Prescott, Sedona 2022
The drive got interesting in the last 40-ish miles once turning onto AZ-89. Plenty of climbing, turns, and views over vast swaths of desert. There were patches of rain and sun eventually turning to a light snow as I made it into Prescott. Not exactly the weather I was hoping for. It meant a delay in my bike riding for day 10 There wasn’t much time until sunset anyway so better to avoid the miserable wet and cold.
Day 1 in Prescott gave me the impression of a mountain town and a desert city all in one. On one side of the city are some forests and the other has open desert plains.
I rode my bike and did a 32 mile loop from the place I stayed. It was a beast! I didn’t see a single other cyclist out there but a dozen or so people. The ride had a lot of elevation gain and some seriously chunky descents. Made it back alive… and very tired.
Sedona brought much more obvious beauty. The giant red rock formations towered above the town and above me as I rode around them. The trails in Sedona are far rowdier than in Prescott. Where Prescott was a real fitness XC test, Sedona was a test of guts. There are so many rock drops and chunky off camber sections. The terrain is far more suited to those looking to push the stoke and huck their trail or enduro bike off more and more daring features.
I rode a nice trail system near Embry Riddle university on my way out of town that proved a good warm up for Sedona. My first day of riding scored me a parking warning, despite paying and taking up a legal spot. I was in the RV parking zone apparently…
Despite being an outdoorsy place with plenty of regard for the environment, Sedona still hasn’t escaped the plague of car centric, strip mall, pedestrian killing city design. As seen above in all its golden hour glory.
Day 2 began with some time killing for the weather to warm up. I went to a park with many prayer flags and wheels. It was a nice way to start the day. I then spent about 4 hours riding in West Sedona where the trails were perfect for me. Some technical spots but so much flowy single track! It was a great way to finish off the trip (as far as riding goes). I rode about 10 hours in 3 days with a couple more out on the bike just taking breaks. It was a great challenge.
