Soldier Pass Trail
Three landmarks in 1.3 miles, captured in first-person POV — a football-field-sized sinkhole, the tiered Seven Sacred Pools, and a massive sandstone cave reached by an unmarked spur that half of all hikers walk right past.
What the Trail Feels Like
Soldier Pass packs more geological variety per mile than any other trail in the Sedona ranger district.
Two minutes from the trailhead you reach Devils Kitchen — a collapse sinkhole roughly 100 feet across and 40–50 feet deep, still raw from its last major collapse. Ten minutes further, the trail crosses a slickrock drainage to the Seven Sacred Pools, tiered natural basins that mirror the red canyon walls when full.
The main event is the cave. Past the pools the grade steepens; near the 1.3-mile mark, an unmarked use trail branches right where the main trail bends left. Look uphill for the dark horizontal shadow of the cave mouth, then a short hands-on scramble reaches a sandstone alcove wide enough to seat forty people, its ceiling sculpted with honeycomb tafoni weathering.
For the cave to yourself, arrive before 8:30 AM or after 3 PM. And don’t wade in the pools — they’re fragile habitat and dangerously slick.
Trail at a Glance
Ready to walk the whole trail?
Watch the full first-person film, or read the complete trail guide before you go.
Watch the full film → Read the trail guide →