Work will begin in the vicinity of Bell Rock, Cathedral Rock, Doe Mountain, Oak Creek Elementary School and Sedona Red Rock High School to construct 4.06 new miles of trails, officially recognize 4.07 miles of existing trails and close approximately 0.17 miles of trails.
“I wouldn’t rule out us starting earlier than fall 2024 with items like trail layout and flagging, but construction will most likely start when our seasonal crew arrives in late October or November,” acting District Ranger Alex Schlueter said. “We don’t anticipate construction to take longer than a few months for any of these.”
The anticipated timeline for Phase I will be:
* Fall 2024: Singletrack Bypass and Rector Connector, Hardline
* Spring 2025: Doe Mesa Loop and Schuerman Mountain Trail at Red Rock High School
* Fall 2025: Construction of a new 3.02-mile multiuse trail at Oak Creek Elementary School in Cornville to increase bicycle recreational opportunities
Trail closures are not anticipated to be required for any of these projects and new signage will also be installed following the completion of the work.
“Sedona Red Rock Trail Fund, Wheel Fun, Verde Valley Cyclist Coalition, Friends of the Forest and others have all expressed interest in assisting with project implementation, which really shows the huge support we have in the community for trails,” Schlueter said in a press release.
The construction of a new 500-foot Scheurman Trail Connector is planned to eliminate the need for hikers to walk through the parking lot of Sedona Red Rock High School, as will the adoption of the user-created Hardline trail that connects the Hiline Trail to the Easy Breezy and Templeton Trail junction.
A 0.98-mile mountain bike loop trail adjacent to Oak Creek Elementary School will also be adopted and 3.02 miles of interior connecting trails will be constructed along with a small four-vehicle parking area off Willow Point Road. The updated plan for Oak Creek Elementary School will formalize a social bike path entry point from East Fern Drive through property that is owned by Yavapai County.
“A two-mile ‘figure 8’ loop [will] be created through the adoption of 2.06 miles of new trail on top of Doe Mountain to access views in West Sedona,” the plan stated. The original plan has been revised to eliminate an existing trail through the center of the loop and to add a new 0.15-mile connector.
An additional 0.73 mile of new trail will connect the Bell Rock Singletrack Bypass to Courthouse Loop and to the Bell Rock Vista Trailhead, and a 0.11-mile unofficial trail that joins the northern end of the Rector Connector Trail to Bell Rock-Pathway will be acknowledged.
Turkey Creek
The Red Rock Trails Access Plan was split into two phases largely in response to public outcry regarding proposed changes in the Turkey Creek area west of Verde Valley School Road, where 20.17 miles of new trail construction have been proposed and 10.9 miles of unofficial trails would be recognized.
VVS Head of School Ben Lee said that Forest Service staff during a recent visit to the school “indicated” to him that the updated Phase II plan will adopt a trail further away from the dorm, “which is fine with us,” he said.
Schlueter did not confirm that the Forest Service had committed to the new route when asked.
“My hope is to continue that engagement [with VVS], get more involved myself, and to work toward a trail system that meets the goals of the Forest Service and Verde Valley School,” Schlueter said. ”What that looks like specifically, I don’t know yet.”
“Phase II actions related to Turkey Creek will be re-scoped, including a second opportunity for public comment likely fall 2024, and will be followed by a separate environmental analysis and decision,” the Phase I plan stated. Schlueter said that the Forest Service has not decided whether or not to have an additional public meeting.
“We heard loud and clear that our equestrian users would prefer, rather than having a closure area, even if it’s for safety of users, they prefer having communication along lines of ‘Use is discouraged here for safety reasons,’ or something along those lines,” Schlueter said. “So that they can make the decision for themselves.”
The Forest Service could not cite any previous safety incidents involving equestrian users in the proposed closure area in a previous interview with the Sedona Red Rock News.
