Shoeless in the forest? 'The Barefoot Trail' opens outside Flagstaff, Arizona

By: Nicole Gutierrez

Step into a new adventure! ‘The Barefoot Trail’ is giving visitors up north a new way to experience nature in Bellemont, Arizona. ABC15’s Nicole Gutierrez sits down with the founder of the new unique experience up north.

The Barefoot Trail: a one-mile trail in the Ponderosa Forest, that’s done bare foot in Arizona.

BELLEMONT, AZ — Step into a new adventure near Flagstaff! The Barefoot Trail is giving visitors up north a new way to experience nature in our state.

“[It’s] a one-mile trail in the Ponderosa Forest, and you walk it completely barefoot, and the effects are from the grounding benefits,” said Leah Williams, founder of The Barefoot Trail, to ABC15. “We've integrated a bunch of adventure stations, and we call them ‘trail segments,’ which are sort of reflexology paths in there for your bare feet. So, there's some natural ground, but then there's some interesting things to step on as well, incorporating mud and water, brick and stone and wood and all kinds of natural elements to aid in the health benefits of the walk.”

Entry to the new ‘grounding park’ that opened in Flagstaff.

Where did this idea come from?

“The idea came from a European park that I attended back with my own family about 15 years ago, and they have barefoot parks. Is which they call them Barfußpfad Parks all over [Europe.] We enjoyed the experience so much so that I thought we should recreate it here in the United States,” said Williams. “So here we are, 15 years later, and I have created this park to mirror what we experienced in Europe, and it was just a wonderful experience for me and my children.”

Take a quick stroll on 'The Barefoot Trail'

TRAIL’S LANDSCAPE

Let's talk about the landscape. How is this trail different from the ones that already exist in Flagstaff?

“A lot of people say, ‘Well, why should I come to a park and just walk on the ground?’ Well, it's a manicured trail so, it's a specially cleared trail. You're not going to hit all those, you know, pinecones and sticks and rocks. We've cleared all those things in about a four- or five-foot-wide space all along a one-mile route,” explained Williams to ABC15. She said the park cleans the trail every morning.

The Barefoot Trail is a season destination as it will close at the end of September.

“This year we opened […] and it’s a shortened season of about three months,” shared Williams. “Next season will be more of a five-month full season opening, which will incorporate some other additional things that we didn't do this year. So, we're just trying to gauge interest, and it's been overwhelmingly positive, and people are having a great time.”

@abc15arizona Step into a new adventure! ‘The Barefoot Trail’ is giving visitors up north a new way to experience nature in Bellemont, Arizona. ABC15’s @nicolegtz15 sits down with the founder of the new unique experience up north. #flagstaffaz #Bellemont #ABC15 #PonderosaForest #ThingsToDo ♬ original sound - ABC15Arizona

WHAT IF…
You might ask yourself, "What if I want to go on the trail, but not sure I want to go barefoot or have sensitive feet?" Well, there’s an option for you.

“The world comes alive […] when you experience it with bare feet and we've put things specially on the trail for you to raise that awareness, to have that mindfulness of your surroundings in your environment, especially with the water and how cold it can be, or the mud, [and the] textures and things like that,” shared Williams when going on the trail.

“You can bring your flip flops, or your sandals, or your shoes with you. So should at any point you feel uncomfortable, or you want to put your shoes back on, you're welcome to do that. Other than that, we really encourage you to maybe get out of your comfort zone, you know, try something different,” said Williams.

IF YOU GO

Visitors have up to two hours of trail time. Reservations are highly advised, but walk-ups are accepted. The first scheduled tour starts at 9 a.m. and the last reserved time is 4 p.m.
Ticket prices:
- Adults (18+) and children (ages 3-17): $10
- Infants (0-2): Free admission

Address: 17440 Forest Service 146w Rd, Bellemont, Arizona 86015, United States
- “It's up in Flagstaff, in an area called Bellemont, which is just 10 minutes west of Flagstaff along the I-40,” said Williams.