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Traveling to the phx area around 4 th of July , ride Sedona?

1K views 24 replies 13 participants last post by  owtdorz 
#1 ·
I am going to be in the Phoenix area the first week of July. I was thinking of driving to Sedona and renting a bike and maybe get a tour by hermosa. I believe Sedona is higher country is it going to be rideable factoring the heat? What do I need to know or be prepared for? Also thought about the flagstaff area also but wanted to ride slick rock type terrain as I never have before. Probably going to rent a rip 9, one of the shops rents them I guess.
 
#2 ·
You can ride where ever you want. I ride in the Phoenix area all year long but be prepared to be up early and finish early (I usually have to be done by 9:30am) that time of the year. Take your hydration serious and plan for bail points even if you dont think you would need them for your typical riding distance. Not every mile is created equal and many trails in AZ and Sedona for that matter can have you thinking you have been riding much farther than you really have.
 
#3 ·
If you're coming from somewhere hot in the summer like us, then you can prolly roll Sedona all day long. If you're not, shoot for early morning. The rocks radiate heat during the day, so it will feel hotter than the air temp forecast indicates. Otherwise, head up the hill to Flagstaff and ride in the pines and aspen.
 
#4 ·
I should be used to the heat, I am coming from middle Georgia and work on a flightline. I am thinking I may go for a tour ride as I would not want to get lost. As far as Flagstaff goes anyone have a line on where to rent a bike?
 
#18 ·
Pretty much no, the red rock reflects the sun and it ends up feeling just as hot as Phoenix. It may be 115° in Phoenix and it will "only" be 105 or so in Sedona, maybe only low 100s at highest reaches, but the lack of shade-providing trees and the rock will make it brutal.

Flagstaff has outstanding riding, like Tahoe and Colorado, similar climate, similar vegetation, etc, it's well worth riding there.

If you still really really want to do it, then start on the trail around 5am. There are no rides totally "on slickrock" like moab, but most trails include significant rock sections of course and there are lots of epic rides to choose from there (like many places in AZ).
 
#19 ·
Pretty much no, the red rock reflects the sun and it ends up feeling just as hot as Phoenix. It may be 115° in Phoenix and it will "only" be 105 or so in Sedona, maybe only low 100s at highest reaches, but the lack of shade-providing trees and the rock will make it brutal.
).
I completely agree.

As a long time Phoenix rider I am very used to riding in the heat. A few summers ago the expected temperature here in Phoenix was going to be 110 degrees. We decided to head up to Sedona where we figured at 4000 feet we would have an easy time riding. Although the high temp only reached 102 degrees that day we rode starting at 10 a.m. and it was absolutely miserable by 1 p.m. It was hot as hell with all the reflected heat and the lack of shade like you said.

OP I think you should just play it by ear. If its going to be 100 degrees that weekend then maybe head up to Flagstaff. If the temperature is only going to be 88 or 90 degrees then your options are open.
 
#20 ·
OP, like a lot of fellow riders are saying, it is likely to be hot (90s) during the day. But crimony, it's AZ for crying out loud. Flag is great too, and at 7000+ feet, it will definitely be cooler. But like I said earlier, if Sedona is getting its daily thunderstorms by July 4 (a distinct possibility), they tend to cool things off by tens of degrees and make for awesome afternoon riding. People do actually ride bikes in Sedona in the sumnertime. Ride in the morning until you're hot and the storms roll in, grab lunch at any number of good restaurants during the rain, and ride hero dirt in the afternoon. And if you can stay for two days, by all means hit Flagstaff. Or skip Sedona altogether. No offense to the other AZ riders who have offered some good advice, but your original question was about Sedona, and while it will be hot, it is not at all unridable, and myself having grown up in Montgomery and remember how hot it got there, there is no suffocating 90% humidty here when it's in the 90s here. I've lived and ridden in Phoenix year-round since 1993. Sedona is perfectly ridable in July. You'll sweat your ass off climbing, and be grinning ear to ear on the descents. Take more water than you think you'll need (100 oz per 15-20 miles is reasonable). Hope you enjoy your trip. That is all.

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#21 ·
if Sedona is getting its daily thunderstorms by July 4 (a distinct possibility), they tend to cool things off by tens of degrees and make for awesome afternoon riding. People do actually ride bikes in Sedona in the sumnertime. Ride in the morning until you're hot and the storms roll in, grab lunch at any number of good restaurants during the rain, and ride hero dirt in the afternoon.
The chances of it working as ideally as you mention in terms of timing are slim, plus, riding in a thunderstorm is no fun and downright dangerous due to the hail and lack of protection in that environment. These have been known to even spawn tornadoes every once and a while. Monsoon season CAN allow for riding, but it also can allow for death mud dirt and other hazards. It's not really "daily", it comes and goes with the moisture stream and other factors, and it sometimes gets thrown completely out of sequence (as far as being around noon). Sometimes a stable rain/overcast layer will develop after an evening of intense thunderstorms, and the riding can be off the scales in terms of climate and fun factor, but again, the chances are slim. I'll say this, if it was only 90 in Sedona (which feels like 100 due to the rock), I'd have ridden it a lot more in the summer, but with Flag nearby, those 100 days turn into about 87 degrees with the lapse rate, but far more shade, and then 78 at 9000'. Pretty soon you don't feel miserable the entire time due to the heat on the ups and downs, and that's more of the worst case, Flag starts more like 75-80 usually and gets cooler as you go up.

But yep, it is perfectly ridable if you start early and get off the trails early. Don't try to do a mega-ride and stay out for 6 hrs. Take lots of sunscreen, water, and importantly in these desert locations, electrolytes (doesn't have to be salt pills, just salty/potasiummy foods). Avoid lots of sugars (like gatorade) and hyrdate hydrate, take extra water in your pack or water-bottle in addition to what's in the camelback. It might weigh a few lbs at first, but it won't later on.

The reason some of us caution against this kind of riding is that this is the exact kind of riding that catches out of towners off-guard, and at worst it kills them, as it has in the past. Moab has some stories similar to this, and of course down in Phoenix there are usually multiple rescues each year of people who thought they could just go on out for a mid-day ride/run/hike.
 
#24 ·
Don't rule Prescott out. I know you only mentioned Flagstaff and Sedona, but Prescott is great in July. Lots of things that provide shade (I believe they are called "trees"). Prescott was my regular escape from Phoenix in the summer.
 
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