Saguaro Lake, AZ

The most popular lake of the Salt River Project is Saguaro Lake. Held back by the Stewart Mountain Dam, Saguaro is a scenic body of water with towering red and yellow cliff walls, and the closest to Phoenix at 41 miles. The lake is 10 miles in length with 22.2 miles of shoreline.

Saguaro del Norte Recreation site is near the dam and includes the Saguaro Lake Marina (which includes a restaurant and boat concession), a Maricopa County Sheriff's aid station, picnic tables, restrooms and boat ramps. There is a public beach, picnic and restroom facilities at Butcher Jones Beach, which can be reached by a road a few miles north of Saguaro del Norte, and three public docks for fishing. The area is open daily from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. from April through September. Bagley Flat Campground (30 spaces) is about four miles from the dam but is accessible only by boat. It is open all year (no fees). To get there, travel up a narrow cliff-bordered portion of the lake. The campground is in a scenic and peaceful area and has sanitation facilities.

The Arizona Game and Fish Department stocks all of the SRP lakes with fish. There generally are good supplies of walleye, largemouth and yellow bass, rainbow and brown trout, bluegills, channel catfish, and crappie in Saguaro.