You would never believe this place is jn central arizona it's absolutely beautiful !!

Son and I did the kayak here and it was great. Skimming along the boulders was so cool and peaceful. Going back later today.

Great area to visit, only a couple of hours to get to from Phoenix! Weather is enjoyable most of the year. I like the variety in landscape. Half is rocky and deserts, where the other half is forest-like with lots of large, beautiful trees. Popular hiking/walking spot around the lake. If you come in summer, make sure to bring a lot of water. Stay on trails, the rocky trail can be challenging for some people. Overall very pretty and a must see! read more

this is the most beautiful place i have ever hiked, so many different type birds there, cool people and your dog will love being close to water edge and able to jump in and out as much as he wants. I never hiked peavine trail, i hike the north side, boulder hop, enter through the campground, pay 2.00 and follow signs to boat ramp and park there. There is a campground that allows dogs, and has bathrooms and parking in many spots and picnic areas. you will love this lake. you can rent kayaks and canoes also. read more

This place was BEAUTIFUL. Starting from the entrance with the most welcoming Margie, she was great and helpful. She welcomed us and gave us a brief history and what you could find at the 3 lakes our pass allowed us in..only $3 btw. The hike was nice for the most part. The back end gets a little boring and really really hot if you're going in June lol but I'm sure it's lovely at any other time of the year. We didn't intend on hiking all the way around the lake, we only wanted to go to the dam, but we went the wrong way, oh well. The dam was beautiful and a short hike if thats all you want. We'll definitely be returning, maybe to kayak this time. read more

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Beautiful lake just an hour and half drive from Phoenix. $2 entry fee. We rented single kayaks for $15/hr. It was supposed to be $10 for each additional hour. We were definitely on the water at least an hour and a half but they didn't charge us extra. Thought that was cool of them so just tossed $10 in the tip jar. Lots of birds ... geese, cormorants, ducks ... even saw one bald eagle. Of course there were geckos too. Some woman saw a snake. We saw turtles and small fish in the water which was pretty clear. There were tons of dragonflys - metallic blue and red. Definitely worth the drive! read more

Watson Lake - Watson Lake - Lakes Near Me - Prescott, Arizona

The beautiful Watson Lake is located in the city of Prescott, AZ, less than 2 hours away from Phoenix. This artificial lake is a great place to spend a nice day. Activities go from kayaking to fishing and hiking. There are also picnic tables, barbecue grills and playgrounds available. But what really makes this place different from other lake parks and worth visiting, are the magnificent granite dells. The bright and deep blue color of the water makes the dells look stunning. Read more about this place in my blog: http://lagamio.com/2014/05/20/watson-lake/ read more

LOVE this place!! We can't wait to come back and get in a boat. We had a blast running the rocks in the rain. It is beautiful, and the park is kept well, the ranger was on it. I would feel safe getting in the water. read more

Well after reding all the good reviews here I decided to make reservations to camp here. BIG mistake! This is the WORST place to camp. The camping area is right by the entrance by the street, the spaces are small and all together. And to make things worst we get there yesterday (day of our reservation) and there was NO ONE there to help or give us directions after a while we find our spot and it was taken (the only one taken and it was the one we reserved). The place didn't feel safe at all or comfortable, so we ended up leaving and camping somewhere else. The lake was beautiful but it has a very bad stink when walking around it :/ . read more

Wow! What an amazing hike around Watson Lake. It is quite a challenging one though so beware!! It is about 5 miles and through lots of brush and rocks. It was truly a beautiful one! There are several nice stops with amazing views. It felt like a really good, non-touristy'ish hike as well. It wasn't like there was a perfect easy path to walk through and I am not sure that would be possible without destroying the integrity of the rock formations. I really liked the waterfall as a quick stopping area and there are several views overseeing the lake from different spots that are nice as well. The only part to beware of is when you finally get to the end (or beginning depending on where you start) where there is a very long, straight walking/biking path. It is VERYYYYYY long. If you are trying to get back to the other side of the lake, there is a cut-through that is shorter that will save you time. Look for it! read more

Been trying to Kayak at Watson Lake three times now! Finally made it happen! Was excellent! Peaceful, definitely a bird lake. Saw many blue herons, ducks, but no eagles today. I rented a kayak and it was so easy! I've hiked this lake before and it's longer than you think! Need a lot of water to hike all the way around! Whether hiking or kayaking, a nice treat! Nice day of relaxation to get away from all the stress! Great picnic areas around the lake! Will do this again! read more

The views dont get old. The park isnt crowded, and although its not an amazing park, the kids still have fun. The open field across the road is fun to run around in for the while I lay on a blanket and enjoy the scenery. The lake itself I love and hope I never forget the beauty God created there. read more

This is a great little park. The lake is nice for kayaking or canoeing, no swimming is allowed however. The hiking trails around the lake are great fun and provide beautiful views of the lake. The picnic areas are nice and there is a big field by the parking area to play in. read more

Check out their website. The granite dells in and around the lake are even more impressive when you are up close by kayak or hiking. There is an on-site kayak and paddle boat rental for very reasonable hourly rates if you didn't bring your own watercraft. Water is clean and clear, and kayaking around the rocks and coves is a scenic wonderland in itself. This time we took the Watson Dam trail for a hike. It's starts on the left side of the public kayak launch area, which is paved and leads to the water. The trail is to the left side, winding up the granite hills and marked very thoroughly by white dots. There's a bit of an inclined climb, including walking over huge bouldered areas as you head towards the Dam wall. From the lake on kayak, the wall appears to be maybe 15 feet high but on the other side, there's a 100 feet drop to the bottom where a small waterfall comes down from the releasing of water from the Dam above. The cove is surrounded by marsh grass along with trees for shade, and there's a small 2 foot wide steel grated bridge about 3 feet higher than the creek it crosses for you to get to the waterfall and the Dam wall. It is worth the hike, which took us about a an hour and 15 minutes round trip for our family along with our small dog. Hiking shoes would be better but we only had sneakers and it was fine. Bring at least 1 bottle of water for each person as if you're not done by 10:00 a.m. in the summer it can get a bit hot. This was one of our favorite hikes as beginners, as it had just enough challenge in incline and climbing along with distance but the scenery of the boulders and the lake is well worth the time and effort you partake. The waterfall alcove at the end was well worth it too. Our teens said it was the BEST hike they've been on because of the scenery, and not too long or too hard to do at all. Our 15 pound pomcollie made it as well no problems and yes, on leash and bring bags to pick-up dog poop on trail please! Five out of five star ratings from us. Beginner/moderate rating. ENJOY read more

The Lake is beatiful but the kayak renting place staff is awful. The lady is very rule!! when we ask if there is any boat available at 2:40 p.m. She kept saying there are no boats for the day (where they have half a dozen on the ground and in their trailer) when we have new party arrived and ask her if there is anything available she yelt at us "how many time i have to say that?" and she turn to her staffs saying this is how you should do it. Our afternoon is ruined. Bring your own boat. read more

Enjoyable! My family and I take our kayaks and stand up paddle boards here for a day on the lake. The scenery is beautiful. There are restrooms, a camp site you can pay to camp at, showers for campers only, picnic tables, a place to clean fish near the restrooms, good parking close to the lake, easy access to the lake, hiking, and rentals available. You pay a small fee to get in for the day. read more

This place is breath taking. There are trails, canoeing, and facilities. The scene is like something from a movie. There is a $2 entry fee for parking pass. read more

If you're doing doubles make sure your partner isn't lazy. An hour to an hour and a half is enough time to explore the entire Watson Lake and each cove. The light sprinkles of rain and variety of birds we saw added to the experience. Wish I snapped a photo of the bald eagle! I highly recommend. read more

Great place to go!! Always clean and usually quiet. Its a peaceful place to go especially during the week when most are at work and school

One word...AMAZING!!. Explores sedona, Grand Canyon and the dells all less than 48 hours. This stop was a random pinterest find headed back to Phoenix worth every mile..# must see read more

Scenic, easy access, great place to stretch your legs. Have to be out of there by sunset though.

A very beautiful lake. There is a big park attached to the lake. There are a lot of tables, shade, trees, parking, horse shoes, etc. The lake area is clean. The hiking trails are well marked and safe. They often have car shows, festivals, etc here. Rent or bring your canoes. The photographs you can take of the rocks and the lake are amazing. Great family times are made here. read more

Nice and easy access, kiosk with CC terminal for check-in, very clean bathrooms and free showers with hot water. One ding since pretty much all the walk-in sites on the hill face the highway and it's a fairly consistent barrage of noise. Grounds were clean and no hassles with employees. Site was pretty clean with a level, rock base. Minimal shade. read more

Kayaking is fun & boulders look fake! Showed up Friday morning, easy rental and Logan (I think was his name) helped us in & out of the kayak so we never stepped in the water! Boulders became bigger and more picturesque the deeper in we paddled. Plenty of water still and no shallow areas. read more

We love this lake and the hiking trails! Haven't kayaked there yet but one of these days we will

Trading the "bar scene", beers and BBQ's for boating, bouldering and bird watching this Memorial Day may have been the second best decision I've made in 2009..... well so far this year. Prescott's Watson Lake offers; ramadas, barbecue and horseshoe pits, The Pea-vine Trail (a now unused Santa Fe Railroad track bed, great for mountain biking, dog walking, or triathlon training), a "glass like surface" lake and rental kayaks. Prescott Outdoor Kayak and Boat Rental runs the rental concession located at the boat ramp, where, if you own you own, can launch, small non motorized watercraft. The cost is fifteen dollars for solo kayaks and ten dollars for tandem sea kayaks, the staff (Ted), is friendly and even earned a ten dollar tip for being so helpful, being this was my first time in a kayak........ seems I'm discovering my virginity in a lot of areas hence unknown. Among the days discoveries were: Lizard Island,(a rock island ruled by one old, giant (foot long), blue bellied granddaddy lizard and his brood we counted 30 to 40 scaled subjects), Some beautiful driftwood, (which turned out to be too large and waterlogged to get into the kayak), a future camp spot, a triathletes bike (stashed in the trees lake side), a paddler's "weed" (stashed lake side), one Great Heron, thirty-or-so Loons, red winged black birds, mallards ducks, raccoon track and the nest he (or she) raided, and the feeling of complete peace (as you drift in the current at the will of the winds). The images in my head of a distant desert rain storm framed by blue skies above and granite rocks weathered for millions of years in the background and an inundated cottonwood tree leafless and clothed in sixteen Loons in the foreground will probably make it to canvas this week. The rental staff had to track us down and we raced (Ted) back to the dock. As the boat was returned to it's rightful owner....I'll have my own soon, we looked back to see our wake still visible in the glass surface across the entire lake. Rocks, water, birds, sky, wildlife, exercise and peace of mind, all just five miles from downtown Yay! I'm a fan. read more

Beautiful park that I like to visit just to see the views and hike. It's great coming here in cooler weather but I wouldn't mind visiting anytime of the year. read more

Been there several times, unique rock srambling experience. The views are breathtaking so plop down on a rock and enjoy the scenery.

Very pretty and unique lake surrounded by huge granite boulders. Makes for great pictures! There are several hiking trails, and areas for camping. We seen people rock climbing. There were quite a few people kayaking. We were not able to spend too much time there, but will definitely be back and do the longer hike around the lake and maybe rent a kayak. There is a $2 fee to get into the park. Which is nothing compared to some, and I never mind paying for a day pass. read more

Drove up here from Phoenix, and it's worth the hour and half drive. I think the lake is just so neat looking with the rock formations considering none of the rocks in the Prescott area really look like that except for this one little spot. I didn't hike all the way around the Lake, but I see that the trail does take you the whole length around, so next time I think that is what I'll be doing :3 I also thought it was cool that there's a launch site for if you wanted to take your paddle boat or kayak and do that as well. The park/grounds/everything is kept nicely, there are plenty of benches, tables and places to sit! It looks like it's a good spot for families, someone just trying to walk their pet or if you want to take pictures of nature itself. There is a 2.00 dollar entry fee but if I remember correctly it gets you into the other parks in the area and obviously they use that money towards what it's supposed to go towards which is the park and lake itself because everything is clean and well kept :) read more

Very pretty lake went fishing but didn't catch any it's great for kids they have a playground.

This lake is beautiful with very unique rock formations. We were backpacking the Prescott Circle Trail http://www.choosebetterlife.com/prescott-circle-trail/ so didn't park, but there were lots of trails and wildlife--endless photo ops! read more

Beautiful park, nice size, not too large. Incredible scenery. Hiking trails were easy and family friendly. The lake was perfect for kayaking. read more