By Dillon Luera · Updated
AZGFD says more than 4 million Arizonans live within a 20-minute drive of a stocked Community Fishing Program lake, and every winter those city park waters get rainbow trout. They differ more than you might expect, though. Some are 13 acres and some are under 3. Some are 8 feet deep and some are 17. Bag limits, park hours, boating rules and amenities vary too. This guide compares the main Valley trout waters using AZGFD and city park data, then covers the nearest options outside town when you want more room.
Every Valley community water falls under one set of rules, with one important split. AZGFD labels each water either a Lake or a Pond. Lakes are generally over 3 acres and allow 4 trout a day. Ponds allow half that, 2 trout, which the department says is meant to prevent overcrowding and overfishing on small water. Anyone 10 or older needs a valid Arizona fishing license at community waters. Trout are the winter stocking, and AZGFD's community fish are rainbows of 10 to 13 inches. Catfish fill the spring and fall.
At 13 acres, Kiwanis Lake is the largest water in this comparison, but it's shallow, with a maximum depth of 8 feet. It sits in Tempe's 125-acre Kiwanis Park, which is open from 6 a.m. to midnight, the longest hours on this list. The park has a recreation center with a wave pool, sports fields, playgrounds, group ramadas and restrooms. Paddleboats are rented seasonally. Private boats need a City of Tempe boating permit and can only be used from sunrise to sunset, and both gas and electric motors are banned. All that shoreline gives you room to spread out on a busy morning after a stocking.
Red Mountain Lake, at 7745 E. Brown Road in Mesa, covers 8 acres and reaches 17 feet, the deepest water in this group. The park is open from sunrise to 10 p.m. and has restrooms, ramadas, a walking path, disc golf and a multi-generational center. Boating and pets aren't allowed. AZGFD lists Red Mountain Park Lake as having quagga mussels and apple snails, both aquatic invasive species, so clean and dry your gear before using it at another lake.
Riverview Lake, at 2100 W. 8th Street, is smaller at 3 acres, but its maximum depth is 16 feet. It follows the same Mesa rules: sunrise to 10 p.m., no boating and no pets. Amenities include sports fields, a playground and group ramadas. Both waters are designated Lakes, so the limit is 4 trout.
Encanto Lake is a 7.5-acre lake with a 10-foot maximum depth inside the 222-acre Encanto Park, which the City of Phoenix describes as being in the heart of the city. Park hours are 5:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. Private boats aren't allowed, but paddleboats are rented seasonally. Fishing is prohibited from the golf course as posted, so stick to the public shoreline. The park also has the Enchanted Island amusement park, a swimming pool, ball courts and a playground, which makes it a good pick when not everyone in the group wants to fish.
Both of these Phoenix waters are Ponds, so the limit is 2 trout a day. Steele Indian School Pond is 2.5 acres and up to 12 feet deep, inside a 72-acre park with historic buildings, restrooms, ramadas, a playground and a dog park. It's open 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., and boating isn't allowed.
Papago Park Ponds are three separate ponds with 6 acres of water in total: Pond 1 is 1 acre and 8 feet deep, Pond 2 is 2 acres and 7 feet deep, and Pond 3 is 3 acres and 11 feet deep. They sit next to the Phoenix Zoo and the Hole-in-the-Rock trail. Their 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. hours are the shortest here, which matters if you were planning an after-work trip. No boating is allowed.
Desert Breeze Lake is 4 acres with a 12-foot maximum depth, and the park is open from 6 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. Walking paths circle the lake, and the park has a playground, a seasonal splash pad, shaded pavilions and a Hummingbird Habitat. The city's park railroad runs on weekends from Labor Day to Memorial Day, which overlaps the whole winter trout season. That's helpful if you're fishing with kids who need a break between bites.
The closest moving-water trout option is the Lower Salt River. It was on AZGFD's 2025-26 winter schedule nearly every week from October through March, and you need a Tonto National Forest pass to use its access points. Saguaro and Canyon lakes, the big reservoirs on the same river, don't appear on the 2025-26 trout schedules, so go there for bass or crappie rather than winter rainbows.
Farther north, Upper Goldwater Lake near Prescott was stocked with rainbow and Gila trout in fall and winter. It allows only single electric motors. Lower Goldwater is catch-and-release with artificial flies and lures only, and float tubes are the only watercraft allowed.
For summer trout, the Rim lakes are the classic day trip. The Forest Service places Woods Canyon Lake about 30 miles east of Payson, and its federal recreation listing gives 7,510 feet of elevation, 55 acres and a maximum depth of 40 feet. Only electric motors are allowed, and a seasonal store rents boats and sells licenses. Nearby Willow Springs Lake covers 150 acres at 7,600 feet, allows motors up to 10 horsepower, and charges no day-use or launch fee. Arizona's record rainbow trout, 15 pounds 9.12 ounces, came from Willow Springs. Payson's Green Valley Lakes are a community water stocked with trout from fall into spring.
Encanto Lake on North 15th Avenue, Steele Indian School Pond on East Indian School Road and Papago Park Ponds by the Phoenix Zoo are all City of Phoenix community waters that get trout in winter. Kiwanis Lake in Tempe is also close, and it's the largest of the group.
Two a day. Both are designated Ponds under AZGFD's Community Fishing Program, and ponds have half the limit of community Lakes such as Kiwanis, Encanto, Red Mountain, Riverview and Desert Breeze, which allow 4.
Neither appeared on AZGFD's 2025-26 winter or spring trout schedules. The nearest scheduled trout water outside the city parks was the Lower Salt River, which was stocked regularly through the winter. Check the current schedule before you go, since stocking plans can change from year to year.
Usually not by car. The lake's concessionaire notes that Forest Service roads into Woods Canyon close in winter and typically reopen in April after the snow melts. The lake store is seasonal, open April through October depending on weather.
Dates are AZGFD stocking weeks, not guaranteed plant days. How this data is sourced