Payson sits below the Mogollon Rim, and the region's best-known lakes sit on top of it. The Rim Lakes are small reservoirs that AZGFD built for trout fishing: Woods Canyon Lake in 1958 and Willow Springs Lake in 1966. Both are on the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests at roughly 7,500 to 7,600 feet.
The Rim is a warm-season destination. The Forest Service notes that Willow Springs is stocked regularly from spring through fall, but in winter, once enough snow is on the ground, the Rim Lakes Recreation Area, including Woods Canyon Lake, closes to wheeled vehicles and turns into a snow-play area. There is no fixed closure date; snowfall decides. Dry years matter too: in September 2025, AZGFD reported that many put-and-take Rim creeks went unstocked because of low, warm water.
Region notes updated October 6, 2026From Payson, drive east on State Route 260 to milepost 282, where the highway tops out on the Rim. Turn north on Forest Road 300 (Rim Road) for a little over three miles, then take Forest Road 105 one mile to the lake. Only electric trolling motors and paddle craft are allowed, and a marina rents boats beside the public launch. The Forest Service says the lake is stocked with rainbow and tiger trout, and AZGFD lists Woods Canyon as the source of the state tiger trout record. Bald eagles nest here and at Willow Springs, so part of the shoreline closes to foot traffic from March 1 through August 31.
At about 150 acres and 7,600 feet, Willow Springs is the larger of the two and the more flexible for boaters: motors up to 10 horsepower are allowed, and there is no fee for day use or launching. Dispersed camping is prohibited within half a mile of the lake, but Sinkhole Campground is within walking distance. Willow Springs also holds Arizona's rainbow trout hook-and-line record, a fish of more than 15 pounds caught in 2006.
Payson's Green Valley Park lakes are part of the Community Fishing Program and receive rainbow trout. The East Verde River is split in two: above the SRP pumphouse it is managed for wild rainbow trout under catch-and-release, artificial-only rules, while below the pumphouse it is a put-and-take fishery. Horton Creek is catch-and-release for its wild brown trout.
There is no set date. The Forest Service closes the Rim Lakes Recreation Area to wheeled vehicles once there is adequate snow, so check with the Black Mesa Ranger District before a late-fall or early-spring trip.
Not on Woods Canyon Lake, which is electric only. Willow Springs Lake allows gas motors of 10 horsepower or less.
Green Valley Park in Payson is a Community Fishing Program water that AZGFD stocks with trout, and the lower East Verde River below the SRP pumphouse is managed as a put-and-take trout stream when flows allow.
Dates are AZGFD stocking weeks, not guaranteed plant days. How this data is sourced