In October of this past semester, my roommates boyfriend visited for two weeks so we all decided to go on a day trip to Sedona together! We all collectively love Sedona, so this was the perfect destination for us. We had all been numerous times, but have never hiked the Devil’s Bridge Trail before, so that was our main destination of the day!

On the way there, we had all chugged coffee and rebels from Dutch, so we took a pit stop at a cute little gas station in Black Canyon City. They had a few different murals on the buildings, so of course we took some pictures in front of them!

Even though we made this day trip towards the end of October, the weather was still beautiful – it reached nearly 85 degrees! Embracing the beautiful weather, Emma and I were decked out in shorts and sports bras – the classic hiker outfit in the southwest. In the picture above you can see Emma was prepared and wore hiking shoes and I was not. I desperately need to invest in hiking shoes. I have been wearing running shoes to go hiking since I’ve moved out to Arizona since I’m still fairly new to it, but the more I hike the more I realize how useful they would be. My sneakers are getting destroyedddd from hiking. Not that this is a trail that you absolutely need hiking shoes for, but this is when I started realizing they would be beneficial.

The Devil’s Bridge Trail is 4.2 miles long if you hike from the parking lot. However, if you have an off-roading vehicle like a Wrangler or an Ariel Nomad, you can bypass the first mile of the trail and park in a parking lot only a mile from the bridge. Personally, I really enjoyed the full two mile hike to the bridge since it was a short hike, so having an off-roading vehicle isn’t too necessary for this hike. However, if my friends and I had one, I would totally take it here because the people driving by looked like they were having a blast! The first mile of the hike was very flat and sandy and the last mile to the bridge was more rocky and uphill. I would consider this hike fairly easy, since it was mostly flat. The last mile to the bridge was a little challenging, breathing wise, but overall it wasn’t too bad.

Once we reached Devil’s Bridge, I was shocked to see a line of people waiting to take pictures on the bridge. It reminded me of waiting in those long lines for rides at Disney World! I guess it makes sense since it is a destination hike with one specific spot to take a picture, but I still wasn’t expecting it. We probably waited 20 minutes to take our picture, though it went by fast because it was fun seeing other people take cute pictures!

Despite there being a long line to take pictures, I would say everyone was mindful of social distancing which was nice to see!

We had worked up quite the appetite from the hike and were craving sandwiches, so we stopped at this cute sandwich shop called Layla’s Bakery and Cafe. I ordered the chicken pesto sandwich and it definitely satisfied my craving. I was in-between this sandwich and the brisket, but since we had to drive a couple hours back to Phoenix I figured this one would be lighter, and it was perfect!

I totally recommend hiking the Devil’s Bridge Trail and Layla’s Bakery and Cafe if you ever find yourself in Sedona! It’s a great way to see the innumerable red rocks that Sedona is so famously know for.

What is your favorite hike in Sedona? Let me know in the comments below!