Gateway to the Rim
Stay and Play
Not a drive-through on the way to somewhere else. Payson is the destination — singletrack, forest roads, and the Rim.
Why stop
You are already driving through the best part.
Payson is about 90 minutes north of Phoenix, and often 15–20° cooler than the Valley. Most cars stay on the highway and miss it. The Rim, the singletrack, the creeks, and a rodeo held every August since 1884 are the reason to get off and stay the night.
This guide is the short version: what is worth doing, which trail fits, what to watch for on the forest roads, and who to call before you go.
Payson right now
Reading the local station…
Start here
Pick how you want to spend the day.
Payson sits just below the Mogollon Rim, inside the Tonto National Forest. Choose a starting point. The detail, the cautions, and who to call are one tap away.
On foot
Trails through the pines
Payson is surrounded by the largest ponderosa pine forest in the world, with the Mogollon Rim a short drive north. Walk the flat path around the town lakes, or take a full day up Horton Creek to the spring.
Find a trail
Mountain biking
A new mountain biking mecca.
The rideable network in and beside town is the Payson Area Trails System. Trails are shared. Expect hikers, and horses on some routes. Ubuntu, off McLane Road, is a 2.7-mile intermediate singletrack. Houston Mesa, American Gulch, and the granite on the east side — the Boulders, also called Granite Dells — are the other rides that start close to town.
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Lakes & creeks
Lakes and creeks
In town, Green Valley Park holds three lakes at the end of Main Street. They are part of Arizona’s Urban Fishing Program: stocked, scenic, and closed to swimming or wading. An Arizona fishing license is required.
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Fishing
Trout close to town, and higher up
Anyone 10 or older needs an Arizona fishing license, including at the town lakes. Children under 10 do not. Buy it before you leave cell service. The bag limit posted at the water is the one that counts.
Open this sectionKayaking
Flat water, not a river run
Payson is lake paddling. The town lakes, the Rim lakes, and C.C. Cragin are the places to put a kayak in. The creeks are too small and too rocky to run.
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State park
Tonto Natural Bridge
This is a travertine bridge, not a sandstone arch. The tunnel is 183 feet high, 150 feet wide, and 393 feet long, with about 60 feet of travertine over the opening. It is the largest natural bridge of this kind.
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Day trip
Pine and Strawberry
Pine is the easy day north. About 15 minutes up Highway 87, it has a short street of little shops, galleries, and places to eat. Walk it, have lunch, and come back. It does not need a weekend.
Tonto Natural Bridge
Camping
Camping close to town
Houston Mesa Campground has developed sites just north of town. Forest campgrounds along Highway 260 sit closer to the water.
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Golf
Golf under the pines
Payson Golf Course is the public course in town. The air is cooler than the Valley, and ponderosa pines line the fairways.
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Off the pavement
Forest roads and rock trails
Payson has no OHV park. ATVs, UTVs, and four-wheel drives share designated forest roads below and along the Mogollon Rim. Cross-country riding is prohibited. Forest roads close for snow, fire, and mud.
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Rockhounding
Quartz crystals and common fossils
Two stops cover most of a rockhound day. Diamond Point, northeast of town, is the signed site for clear quartz crystals pointed on both ends. People call them Payson diamonds. They are not diamonds. The Paleo Site, east of town on Highway 260, is the easy stop for common sea fossils in the limestone.
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In town
Town parks, including three lakes
Green Valley Park is 43 acres at the end of historic Main Street, with three lakes, ramadas, a playground, and an amphitheater. Rumsey Park covers 82 acres of sports fields, and the public library is on site. Deming Park and Mustang Park round out the town’s parks. The Longhorn Bike Park is listed with the mountain-bike rides.
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After dark
Clear nights above the forest
At 5,000 feet, with national forest on every side, the night sky is close. A pull-off on the way toward the Rim is enough.
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History
Rodeo, museum, and Rim Country history
Payson’s rodeo has been held every August since 1884 and is known as the world’s oldest continuous rodeo. Zane Grey wrote about this country. The Rim Country Museum and the Zane Grey Cabin are at Green Valley Park.
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On the calendar
Coming up in town.
21Nov
Turkey Trot & Turkey Bowl
Green Valley Park
A Thanksgiving-weekend 5K and a flag-football tournament at the park.
27Nov
Swiss Village Lighting
Swiss Village
Holiday lights come on at Swiss Village, the town’s small shopping courtyard.
12Dec
Winter Wonderland & Electric Light Parade
Historic Main Street
An electric light parade down Main Street, with a winter celebration around it.
Visitor Center
Maps and answers, on Main Street.
100 West Main Street. Open Monday through Saturday, 9am to 3pm. Stop in for maps, current road conditions, and what is happening in town this week.
Why I built this
A business owner, tired of watching the highway win.
I have lived and done business in Payson for a long time. From here I have watched millions of vehicles pass through town on their way to somewhere else. It has been frustrating to see how little is done to promote Payson as the destination.
That is why I created Destination Payson. Not another brochure for people who already plan to stop, but a reason for the ones who would have kept driving.
A long-time resident and business owner
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