Cathedral Rock is a natural sandstone butte on the

Sedona Sedona is a city that straddles the county line between Coconino and Yavapai counties in the northern Verde Valley region of the U.S. state of Arizona. As of the 2010 census, its population was 10,031. It is within the Coconino National Fo ...

skyline and one of the most-photographed sights in

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. The rock formation is located in the

Coconino National Forest The Coconino National Forest is a 1.856-million acre (751,000 ha) United States National Forest located in northern Arizona in the vicinity of Flagstaff. Originally established in 1898 as the "San Francisco Mountains National Forest Reserve", th ...

Yavapai County Yavapai County is near the center of the U.S. state of Arizona. As of the 2020 census, its population was 236,209, making it the fourth-most populous county in Arizona. The county seat is Prescott. Yavapai County comprises the Prescott, AZ M ...

, about a mile (1.6 km) west of Arizona Route 179, and about south of the "Y" intersection of Routes 179 and 89A in uptown Sedona. The summit elevation of Cathedral Rock is . The Cathedral Rock trail ( USFS Trail #170) is a popular short, steep ascent from the Back O' Beyond trailhead to the saddle points or "gaps" in Cathedral Rock. Geologically, Cathedral Rock is carved from the

Permian The Permian ( ) is a geologic period and System (stratigraphy), stratigraphic system which spans 47 million years from the end of the Carboniferous Period million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Triassic Period 251.9 Mya. It is the last ...

Schnebly Hill formation, a

redbed Red beds (or redbeds) are sedimentary rocks, typically consisting of sandstone, siltstone, and shale, that are predominantly red in color due to the presence of ferric oxides. Frequently, these red-colored sedimentary strata locally contain th ...

sandstone formed from coastal sand dunes near the shoreline of the ancient Pedregosa Sea.

Ripple marks In geology, ripple marks are sedimentary structures (i.e., bedforms of the lower flow regime) and indicate agitation by water ( current or waves) or wind. Defining ripple cross-laminae and asymmetric ripples * ''Current ripple marks'', ''u ...

are prominent along the lower Cathedral Rock trail, and a black

basalt Basalt (; ) is an aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the surface of a rocky planet or moon. More than 90 ...

dike Dyke (UK) or dike (US) may refer to: General uses * Dyke (slang), a slang word meaning "lesbian" * Dike (geology), a subvertical sheet-like intrusion of magma or sediment * Dike (mythology), ''Dikē'', the Greek goddess of moral justice * Dikes ...

may be seen in the first saddle. Cathedral Rock was called "Court House Rock" on some early maps, and Courthouse Butte was called "Church House Rock", which has caused endless confusion ever since. File:Cathedral Rock at Red Rock Crossing.jpg, Cathedral Rock from

Red Rock Crossing Red Rock is a place in Yavapai County, Arizona, United States. Red Rock is southwest of Sedona. Red Rock Crossing is a former ford across Oak Creek with views of Cathedral Rock. The crossing was washed out in a flood in 1978, and there are n ...

File:Cathedral rock sedona arizona 2.jpg, These saddle points or "gaps" may be reached via the steep Cathedral Rock trail. File:Red Rock State Park, AZ.jpg, Cathedral Rock from

Red Rock State Park Red Rock State Park is a state park of Arizona, United States, featuring a red sandstone canyon outside the city of Sedona. The main mission of this day-use park is the preservation of the riparian habitat along Oak Creek. Red Rock State Park s ...

References

External links

"Cathedral Rock Trail"

. * {{cite summitpost , id=152506 , name=Cathedral Rock Sedona, Arizona Buttes of Arizona Rock formations of Arizona Landforms of Yavapai County, Arizona Protected areas of Yavapai County, Arizona

See also

References

External links