The Tonto

What About the Tonto

The land encompassing what is now the Tonto National Forest was designated in 1905, 7 years before Arizona became a state.The idea was to protect the watershed of the Salt and Verde rivers following the construction of the Theodore Roosevelt Dam . I would say that this was the driving event for the subsequent development of Phoenix and its surrounding cities and towns. The Tonto is the largest NF in Arizona at 2,873,200 acres. It rises from 1300 to 7200 feet above sea level and hosts 5,922,000 visitors per year. There are 4 lakes on the Salt,( Roosevelt, Apache, Canyon and Saguaro). And 2 on the Verde, (Bartlet and Horseshoe). There are 25,000 acres of riparian habitat(the oasis like habitat found along desert waterways). There are innumerably more facts and history of the Tonto to be found at www.fs.usfs.gov/tonto. I would note that the Tonto also has 8 designated Wilderness Areas including the famous Superstition Wilderness Area, home of the legendary Lost Dutchman Gold Mine. More to come