Boynton Canyon Trail

Even a simple stroll up the street has views fit for a Sierra Club calendar!

So, you can pretty much pick any of Sedona’s hiking trails and not go wrong.

It's hard to pick which one is the best but we'll go out on a limb to say that one of our favorite Sedona day hikes is the Boynton Canyon Trail.

This 5-mile roundtrip trail doesn’t have the sweeping, panoramic views of eastern Sedona hikes.

Looking into Boynton Canyon

Instead, Boynton Canyon offers a moderate hike that immerses us in the peaceful beauty of one of Sedona’s loveliest box canyons.

There’s just something special about the Boynton area.

You can feel it as you drive down out of town to the canyon.

And, we aren’t the only ones to notice it.

Boynton Canyon is considered sacred by the region’s Native American tribes.

The Yavapai-Apache believe Boynton Canyon is the birthplace of their people.

More recently, followers of New Age philosophies have touted the canyon as a powerful energy center known as a vortex.

A vortex is a place where a subtle but powerful energy emanates from deep within the earth, imparting a sense of well being and healing in those attuned to it.

No matter one’s personal belief, it’s almost impossible not to be affected by this canyon’s special beauty.

Boynton Canyon’s red, orange and cream colored walls soar skyward, almost a thousand feet above the canyon floor.

Fragrant groves of pine, juniper and oak crowd the slopes and shade the boulder-strewn wash that meanders along the canyon bottom.

After rainstorms, ephemeral waterfalls cascade off the craggy buttes.

The view to Boynton Canyon along Dry Creek Road

During the summer monsoon thunderstorm season, large cotton candy clouds float over the canyon, casting long, dramatic shadows down the cliffs.

Blue-black glossy ravens soar overhead, their deep throaty croaks echoing off the rock walls.

Ancient alligator juniper trees – named for their square-patterned bark that resembles an alligator’s back – cast a dappled shade over the trail.

Hidden high up among the cliffs, the ancient ruins of the Sinagua people still stand, fortress-like, in the natural rock hollows.

Because Boynton Canyon is one of the most accessible hikes in Sedona - and due to its reputation as a vortex site - the trail has become very popular.

The Boynton Canyon trailhead

Be sure to look for the Boynton Canyon sign, whose trail heads north.

Roughly 50 yards from the Boynton Canyon trailhead, we came to the trail register and the trail’s junction with the Vista Trail.

Vista is a ¼-mile hike to a scenic overlook below Boynton Canyon’s most recognizable rock spire known as Kachina Woman.

If you choose not to make the Vista Trail detour, continue to head straight along the Boynton Canyon Trail.

Initially, the trail winds over and around a dry wash until it hits the edge of the canyon’s east wall.

The trail then begins to gently ascend along the cliffside, skirting the edge of Enchantment Resort.

From up here, we could look down onto the property which occupies 70 acres at the mouth of the canyon.

The resort is in view for several minutes along the Boynton Canyon Trail.

Kachina Woman looks out over the canyon

After passing the resort, the trail drops back down to the sandy canyon bottom, where it follows a normally dry creek bed.

Dense stands of smooth, mahogany-barked manzanita shrubs edge the trail.

Here and there, we could see the massive red sandstone buttes rising above us.

Boynton Canyon Trail then cuts to the left, entering a side canyon.

A thick forest of trees makes the canyon cool and shady here, though the dense vegetation often hides the views.

Craggy buttes along the Boynton Canyon Trail

Large moss- and lichen-flecked boulders litter the canyon floor - the remnants of long-ago flash floods.

The Boynton Canyon Trail then climbs gradually and leaves the deep cover of the forest behind.

The last 50 yards are the toughest as the trail ascends to a slick rock area. You might need to use your hands to help scramble to the top.

Finally, at the canyon’s end, there are broad views of its sheer-walled amphitheater.

If it’s not too hot, this is a good place to sit and enjoy the views and have lunch.

Even though the footing is relatively secure here, be careful while wandering around this broad slab of sandstone.

Paula pauses among the juniper on the Boynton Canyon Trail

Boynton Canyon has a mix of habitat types.

Much of the area is classic high desert of pinyon pine, manzanita, agave, yucca and prickly pear cactus.

Deep in the cooler areas of the canyon are large swathes of ponderosa pine, oak, Douglas fir and Arizona cypress.

Some of the alligator junipers in Boynton Canyon are 2,000 years old.

In good rainfall years, colorful wildflowers bloom and paint the canyon in color.

Common species include purple-flowered lupine, red-flowered paintbrush and the tall, yellow spikes of desert prince’s plume.

Boynton Canyon also has abundant wildlife.

Patient and quiet observers may see:

• Coues’ white-tailed deer,
• black-tailed jackrabbits,
• javelina,
• coyotes,
• ringtail cats,
• canyon wrens.

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