Beautiful areas. My biggest frustration is that our lakes and rivers can be so trashy. Why can't they be better maintained? I hate that people just leave their trash, but they DO! ... especially on weekends. Even with plenty of trashcans. So, forest service needs to step up the clean up, IMO. Otherwise why am I paying to park? A Tonto Pass costs $6 each time you park.
An awesome experience. We took a Sunday drive here and it was one of the best drives ever! We drove along highway 88/Apache Trail. It passes through several historic areas and by the Lost Dutchman State Park. There are two lakes along the route and it ends in a third lake. The route was very scenic. It passes by Tortilla Flat, a town with a population of 6 which was a stagecoach stop along the Apache Trail. A large portion of the trail is dirt covered and it narrows to one lane with several one lane bridges so you have to pull over and sometimes let cars in the opposite direction pass. It has a lot of curves and is sometimes a little scary as it is curves around mountain areas. But it is very beautiful. If you have an SUV or truck, you probably prefer to drive that as the roads can be kind of rough. There were sedan type cars as well, but I'm glad that we took an SUV. There's about 37 miles I think of graded road and smaller cars may have a harder time descending and ascending, though we did see some there. When we stopped at Fish Creek other people had stopped and were climbing what looked like a cave area, so my son got out and climbed up as well and got some great pictures. Such an enjoyable experience.
Forest country in Arizona? Oh yeah. This is beautiful country. The higher elevations keep you out of the desert heat, it's about 20 degrees cooler. Great hiking. Great biking. Cleaner air than the basin.
This is one of the biggest forests in the nation. You can find a very diverse landscape here. Everything from desert to pine forests all in one place. There is the opportunity to do almost any activity in the forest. We volunteer with an off-road group that helps with maintaining the trails. We inspect trails, install trail signs, repair trails, and sometimes, we just 4 wheel. Get out there!
I go here once every year for a couple days to go hunting. I love the environment and the weather. Sometimes the people can drive really crazy because of the small town. But overall this place is gorgeous. And Roosevelt lake is really big and super fun to visit.
Tonto National Forest is a US Park based in Payson, Arizona. Tonto National Forest is located at US 188, Payson, AZ 85541, USA.
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