Payson AZ Travel Guide

At first impression, it didn't seem to be the quaint hamlet hidden away in the pines that we had imagined.

Paula enjoys the view atop the Mogollon Rim, looking towards Payson AZ

We dropped down into Payson Arizona after a long drive west on Highway 260 from Show Low on the Friday afternoon of Labor Day weekend and promptly encountered the photo enforcement cameras, stoplights and backed-up traffic of any city.

But after spending time here, the small and friendly town of Payson AZ really grew on us.

We can enthusiastically say that a Payson vacation makes a quick and cooler-than-Phoenix escape for valley residents and out-of-state travelers alike.

Because Payson is an easy 90-minute drive northeast up the Beeline Highway (Hwy. 87) from Phoenix, it has long been a popular central Arizona vacation spot as it is a close, forested getaway for Valley of the Sun residents.

Payson is perched at just under 5,000 feet elevation on the edge of the vast Mogollon Rim (pronounced Muggy-own), which stretches 200 miles from Flagstaff in the west all the way into western New Mexico.

This rugged escarpment marks a transition from the cactus and desert scrub below to the cooler forests above.

Its mid-elevation location gives Payson Arizona a mild, year-round climate that still has all four seasons, making it perfect for outdoor recreation.

Fishing on Woods Canyon Lake, east of Payson, is a popular attraction

Payson AZ is a great home base for exploring thousands of acres of ponderosa pine forest, lakes, streams and meadows in the Tonto and Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests, which surround the town.

Here we found plenty of scenic spots for hiking, camping, fishing, horseback riding and boating in the nearby forests, canyons and mountains, often collectively referred to as the 'Rim Country.'

In winter, this rugged, snow-covered landscape offers miles of scenic cross country skiing, snowshoeing and snow play.

Although the outdoors and cooler temperatures are Payson's biggest draws, the town is great for Old West buffs too.

Founded in 1882, Payson AZ is an authentic Western town.

Main Street in Payson Arizona has historic buildings, antique shops and a cowboy saloon

Payson claims to have the oldest, continuously running rodeo (since 1884) and is one of the major stops along the Hashknife Pony Express Ride, held every January.

If you like to collect a bit of the Old West, Payson has many antique shops to explore.

Other Old West attractions include exhibits at the Rim Country Museum and the Pioneer Cemetery.

The legendary Western author Zane Grey roamed the Mogollon Rim’s forests and canyons and wrote 13 novels while living in Payson Arizona including the famous and popular "Call of the Canyon."

Farther back in time, and long before Europeans came to the Rim Country, Native American tribes inhabited the area.

The lakes at Green Valley Park in Payson AZ

The nearby Shoofly Village Archaeological Ruins, dated at 1,000 AD, preserves the remains of dwellings of an ancient Indian culture.

Later, the Tonto Apaches moved into the Rim Country and still live here today.

The Tonto Apache Nation is just southwest of Payson AZ and their Mazatzal Casino is a popular attraction and important employer in the area.

Although Payson is a small town by city standards, its popularity as a weekend getaway and retirement haven have made it grow.

So it has all the modern conveniences of major grocery stores, hotels and Wal-Mart.

But it takes only a few minutes of driving to leave the town behind and escape into the peace and quiet of the pine-covered wildlands, where the era of Apaches, pioneers and cowboys seems just a horseback ride away.

Driving beneath the Mogollon Rim east from Payson

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