Exploring Arizona: Canyon Creek Fish Hatchery

Last month I mentioned that my girls and I were going up north to play Boxcar children.  We have been reading the series and my older girls just love them.  So a few weeks ago we loaded up with cousins and went to Canyon Creek Fish Hatchery and then to play in Canyon Creek.  For lunch we ate homemade bread, chunks of cheese, milk and blueberries just like they did in the book (except we didn't find our blueberries in the forest).  We even used the creek as a makeshift refrigerator for the milk.  My girls had a fun time playing Jessie and Violet and the boy cousins joined right in as Henry and Benny.  It was a successful and beautiful day, one to go down in the memory books.  I hope these pictures inspire you to explore Arizona a little more:

{this gray haired man is my pops taking a little snooze with my nephew}

Canyon Creek Fish Hatchery is located "45 miles east of Payson, of Highway 260.  Take the Young Road south off of 260, travel three miles to Forest Service Road 33 and turn left.  Stay on the Forest Service Road 33 for five miles to the hatchery."  [Canyon Creek Hatchery pamphlet]  You will pass the creek just before the hatchery and there are also 2 campgrounds within a 1/2 mile of the hatchery.  There aren't any hook-ups but there are toilets.  Forest Service Road 33 is a dirt road winding down into the canyon.  This trip is more for spring, summer and fall.   

The hatchery consists of a self guided visitors center, several "raceways" for growing fish and a show pond with the big trophy fish.  All of this if free, but if you want to feed the trophy fish, make sure to bring your quarters.  We went through a handful of quarters on fish food.  

-Kathryn