Parker Canyon Lake - , Arizona

Christy B.

Best Valentine date ever! We stopped at The Steak Out in Sonoita for a wonderful dinner and then drove another hour down to the lake for camping and fishing.

We got to the campground just after dark and saw dozens of deer! And the sky appeared so low with a thick conglomerance of stars. 'Someone' had forgotten to bring the tent. 🙄 Whatever. I didn't even complain at him. We didn't make this trip for complaints. Everything was fine, LoL! So we had a night of 'adventure sleeping' in the truck. Not exactly comfy, but it was 30° outside with the wind roaring! It even rained for a little while. At least the truck was warm and dry and we still had our sleeping bags and pillows. It was fine. Everything was fine.

Then at around sunrise, we got bundled up and trudged down to the lake. The fish were not awake yet. They didn't start biting until around 10am. But by the end of the day, we had seven delicious trout hanging from our stringer.

The lake is beautiful and quiet with friendly campers and a few boaters. They had stocked the trout the previous weekend and the fishing was good.

There are plenty of restrooms up the hill near the campsites. Yeah, it's a long walk up to the bathroom and back down to the lake. My legs were aching the next day.

Overall, it was a fun getaway and a much-needed retreat!

Brandi L.

Most of their boat rentals are broken and truly not anywhere to swim. Only paid parking. Beautiful views and most people only fish here.

Deanna L.

I love this lake, it's so beautiful and the weather is perfect. This is a place to escape, you can see the hawks really close because of the high elevation. It's a drive to get there, the lake is located on top of a mountain in a residential town. You can rent boats to fish, kayaks, boards, and fishing license. You can swim in the lake, and a good camping site. Bathrooms are available, you have no phone reception. The drive is worth the scenery.

Sandra C.

I love the lake, the quiet, not too busy, especially during the weekdays. Has fishing, boating, swimming, and a very cute lake store. You can rent boats. Pay for your camping or day use with a machine. Love it! You can pay with cash if wanted. I loved the views! Mountains, Lake, just breathtaking. Has water for you to use, restrooms, which were very clean, new blue water. There are not a lot of squirrels like other places. So dogs aren't constantly chasing them. There's no shade over tables, but there's plenty of shade with the trees around. It gets cold at night, but very nice during the day. Bring wood, not a lot of wood there. RVs, tents, etc. Fishing for trout!! I didn't realize I was so close to Mexico. There was a crazy bird making noise most of the night, but other than that, it was very quiet.

Tyler P.

Hole in the wall spot, almost in Mexico! Great views, not too busy, and good birding if that’s your thing.

trina C.

We camped here for a weekend and it's a great view of the lake from the campsite, depending on which campsite you get. No reservations, but it wasn't very busy, since it wasn't a holiday. Paying is at the campsite sign with an envelope. There's a place to have a campfire at your campsite, the marina sells wood. The lake has rentals for kayaks, tandem kayak, peddle boats, canoes and small motor boats which was a lot of fun. The people at the marina are really nice.
The reason for 2 stars is the bathrooms. They were horrendous. I know it's camping, but this was the worst we have been too. None of them were kept up or treated with chemicals, so the smell was so bad, no one wanted to go in. For this reason we won't go back.

Jim R.

Even though it was Saturday, not too crowded. Kayaking and fishing, but we took the bicycles this time. Sure is easy to explore on the bikes. Arrived a little late in the morning, pretty warm. Nice slow ride through the hills.

Tarrah C.

Went here on a Saturday and it was not terrible busy when I arrived but when I left the parking lot was full. There is an $8 day use fee. It was a great hike with the dog plenty of places to let her run in the water away from people and other dogs.

There is two roads to the lake. One that is fully paved and W Montezuma Road which is a washboard ruff road through Coronado National Forest. I recommend taking both as you get a great views both ways. Montezuma Road an uneasy section of the road on either side of the Coronado overlook.