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Named for the towering pines under which it sits, Ponderosa Campground is tucked in the rolling forests of northern Arizona. As the fifth-largest forest in the country, the Tonto National Forest is one of the most-visited urban forests in the United States, boasting about 5.8 million visitors annually. Its boundaries are Phoenix to the south, the Mogollon Rim to the north and the San Carlos and Fort Apache Indian reservations to the east. Recreation Most visitors enjoy walking along the campground's nature trail, traveling into the town of Payson, taking advantage of the area's hiking trails and lakes or simply relaxing at the campsite. Scenic driving and outdoor recreation abound in the surrounding Tonto National Forest. A series of lakes called the Rim Country Lakes are about a 15 minute drive east. Woods Canyon Lake is one of the most popular recreational lakes in the state and offers options for boating. Facilities The facility provides 48 single campsites and two group sites that can accommodate up to 50 people guests each. The campsites are clean, flat and spacious with a good amount of shade from pine trees. Natural Features The ponderosa pine trees make this a memorable campground. Larger ponderosas release a vanilla scent into the air and have a relatively open understory, making the area perfect for camping. Mixed into the understory are junipers, oaks and manzanita shrubs. The campground sits on the border of the Mogollon Rim, pronounced by locals as "muggy-own," a 200-mile-long cliff in northern Arizona that ranges between 5,000 and 7,000 feet in elevation. The unique landscape was created by extreme erosion and faulting that has sculpted spectacular canyons and buttes. The rim serves as the geographical dividing line between the cool high country above and the hot, dry desert below. There is a second vehicle charge of $8 per night. Second vehicle charge will be collected at time of check-in. Nearby Attractions The nearby town of Payson, Arizona, offers restaurants, shopping and other conveniences. ADA Access: N
From Payson, Arizona, go east on State Route 260. The campground is located on the south side of 260. A campground sign is visible before the campground entrance.
$20 per night for standard sites; and $100 per night for group sites.
Reservations can be made by visiting Recreation.gov. Reservations must be made 3 days ahead of arrival and can be made up to 6 months in advance for the standard sites or 12 months in advance for the group sites.
We had a really good time and we really liked our spot but we did see a lot of other campers confused and they had a hard time finding their spot. The loops are not laid out in a real cohesive manner. The camp hosts were not rude but they weren't overly friendly. Everyone observed the quiet hours and there were absolutely no problems. I felt 100% safe. Very family friendly and we saw zero bears. I would go there again
Never been to a louder spot. The highway was loud all night. People were yelling all night. A dog started barking early in the morning. Then some rude lady came to yell at us to leave 2min after the "checkout" time. Wow didn't know there was room service lol. Just pick a different spot. It's not worth the price, especially when I'm getting kicked out of a EMPTY campground on a Sunday morning, because our spot was so needed by all the people coming to camp on a Sunday morning...
The campground that we stayed in was group E. It was very accommodating for our group of 11 people and 3 dogs. Plenty of parking spaces and tenting areas with their own table, bear locker for food box, and grill set up. There was also a main picnic area in the center. It's big enough for 5 cars and 25 guests. It was very peaceful to be in the middle of all of those large, tall, and very beautiful pine trees. The weather was 👍💯👌👌👌 and we were lucky enough to catch some rain. The campsite has several vault bathrooms and potable water pumps where you can fill up your drinking water bottles/gallons/buckets. Overall, it was a lovely stary. The sherif lady that was patrolling the area was such a sweetheart and was so kind. The only negative I have was with the camp host. She was very rude and confrontational with us for some reason.
Nice campground overall, but watch out for the NASTY Camp Host. We had the audacity to drive by her campsite twice when we were making a loop to check out the rest of the campground before we left. She stormed out in front of us making me slam on the brakes. She then harassed us about it while being extremely rude. I go camping to get away from people like that.
If you'd like to see what kind of host she is, read the review from Lois De Lisle below. It's a review from the rude camp host herself.
Beautiful campsites with an abundance of space and plenty of mature trees allowing for excellent shade during all hours of the day. The campground itself was quiet. It is near to the highway resulting in road noise from time to time, but nothing too distracting. Facilities were well maintained, restrooms clean. The only downside - The campground host's customer service and people skills were non-existent, downright confrontational and off putting.
