Brins Mesa Trail

Brins Mesa Trail (Trail 119) is a Sedona, Arizona long-distance hiking route that starts right at the edge of town and works its way out into open terrain above Mormon Canyon, rather than staying tucked in a deep canyon or along a steep wall. The trail is managed as a ground-surface route and includes both hiking and equestrian use.

The route’s big character comes from the climb to the mesa: it transitions from a gradually rising approach into a steeper ascent that reaches the top of Brins Mesa, where the hiking angle eases out. Expect a mix of canyon-bottom travel and then more open mesa walking once you’re up.

Once on the mesa, the trail crosses and traverses toward the northwestern side of Brins Mesa with multiple junctions you can use to shape a loop. A full-loop option pairs Brins Mesa Trail with Soldier Pass and Cibola Pass trails, returning via Cibola/Jordan connections back toward the original trailhead area.

On the way down the loop variant, Soldier Pass becomes the descent route off the mesa, dropping back toward wash bottoms and then rejoining trails that route you back east to the Jordan Trail alignment near the end.

Route length commonly breaks into two popular choices: about 3.5 miles one way (and roughly 6 miles for the longer loop style), with many hikers doing the short loop as a round-trip hike as well. Elevation gain is typically described in the neighborhood of ~800–900 feet for the full loop style.

Access is centered on Red Rock Pass requirements for parking at the main Jim Thompson trailhead. The route is a “no mechanized vehicles (including mountain bikes)” trail in the relevant wilderness context at least for portions near the Red Rock–Secret Mountain Wilderness boundary.

More information: Booking, Visitor information, Brins Mesa Trail - Grand Canyon Trust