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Bell Rock is a distinctive bell-shaped red rock butte just off Highway 179 near the Village of Oak Creek, easily visible from the road and popular for an easy loop trail around its base. It's also one of the locations most commonly cited as a Sedona vortex site.
Private Tours
A private, hotel-pickup half-day tour through Sedona's best-known red rock scenery, with your own guide and vehicle the whole way.
Private Tours Popular Pick
A private, full-day luxury tour with a bespoke itinerary — visit Sedona's core landmarks plus optional stops like the ghost town of Jerome, Tuzigoot, Tlaquepaque, or a Page Springs wine tasting.
Visitor guide
Bell Rock is a bell-shaped sandstone butte just north of the Village of Oak Creek and south of Sedona, Arizona, rising to 4,919 feet (1,499 m). It stands beside State Route 179 inside the Coconino National Forest and is among the most recognizable landmarks on the Red Rock Scenic Byway.
Bell Rock is built of horizontally bedded Permian sedimentary rock. Wikipedia attributes it to the Supai Formation, while Forest Service and geology sources treat it as part of the Schnebly Hill Formation, so labels vary with the mapping. Either way, these redbeds record the dunes, tidal flats and river plains along the western edge of the supercontinent Pangaea some 280 to 300 million years ago, and iron oxide gives them their red hue. The butte's tiered, bell-like profile reflects alternating harder and softer layers wearing away at different rates.
The Bell Rock Pathway (Trail 96) runs alongside State Route 179 for about 3.5 miles one way, mostly on a wide, hard surface with some steep hills, and connects to other trails; the Forest Service rates it as easy and family-friendly. Around the base of Bell Rock the terrain is rougher. A moderate route climbs to a plateau on the northwest face, and reaching the summit is a challenging, unmarked scramble that is not for casual hikers. Bell Rock sits just west of Courthouse Butte, and the Courthouse Butte Loop begins on the same pathway, so many visitors combine both. The pathway is also used by mountain bikers and horseback riders, so stay alert on busy days.
The Sedona area is part of the traditional homelands of Yavapai and Apache peoples. In modern times, the red rocks became the heart of Sedona's New Age scene. Believers in "vortexes" list Bell Rock as one of several sites of concentrated spiritual energy, along with Cathedral Rock, Airport Mesa and Boynton Canyon. The idea took shape in the later 20th century and was boosted by the 1987 Harmonic Convergence, an event organized by José Argüelles that drew New Age pilgrims to Sedona; the vortex claims are matters of belief, not established science. Whatever your views, the butte's shape and glow at sunrise and sunset are reason enough to stop.
Parking at the Bell Rock and Courthouse Vista trailheads usually requires a Red Rock Pass or America the Beautiful pass, so check the Forest Service for current requirements and access. Spaces fill by mid-morning on weekends. Bring water, sun protection and sturdy shoes, as the sandstone is slick in places and the sun is strong.
A Voyzo private Sedona tour can include Bell Rock as a photo stop or short walk with a private vehicle and driver and door-to-door pickup, alongside Cathedral Rock, Red Rock Crossing and the Chapel of the Holy Cross, all within a short drive.
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