Little Horse Trail is the route most hikers should take to Chicken Point — and almost nobody does. Search for “Chicken Point hike Sedona” and the results return Broken Arrow. Search for “Little Horse Trail” and you get a moderate hike with decent views. The critical connection between these two searches — that Little Horse reaches the identical Chicken Point panorama via a quieter, vehicle-free approach from a bigger parking lot on a paved highway — lives in the gap between search results where most useful information about Sedona hiking goes to die.
The underselling is both a problem and a gift. A problem because visitors who’d prefer Little Horse’s approach never find out it exists until they’re already committed to Broken Arrow. A gift because the visitors who do find it enjoy a fundamentally better experience on the trail itself: no Jeep traffic, no mountain bikers, no stepping aside for vehicles on slickrock. The shared-use reality only begins at Chicken Point, where both trails converge and Jeep tours arrive from the Broken Arrow side. On Little Horse itself, you’re just hiking.
Why Little Horse is a Top-Tier Moderate Hike
Massive Views Without the Massive Crowds (Until the Top)
Little Horse’s crowd advantage is directional. The trail starts off SR 179 near the Chapel of the Holy Cross and climbs westward across progressively opening terrain toward Chicken Point. Broken Arrow approaches from the south via Morgan Road. The two trails converge at Chicken Point, where Jeep tours also arrive. At the convergence point: expect company. On the trail itself, Little Horse runs significantly quieter than its counterpart — and the reason is algorithmic, not geographic.
Broken Arrow dominates search results for Chicken Point because Pink Jeep Tours is a marketing machine and “Broken Arrow” is a brand name that generates content across tour reviews, travel blogs, and social media. Little Horse lacks a commercial operator attaching its name to the trail. It appears in search results as a mid-tier moderate hike with nice views — accurate but dramatically undersold. The algorithm rewards trails with commercial activity around them. Little Horse has none, so it stays invisible to the planning process that most visitors rely on.
The crowd differential in practice: Peak-season Saturday, mid-morning. Broken Arrow trail between the trailhead and Chicken Point: 40–60 hikers sharing the route with 8–12 Jeep vehicles and a scattering of mountain bikers. Little Horse trail between the trailhead and the Chicken Point approach: 15–25 hikers, zero vehicles, zero bikes. Same destination. Materially different experience quality for the 90 minutes of walking that constitute most of the hike.
The first mile of Little Horse rolls through piñon-juniper woodland with modest red rock glimpses between trees — pleasant but not dramatic. Patience here pays. The second mile opens onto exposed slickrock where the canopy drops away and views expand rapidly. Twin Buttes appear to the southwest. Bell Rock surfaces to the southeast. The red rock corridor stretching toward the Village of Oak Creek unfolds in widening perspective. By the time Chicken Point’s broad slickrock platform comes into view, the panorama has been building for a mile — a visual crescendo rather than an abrupt arrival.
Sharing Chicken Point with the Pink Jeeps
Chicken Point is shared-use regardless of how you arrive. Jeep vehicles park on the broad slickrock. Passengers climb out for photos and narrated geology from their tour guide. Hikers from both Little Horse and Broken Arrow share the viewpoint platform. This is the reality. No trail choice eliminates it.
The Jeep presence at Chicken Point is manageable and, for many visitors, part of the experience. The vehicles provide scale against the formations — a red Wrangler parked on sandstone with 200-foot buttes behind it is a composition that works in a way that an empty platform doesn’t. Tour guides narrate geology loud enough for nearby hikers to benefit from the free education. The platform is spacious — large enough that Jeeps, their passengers, and hikers coexist without crowding except during brief tour-group overlap windows of 10–15 minutes.
Jeep-free windows at Chicken Point: Before 9:00 AM (first tours typically depart from headquarters at 9:30 and take 20–30 minutes to reach the viewpoint) and after 4:30 PM (last afternoon tours wrapping up). These windows overlap with the best photography light — not coincidence, but not intentional either. The operating schedule creates a natural quiet window that aligns with the golden hours.
If the Jeep presence genuinely bothers you: hike Little Horse in the early morning window, enjoy Chicken Point in solitude, and descend before the first tours arrive. You’ll be back at your car by 10 AM with photos no tour passenger will match.
Trail Logistics and Wayfinding
Little Horse Trail Difficulty and Expected Hike Time
| Metric | Detail |
|---|---|
| Distance | 4.0 miles round trip to Chicken Point |
| Elevation gain | ~400 feet, steady and distributed |
| Difficulty | Moderate — gradual climb, slickrock navigation, no scrambling |
| Time | 2–2.5 hours RT including 15–20 min at Chicken Point |
| Surface | Dirt singletrack (lower), transitioning to open slickrock (upper) |
| Shade | First mile intermittent tree cover; upper sections fully exposed |
| Water | None — carry 1.5 liters minimum, 2+ in summer |
| Dogs | Allowed on leash — hot slickrock burns paws mid-morning+ in summer |
The moderate rating reflects the full picture accurately. The first mile lulls — gentle grades, shaded woodland, a trail surface that feels like any forest walk in the country. Don’t mistake this section for the whole experience. The second mile transitions to exposed slickrock where the trail steepens, views open, and navigation shifts from following obvious dirt tread to scanning for cairns across bare sandstone. The difficulty lives in the second half.
That gradual escalation is Little Horse’s pedagogical gift to first-time desert hikers. The trail teaches you. Mile one: comfortable walking, building confidence. The dirt-to-slickrock transition: first encounter with cairn navigation on open rock, low stakes because grades are mild. Upper slickrock: the full experience — exposure, navigation, expanding views — arrived at incrementally rather than dumped on you at the trailhead. For visitors who’ve never hiked in red rock terrain, this progression builds competence organically. By the time you reach the more demanding upper sections, you’ve already practiced the skills they require.
Families with kids 10+ and moderately fit adults who are new to desert hiking find Little Horse more approachable than Broken Arrow. The footing is more predictable in the lower section, the route-finding is simpler, and the exposure builds gradually rather than starting at full intensity.
Finding Your Way: Cairn-Marked Route and USFS Trail Number
Little Horse is USFS Trail #61 in the Coconino National Forest, managed by the Red Rock Ranger District. Lower sections follow well-defined dirt singletrack that’s impossible to lose — worn tread, occasional trail markers, enough foot traffic to keep the path clear. No navigation stress in the first mile.
Upper sections transition to cairn-marked slickrock. The dirt-to-rock transition is the critical moment for first-timers: the trail surface changes from obvious beaten path to bare sandstone where footprints don’t register and there’s no worn track. Pause at this transition. Look ahead. Locate the first cairn. Proceed cairn-to-cairn, confirming each next cairn before leaving the current one. The spacing is reasonable in clear weather — you should always be able to see the next marker from the one you’re standing at.
See Where the Trail Turns to Bare Slickrock
Watch the dirt-to-slickrock handoff, every cairn and junction along the way, and the Broken Arrow convergence — filmed first-person all the way to the view from Chicken Point.
Preview the POV Trail Video →The Broken Arrow convergence: Near Chicken Point, Little Horse merges with the Broken Arrow route on open slickrock. The convergence is informal — not a signed junction but a gradual melding of routes on a broad rock surface. If you suddenly notice Jeep-tire marks on the sandstone, you’ve reached the Broken Arrow vehicle route. Continue toward the obvious elevated platform — that’s Chicken Point. The convergence can feel disorienting if you’re not expecting it, because the trail “disappears” into a shared-use zone where multiple paths overlap on bare rock. It’s normal. Follow the tire marks and cairns toward the high point.
Topographic Map Reference and GPS Waypoints
Trailhead: 34.839°N, 111.758°W (off SR 179, south of the Y roundabout). Chicken Point: 34.831°N, 111.762°W. Trail runs west-northwest, gaining elevation gradually. Cell service is adequate near the trailhead thanks to proximity to the SR 179 corridor, but degrades as you climb westward toward Chicken Point. Download offline maps — the upper sections are where you need navigation help most, and that’s where signal is weakest.
Trailhead Access and Current Conditions
Little Horse Trail Parking: When to Arrive
The trailhead lot sits directly off SR 179 — approximately 40–50 vehicles, paved highway access, good signage, no dirt-road approach required. This is one of the better-sized lots in the SR 179 corridor and one of the easiest to reach logistically. No narrow residential streets, no confusing turnoffs, no four-wheel-drive access road.
The lot fills later than most popular trailheads. Peak-season weekends: 9:30–10:00 AM. Peak weekdays: available until late morning. This 90-minute parking advantage over Broken Arrow (which fills by 8:30 AM) and Cathedral Rock (which fills by 7:30 AM) is a direct consequence of Little Horse’s search-result invisibility. Fewer visitors know about the trail, so fewer compete for spots. The advantage compounds on weekdays, when the lot may not fill at all.
If the lot is full: Bell Rock Pathway South Trailhead (large paved lot, approximately 1 mile south on SR 179) is the nearest reliable alternative. It’s a different experience — flat pathway rather than slickrock climbing — but it’s always available when other lots are full. The Back O’ Beyond Trailhead (off Back O’ Beyond Road, just north) also connects to the same general area with a smaller lot.
Trail Maintenance Status in the Coconino National Forest
Well-maintained relative to most Sedona trails. Lower dirt sections get regular tread work from both official maintenance and heavy foot traffic keeping the path clear. Upper cairns are periodically reset by trail crews. Proximity to SR 179 and the Chapel of the Holy Cross area means above-average Forest Service attention.
Seasonal conditions:
Spring/Fall: Optimal. Dry rock, comfortable temperatures, manageable crowds. These seasons deliver Little Horse at its best — warm light on red rock in the morning, firm trail surfaces, and that sweet spot between too-hot and too-cold that makes desert hiking pleasurable rather than an endurance exercise.
Summer: Slickrock surface temperatures exceed 130°F by mid-morning when air temperature reaches the upper 90s. Start before 7 AM and aim to finish by 10 AM. Dogs need paw protection or should stay home entirely — sandstone that feels warm to your hand at 8 AM is painfully hot to unprotected paw pads by 9. Carry 2+ liters of water. The upper exposed sections feel like a convection oven after 10 AM.
Winter: Ice possible on shaded slickrock sections — primarily north-facing aspects in the first mile’s woodland. South-facing upper sections clear by mid-morning as sun reaches them. Clear winter days provide the sharpest light of any season and the fewest visitors by a wide margin. Post-snowfall mornings with a dusting of white on red rock are among the most photographed conditions in Sedona — but the slickrock is treacherous until the snow melts. Microspikes or caution. Choose one.
After rain: Slickrock becomes dangerously slick when wet — essentially frictionless on any slope. The lower dirt sections turn to red clay mud that coats boots and destroys traction on subsequent rock. Wait 2–4 hours after rain for light precipitation, longer after heavy storms. If you arrive at the trailhead and the rock is visibly wet, wait or change plans.
Red Rock Pass Required and USFS Sedona Ranger District Info
Red Rock Pass ($5/day, $15/week, $20/annual) required. The Little Horse Trailhead has an automated fee machine accepting credit cards — one of the easier lots in Sedona for visitors who forgot to buy a pass in advance. The machine is at the trailhead entrance. America the Beautiful pass ($80/year) also works. Display pass face-up on dashboard.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
How long is the Little Horse trail?
4.0 miles round trip to Chicken Point and back. One-way distance approximately 2 miles with roughly 400 feet of elevation gain. Most hikers complete the round trip in 2–2.5 hours including 15–20 minutes at the viewpoint. Fast hikers: 90 minutes. Photographers wanting golden-hour light at Chicken Point: budget 3 hours.
Is the Little Horse trail shaded?
Partially. The first mile through piñon-juniper woodland provides intermittent shade — enough to moderate direct sun but not continuous canopy. Upper slickrock sections are fully exposed with zero shade. In summer, this means the trail is tolerable before 9 AM and punishing after 10 AM. Carry sun protection (hat, sunscreen, light long sleeves) regardless of season.
How does Little Horse compare to Broken Arrow for reaching Chicken Point?
Both reach Chicken Point. Little Horse is quieter (no Jeep traffic or mountain bikers on the trail itself), starts from a larger lot on a paved highway that fills 90 minutes later, and has a more gradual difficulty progression. Broken Arrow has more extensive and dramatic slickrock but shares the entire route with Jeep tours. For most visitors — especially first-timers, families, and anyone who prefers hiking without vehicle traffic — Little Horse is the stronger choice. For photographers who want the unique multi-use trail character, Broken Arrow has elements Little Horse can’t provide.
Can I connect Little Horse to Broken Arrow?
Yes. At Chicken Point the trails converge on shared slickrock. You can hike Little Horse up, explore Broken Arrow’s route (including the Submarine Rock spur) and return via Little Horse — creating a lollipop variation. Or commit to a point-to-point hike using both trails (requires transport between the two trailheads, roughly 3 miles apart by road). The full lollipop adds 1–2 miles depending on how far you explore Broken Arrow’s extensions.
Is Little Horse good for beginners?
One of the best moderate-trail introductions to desert hiking in Sedona. The progressive difficulty curve — easy first mile building to moderate slickrock navigation — teaches desert-hiking skills organically. The payoff at Chicken Point rivals anything in Sedona. Wear proper hiking shoes for upper slickrock sections. Sneakers handle the lower dirt fine but fail on tilted sandstone.
Let a Local Guide Lead Your Hike from $59
Expert-led hiking tours handle trail logistics, parking, and route-finding — you just enjoy the views.
Fall dates are filling fast — popular times sell out 2+ weeks ahead.
