Watson Lake is breathtakingly beautiful-took the dogs swimming and enjoyed paddle boarding around the lake. Big picnic areas to have lunch and a trail you can walk around the lake. read more

Watson Lake - Watson Lake is breathtakingly beautiful - Lakes Near Me - Prescott, Arizona

My husband and I took a tandem kayak out this afternoon and we had a great experience! Customer service was awesome! Thank you Juan , sage and Oliver for making our day ...We are definitely looking forward to our next adventure with all of you .Thanks for helping us get in and out of the kayak. Much appreciated read more

Watson Lake - Lakes Near Me - Prescott, Arizona

Saturday 9.12.2020 It's our first hiking and sightseeing in Prescott - We arrived at around 9:30am and parking was easy as many parking areas spread around the lake. We passed the first parking lot which seemed for people who camped there and drove further and found the second spot to park. The lake was just a few steps away with strange and beautiful formation of rocks around the lake. You can rent a canoe or kayak there but my husband preferred to walk It's a 4 miles trails with views of the lake in different levels of heights, and it's an easy trail. We enjoyed the trail and enjoyed taking photos here. read more

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We love this lake, it has beautiful trails, trees, wildlife, lots of water! The kayaking and canoeing are so fun here! *NO WADING! It sucks I love going swimming, snorkeling and wading, but not here! Anyway, we love to go fishing here!! It's so peaceful and serene here! read more

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Did this hike with our dogs in early November, beginning at 9:30am. Starting from the vista parking (which is a free small parking lot just south of the paid parking lot), we opted to do the clockwise route around the lake. To me, it was like dropping a lake in the middle of Joshua Tree, and climbing the large boulders of Joshua Tree all around the lake. If you like a lot of up and down on boulders, as I do, you are really going to dig this hike. The scenery throughout the hike, though similar in what one sees, always seems to be quite varied as one's angles and perspectives keep changing from one spot to the next. The only negative of this hike for us was the final 1.5 miles 1 mile of which is a boring dirt road, which gives way to the final .5 miles which is a more scenic trail again. --- it is a shame that this 1 mile section has to interrupt an absolutely beautiful hike. (I imagine that if there was a kid there with a golf cart offering rides, that he would have plenty of hikers gladly pay him $5 to bypass that 1 mile stretch.). Nonetheless, the rest of the hike was perfect, and thus I give it 5 stars. We drove an hour from our lodging at Oak Creek, and it was well worth the drive. Side-note: as was told to me by an elderly hiker we crossed paths with, we should have seen this trail years ago.... he said, and it is easily confirmed by spying the water lines on the rocks, that the water level was so much higher that the same path we were on used to abut the water in many places where it was now a hundred feet away. read more

Very nice lake with excellent views and hiking as well as water sports. Does have an entrance fee but it is worth it. Large picnicking area.

Beautiful lake that's great for kayaking. Easy access to launch. Saw bald eagles, pelicans, cormorants, and Great Blue Herons if you are into birding. read more

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The hike around the lake is beautiful. A must do in Prescott AZ!! I would for sure recommend visiting Watson Lake as a go to recreation area. read more

This is a great place to kayak or hike. The rock formations are interesting and parking was plentiful. They have free days as well, which is cool. Definitely a great place to visit! read more

Beautiful lake. Lots of kayakers out on the water today. People feeding the hundreds of ducks/geese. Picnics. Unusual rock formations. Would definitely kayak here again. Great for families! read more

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Watson LakeDue to an event happening, we were directed to park our car at the end past the campground and by the kayak rentals. Having never been here before, it was very confusing trying to figure out where the trail started. We had even downloaded the trail to the Alltrails appand still managed to get off trackseveral times. It seems easier to start the trail near the campground by the lookout where there are more signs. Whatever you do, don't follow people like we did. Many are just finding a spot to sit by the lake or on the rocks and aren't on the actual trail. There are lots of spur trails and the white circles will lead you there if you aren't careful. The circles should be arrows because you don't know if it is directing you to an entrance or to the trail. As the trail progressed, it was better marked with the white circles and some signs. As others have mentioned, clockwise is the best option as most of the climbing will be first. There are some drop offs that may be challenging for people with fear of heights. Scrambling around in the boulders was fun though! There is no shade unless you find a big rock to hide behind. It is a stunning hike with the contrast of the lake and the boulders. We saw a lot of people kayaking in the lake. What a place for that activity! Definitely recommend; however, if it's your first time download the trail to Alltrails or a similar app to help keep you on course. read more

Watson Lake - Lakes Near Me - Prescott, Arizona

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Our visits had a waiting period before we could get a table. Seating on busy days felt cramped. Order time till reaching the table was long for eggs over easy. Yes View was nice. Pricing was moderate. read more

"A photographers dream out here!" is what I saw on one of the photo caption here. My chance to visit finally came yesteday ( it was 95F and hot). Based on some colors I saw for pictures listed here and other website, I decided to read up on the book about understanding exposure before my visit. I think what I learned in the book helped, and I tested with different exposure during my 3-4 hours stay there. Rocks and water were photogenic. Entrance fee to the park was $2 but it covers three parks in Prescott. I decided to drive to all three of them. All of them are kept nicely with clean bathroom. I appreciate they maintain parks so clean. They have plenty of ramada area for party and picnics. They also have kayak rental place and several of them were enjoying cool water. Hiking around is mostly easy, I saw several small children and older generations enjoying the beautiful landscape. They marked trails with white dots and easy to follow. I was there for photo shooting and kept walking around to find the perfect spot. Hiking boots I had was very helpful climbing some of the area. I was carrying about 30 pounds of gear with me (I used them all) but didn't have any issues climbing or jumping from rocks to rocks. Unfortunately some wind didn't let me take some images I was hoping to get but wind kept me cool from time to time. I would like to come back during different weather/time, I am sure the park will produce different colors each time. read more

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Sad that the lake is so low, but this continues to be a beautiful hike! Whether you want a light or more rigorous hike, you will truly enjoy hiking here it is just gorgeous! read more

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Watson Lake is a fantastic lake near Flagstaff AZ. It's very scenic with its rock formations and beautiful trails around the lake. There is a small entrance fee but it's well worth it! There is ample parking available as well as a boat launch. I will definitely be back to spend more time checking out the lake and possibly doing some kayaking as well! read more

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Good hiking trail around the lake. We usually go on Wednesday since Prescott area has this as a free day at most of their lakes. Our grandkids love exploring the rocky areas. And the ducks snd geese are an added bonus. Watch out gif the one goose that likes to make chase! read more

Absolutely beautiful. I love the open field for frisbee training my dog. The lake is serene and I highly recommend renting kayaks from Born to be Wild Adventures. The hiking is nice as well. read more

Watson Lake - Lakes Near Me - Prescott, Arizona

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What an incredible rock formations! I really enjoyed hiking in surrounding this lake and explore the beauty of nature. Unfortunately those golf baskets installed permanently everywhere, why? Easy to get here and plenty of parking. Beautiful picnic tables with covered roof, perfect for family day outing. read more

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Ok I wasn't dressed for it, i had my swimming outfit but lo and behold it is for hikers, kayakers and canoers! My fault, didn't check. Swimming not allowed folks but overall my family and I enjoyed it. You need to wear hiking shoes in order to get close to the lake. Very nice view quite relaxing but don't expect high powered boats. Waking not allowed. We set up our own Canopy which helped if you don't want to use the Ramadas to rent. read more

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

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Gorgeous. And a short walk to the view. You can hike if you want to. But not necessary.

If your looking for an easy walk in nature, this is for you! Don't be fooled tho as you can walk for miles. This is along the peavine trail. You can go off the main path to walk around the lake. read more

Pros: picturesque, lots of parking, easy to find Cons: Wrongly marked and confusing trails. Wanted to hike the Watson Loop Trail. Ended up hiking every single trail here; not purposely! The signage says "Follow the white dots." We did, to our detriment. My friends and I are experience hikers. We should have known better than to blindly trust trail markings. In our defense, we didn't have a lot of time to plan for this trip. read more

Watson Lake - Lakes Near Me - Prescott, Arizona

My new favorite hike in AZ! Watson Lake is gorgeous. The granite dells are breathtaking. Even if you don't do the 5 mile trail around the lake, walking up to the granite dells outside of the parking lot makes it worth it. There is a $3 fee to get into the park. The trail took us 2.5 hours. I would say it is a moderate hike. We exercise regularly and it did not seem strenuous to us- we stopped a lot to take pictures. It is well marked by white dots. There are a lot of gnats around the rock area of the trail. They do not bite, just annoying at times. There are restrooms when you first enter the park. Definitely check out Watson Lake! read more

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The water is green and looks gross. We rented a canoe and some areas of the lake smell bad. The rocks look cool though. read more

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Just beautiful. A great place to get away from PhX in the summer. A little less than 2 hours. Great hike around the lake with beautiful views. Hike is easy/moderate. The views are spectacular. Downtown Prescott is about 10 min away. I will definitely make Watson lake an annual trip from Phx. read more

Watson Lake - Lakes Near Me - Prescott, Arizona

Beautiful hike on a gorgeous day! Trails are a little hard to follow. Also, the frisbee thing is Kind of weird. We kept hearing "fore" during the early part of the hike. read more

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

As we all know Phoenix is HOT so Alley decided to beat the heat and try camping for $15 a night. The bottom camping area was about 50% full st 6:30 pm and loud. I guess EVERYONE got to listen to their music until 10pm. The top campsite had 30 year old frat boys. It's almost 1 am and their music is blaring as are their voices. This clearly is where the Prescott club scene is. Forget hiking tomorrow I will be lucky to get up by check out at noon... I am sure once that group shuts off their music the R.V. blow will start blaring here. Their are no rangers or park hosts like at Dead Horse so everyone can do whatever they want. Pay $5 more and go to Dead Horse. Calling the City of Prescott Park service in the morning. I need a refund for tomorrow. read more

Great spot for kayaking! Lots of wildlife. Looks like a fun area in general- there's a playground, Bocce ball, frisbee golf, and a big field. Parking fee was $3. read more

Absolutely love the dells and the beautiful views of this lake! Gorgeous, especially at the tops of the dells. It's quite an exercise too. And I took my boys (7&9) & they loved climbing the rocks. They were able to keep up easily. read more

Watson Lake - Lake surrounded by granite dells. - Lakes Near Me - Prescott, Arizona

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Great place for a walk/easy hike. Keep your dog on a LEASH! Animal control is out and writing tickets.

Beautiful and breathtaking scenery. Looks like swimming and boats are not permitted but kayaking is. Definitely plan to come back to this hidden gem soon! read more

Watson Lake - Loved this lake. Absolutely breathtaking views and scenery. While they don't allow swimming and boats, they allow Kayaking! - Lakes Near Me - Prescott, Arizona

Watson Lake is a killer workout for even the seasoned hiker. One of my girlfriends gathered some friends [including yours truly] to come for a good, long hike on a beautiful Sunday morning around Watson Lake. Boy oh boy did I not know what I was getting myself into looking back, even with researching the trail and mentally preparing for the 5+ mile hike. The scrambling/hiking portion is challenging, but the views are worth the struggle. My phone almost died towards the end of the hike [the flat, bike trail area] because I kept taking pictures. Very scenic area everywhere around the lake, including the police academy area that is fenced off. While the entire trail is pretty well-marked, there are confusing parts in the scramble/intense hiking area where some white dots have been eroded away. As a result, we went ~1/3mi off-trail but luckily found our way back. If you think you have enough water/snacks, bring 2 extra bottles and an extra protein bar. We learned the hard way, to a degree. When we visited the Park, there were a lot of kayakers going around the lake which have enticed us to return and perhaps try that sometime in the future in addition to another hike. read more

Great 5.5 mile hike around the lake! The views were incredible! The rock formations with the lake in the background were absolutely breathtaking! The changes in topography around the lake were just amazing. I would say that the hike was challenging. I'm a beginner but consider myself pretty fit so make sure you have plenty of water with you and just take it one step at a time! Also, make sure you have walking sticks. Those helped out a lot! read more

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Love visiting Watson Lake. We take our canoe out there often just to drink in the beautiful scenery. read more

Watson Lake - Lakes Near Me - Prescott, Arizona

Beautiful park with inexpensive entry fee,$3. Lots of trails to explore along the lakes edge. Will be back soon! read more

Watson Lake - Lakes Near Me - Prescott, Arizona

What an awesome park tucked back away in Prescott. Beautiful place to hike or kayak. I was chillin down at the waters edge and someone from above broke out a cello and started playing some pretty cool music. Also a group of chicks got naked and was skinny dipping not that far from me. Does life get any better than this or what. I love my life. . read more

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This review is for the hiking around the lake only. First things first, parking has gone up to $3. Free parking on Wednesdays! I lucked out and got to park for free. No off leash dogs. I got there early, like around 5 am to try and beat the heat. The park itself was closed so I looked for parking elsewhere. I ended up finding parking on the south end of the lake. You can GPS directions to the Yavapai Humane Society, and keep going north on that road for like 100 feet or so and there is a parking lot on the left. It was open (and empty) around 5 am on a Wednesday. Self paid parking machine, $3, credit cards accepted, stick the receipt on your dash and then go. If your park here, there is a stand to check in if you want, trail maps, a few picnic tables, and restrooms. I attempted to go counterclockwise around the lake. Attempted. More on that later. Anyway, I started down the Peavine trail, which is flat and paved with gravel. Good trail for jogging, and riding bicycles or horses. I didn't see any horses, but there sure was horse poop everywhere! But other than that, it's just a leisurely stroll that you could do in flippyfloppies. No motorized vehicles allowed. Also, there is a police training facility on the right, it looked pretty cool with cars tipped over and a staged building where trainees probably run their drills and exercises and what not. Lots of signs saying don't enter, firearms training, you get the idea. Take a nice easy stroll down Peavine until you can cut left on to Lakeshore trail. It is marked with white painted dots, and there are occasional trail map signs posted. The south end of the lake was pretty easy. You could probably do some trail running for some parts of it. The north end of the lake was much more challenging. If you look at difficulty ratings for this hike, it is pretty much based off that end. There are a couple trails you can branch off and eventually get back on to Lakeshore, and there were trail maps posted at these crossings. South end was so easy that my pup and I went off the trail to go climb rocks by the lake and make it challenging, and to try and get some pictures down by the water. North end. I went off trail, and ended up getting flat out lost! I lost the trail, and got lost trying to find it. I ended up climbing up and down these giant boulders, and eventually made it down to a residential area. I'm pretty sure the area I was hiking was private property and I wasn't supposed to be there. Eventually I got back on the trail, and started to head back because it was warming up pretty fierce. I was lost for probably close to an hour and a half, but got some good climbing in. I then turned around, and went back the way we came. I ended up turning off Lakeshore and on to Peavine to head back for the easy walk to the car since my pup was flat out worn out. Along the way, we saw cotton tailed rabbits, lizards, no snakes thankfully, and one big critter. It might have been a deer? I haven't seen a deer yet in Arizona so I'm not sure. It was the biggest prey my pup had yet to see, and he nearly ripped my arm off when he tried to take off after it. Scenery is what you might expect in the desert, although there is a lot of green, and some interesting plants/cacti that I didn't recognize. The water level was pretty low when I went. And no swimming. I'll be back to finish the loop around the lake, but probably not until the weather cools down quite a bit. Since it was the middle of summer, and on a Wednesday, there was hardly anyone there. I saw one other person hiking the Lakeshore trail, but did see a quite a few bicyclists and walkers/joggers on Peavine getting their morning exercise. read more

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This park offers a great scenic view of both the surrounding hills and the rocks that cover the perimeter of the lake. There are numerous walking/hiking paths and kayak rental. Parking is $2 admission however covers you for other Prescott parks for the day as well so it's quite the steal. I'll be back again in the spring/summer for some kayaking (imo it was way too cold for it on Christmas Eve but I did see a couple kayakers out). read more

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If you want to feel like you've stepped into a sci-fi movie and are visitng other worlds, please go to Watson Lake and know what I mean. It leaves you breathless with peaceful views and you can't help not to feel zen afterward. You can hike, bike or canoe or simply absorb the sights on a bench. An absolute gorgeous view ! read more

I've hiked here twice in the last year. Every time I'm blown away by the amazing look of this lake! I feel like I'm in a postcard. Kudos to the park service (or other group?) that makes these trails. Just look for the white dots and follow the trail. No easy-mode paved trails here! Mind you this isn't for the faint of heart! These trails have some serious climbing happening. Don't forget your backpack for water & sunscreen! You frequently see all kinds of wildlife - rabbits, lizards (cool to those of us who don't live here), snakes (careful!), & all kinds of birds. Today we even saw a squirrel yelling perched atop a rock outcropping! I come for the trails. I see that there are also camping spots, but honestly, there isn't much to them so it's good if you enjoy camping to some degree, I'm sure. Just pay at the self-service gate and you're on your way! I can't recommend this place more! read more

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