikes in Sedona because it is 5 miles roundtrip, requires pathfinding and has a steep climb up a bank to enter the cave. Thanks for sharing the map! Parking at popular hiking trailheads in Sedona is a real challenge. Grand Canyon Just 2 hours from Sedona is the incredible Grand Canyon South Rim, create your wishlist from the best hikes at Grand Canyon South Rim. Going direct to Keyhole Cave means you have to contend with short but steep hills covered in cacti and other harsh vegetation with sharp dagger-like needles that can seriously tear up your feet, ankles and legs. There are two places you can park for hiking Robbers Roost Trail to Hideout Cave. Park at Long Canyon Trailhead among the trees or on the roadside. The map above shows exactly what you can expect when hiking to Keyhole Cave in Sedona. Dont try to cross this ledge in icy or overly wet conditions. The path of following along the wash is straightforward one without any confusion, and we recommend that. Heres the left approach into Keyhole Cave: The bottom section is almost vertical and its smooth which makes it hard to climb. This is a year round destination and supposed low seasons arent much quieter than peak season. The hardest part of the right ascent is getting up onto a ledge right at the start of the climb. Im Fraser & this site is a guide to help you reach your goals, travel the world and create amazing food in between. This is where you are headed! Fortunately I had vocal help from someone who saw more than I did and told me where to put my hands and feet. The Sedona Keyhole Cave hike is 2.5 miles round-trip, out and back. You will make it without issue as long as you keep heading north and keep your eyes peeled for glimpses of the cave opening. It can get a little confusing but if you have a map you can see the trail intersection on it which makes it much easier. Disclosure | Privacy Policy | Terms Of Use, Copyright 2023 | Where Are Those Morgans. However, to be honest you should be fine with this particular hike. Sedona has a total of 7 caves. This cave is 1 of 5 amazing caves within the Sedona Wilderness Ive hiked to. Aim to be inside Soldier Pass Cave between 1pm and 5pm for the best light. We're Mark and Kristen Morgan, former career scientists turned travel, hiking and photography experts after an 18 month honeymoon around the world forever changed our lives. Park At Sugar Loaf Trailhead And Display Or Buy A Pass, Hiking The Wash Vs The Direct Route To Keyhole Cave, What To Pack For Hiking Keyhole Cave Trail. Park at the Fay Canyon Trailhead and follow the flat trail for 0.6 miles keeping your eyes on the rock formations to your right side. We are kicking things off with the popular instagrammers favorite Sedona Subway Cave! Keyhole Cave is in Sedona Arizona, specifically 1.1 miles north from Sugar Loaf trailhead. Hola! To reach the small hole at the back you will need shoes with good traction but once youre inside you will realize why this is such a popular cave. Remember, there is no trail to reach it, and what you will be doing is starting on an official trail on Sugarloaf Trailhead (called Teacup trail), but going off trail to reach the cave. Is it the same with Keyhole cave? From there it is pretty simple with just three turns along the way! Hideout Cave has both east and south facing windows allowing light to illuminate the its cavernous chamber. Try Andante Trailhead parking if you cant get parked at Sugar Loaf and it looks like you wont be able to any time soon. Lets take a look at some of the most asked questions about visiting caves in Sedona, Arizona. Read our complete guide to hiking Robbers Roost Trail into Hideout Cave for in depth details and directions for how to access the cave. It is best to avoid hiking during or after flash floods season. The above Summit is also worth a visit if you have extra time. There is a very small parking lot and you are not able to park on the neighborhood streets so it is best to arrive early. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it. We found the right side of the cave was easier to climb for it had foot holds and plenty of jagged rocks to hold on to. Make sure the cave appears at a distance as this will help you know you are going the right way especially if you get off track. It is made up of 5 or 6 separate tunnel like caverns overlooking Oak Creek. Renting a Jeep in Sedona offers a multitude of benefits and one of those is cutting the hike to Hideout Cave down from 3 miles to just 1 mile. Were going to explain everything you need to know about each of the 7 most popular Sedona caves so you can hike to each stunning cavern during your visit to northern Arizona. Now you have to get up there. America the Beautiful national parks pass, best things to do on and off the Las Vegas strip, best things to do in Valley of Fire State Park. Did you know you can actually make it an all-time epic cave hike day by combining this with Soldiers Pass to see that stunning cave. Some visitors graffitied the cave walls- please do not draw or carve into the walls and leave them as is! Parking: Parking is limited. Later in the day the cave will be in deep and dark shadows. The hike to Keyhole Cave is moderately difficult mostly become of the scramble and climb required to get into the cave. Spring and Fall represent the two best seasons for visiting Sedona in general when hiking conditions are most comfortable. Ropes can come in handy at this point, especially if you are in groups to help one another move around. What Trailhead Do You Use to Access The Sedona Keyhole Cave Read our complete guide to hiking Long Canyon Trail into Birthing Cave for in depth details and directions for how to access the cave. Keep following the curving dry river bed for about 0.75 miles as it snakes north toward Keyhole Cave. Park at Sugar Loaf / Teacup Trailhead and walk up Teacup Trail for 0.3 miles until it joins with Thunder Mountain Trail. Our advice for Sedona is not to worry about temperatures or busy trails, but focus on finding free parking spots. This popular hiking trail heads about three miles into a deep box canyon and includes ancient Sinaguan Indian ruins along the way. Late afternoon sunlight would illuminate the arch and entire rock face in which it is located on the Fay Canyon Trail. Read our guide on why America the Beautiful national parks pass is one of the best things you can buy if you plan to visit multiple parks in the next year. Read our complete guide to hiking Boynton Canyon Trail into Subway Cave for in depth details and directions for how to access the cave. During these seasons you have more chance getting parked up without issue. You will begin the hike at Teacup Trail at the right, another name for Sugarloaf. I will reiterate do not try this unless you are athletic or a good hiker. Now I have to make the following very clear once again: You will be off trail when you do this hike. Robbers Roost Trail is located 21 miles northwest of downtown Sedona on Forest Road 525C. Kachina Cave is the best kept secret of all so called hidden caves in Sedona. If full, try to park at Fay Canyon and hike along Aerie Trail to reach the trailhead. Teacup Trail to Coffeepot Rock. Instead try a backup parking area such as Andante Trailhead. Keyhole Cave: There is a 2.7-mile round trip hike that is pretty difficult to get to this Sedona cave. Also, be on the lookout for rattlesnakes! We personally think the cave feels more beautiful when the sun doesnt fill any of Birthing Cave with light so there are no heavy contrasts. Heres the list of places around Sedona you will need to display either a Red Rock Pass or America the Beautiful Pass in order to hike. You can of course split it up and take one of the many small trails back from the cave if you want more of an adventure and to not use the same wash trail you use to get there. Supposedly the shuttle only runs Thursday through Sunday but we met people in Sedona who claimed to have taken the shuttle on a Tuesday so look out for the bus running if you visit Mon Weds. The pass can be purchased at the machine at the trailhead (credit card only). Boynton Canyon Exactly how to find the famous Subway Cave on Boynton Canyon Trail, the most photographed cave in Sedona. How to Find the Sedona Birthing Cave You can use Sugar Loaf Mountain as your landmark to aim for on the hike back. In Sedona, we used Gaia to find all of the hidden caves and didnt lose any time trying to figure out if we were on the right path. Preparation saves lives. There may be hikers already in the cave who have rope. Never the less, with these warnings aside, Ill be sharing the details about this hike and what to expect, so you can decide if you are up for it too. It is the biggest cave featuring a huge chamber and enormous opening which frames the Sedona landscape outside. The view out of Keyhole Cave is spectacular and you can get far enough back inside the formation to easily frame the background through the cave entrance. It is definitely worth visiting Keyhole Cave, the biggest cave you can hike to in Sedona on your itinerary. We personally think the cave is easier to photograph when there is no light inside between mid to late morning. Now this is again where I have to warn you about the dangers: I do not recommend climbing in this part of the hike. See options All photos (629) Top ways to experience Boynton Canyon Trail Recommended R3 R4 Night R1 It wasnt until after we left that we realized wed missed a cave! That means you get to enjoy it even more once you are standing inside the UFO shaped upper cave chamber. It was quiet, off the beaten path, harder to access and felt like more of an adventure. Check out Hiking for Beginners 101- The Best Guide for New Hikers to get started! However, the wash is flatter, more consistent and you wont have to go back on yourself at any point. Each cave can be accessed by visitors to Sedona via hiking trails varying in length between 0.5 5 miles roundtrip. Now there are 2 ways to navigate your way to this: 1) The first way is visual: Again, you will be able to see the cave from the parking lot and you can see the direction in which its at and keep heading in it. Soldier Pass Cave is west facing which means you can visit later in the day to see light streaming into the cave from multiple sources. While this part is doable for most everyone, the real issue comes when you reach the cave and attempt to climb up into it. That is exactly what happened to us during our visit to Sedona. Check the weather and water conditions before you embark on the hike. Once you are at the entrance, you can see how gigantic Keyhole Cave is and mystic. Fay Canyon Arch is a gigantic sandstone formation eroded into a towering red rock cliff in the shape of an arch. You are actually starting this hike on Teacup Trail despite the parking area being called Sugar Loaf. Most people are parking at Sugar Loaf Teacup Trailhead to hike the Sugar Loaf Loop Trail and climb Sugarloaf Mountain. But back to finding the keyhole cave! You can get amazing photos from the bottom of the cave too. Keyhole Cave is a southwest facing cave located in Coconino National Forest to the north of downtown Sedona. . If the lot is full you can try waiting a for a little to see if anyone leaves. But do not count on others being able to help you climb into Keyhole Cave. , Hi Mara! It is best to get down on the right side, the same way you went up. View full map. You simply have to forge your own route to Keyhole Cave. During the busiest periods in Sedona from Spring through Fall you need to be at parking lots by first light to give yourself a chance at getting a space. Fortunately, a shuttle bus system has been implemented in Sedona which helps hikers get to the most popular trailheads year round. Rome2rio displays up to date schedules, route maps, journey times and estimated fares from . Hiking is one of the best things to do in Sedona and Keyhole Cave is one of our favorite hidden trails in town. If youre short on time, this is the adventure hike for you. Im so glad to hear you were able to make it to see the Keyhole cave! Things to do in Sedona journey times and estimated fares from the arch and entire rock face in it. The Keyhole Cave is the best kept secret of all so called hidden caves in Sedona which helps hikers to. Curving dry river bed for about 0.75 miles as it snakes north toward Keyhole Cave, most! 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