Kayaking in the Desert

When I moved to the desert, I thought I would be letting go of one of my favorite things: the water. It cannot be overstated: I. Love. The. Water. I swim, and when I’m not swimming I’m paddleboarding, and when I’m not paddleboarding, I’m kayaking. Give me any activity on or near the water and I am a happy, happy girl.

So imagine my surprise when I found two of my favorite things, adventure and water, in the desert!

Less than an hour from Phoenix, nestled in the Tonto National Forest, sits Saguaro (pronounced Sah-wah-ro) Lake, which is actually a reservoir created in 1930 from the Stewart Mountain Dam, the last of which to be built off the Salt River. The lake itself has 22 miles of shoreline, making it a popular spot for boating, sailing, jet-skiing, and, yes, kayaking.

For my inaugural paddle, I turned to Saguaro Lake Ranch. For $50, they outfitted me with a kayak, a life vest, a paddle for two hours, and some tips on where to look for Big Horn Sheep and other wildlife, like Bald Eagles. They also transported us from to and from their ranch to the launch site, and they even put the boats in the water for us. It was the easiest launch I have ever had!

We were midweek in the middle of winter, so we had the lake pretty much to ourselves. Two hours on the water in the land of eternal sunshine was a dream: we found our way down a slot canyon, saw osprey and herons, and enjoyed the many canyon rock formations that surrounded us.

If you do plan to self-launch with your own gear, there are a few things to note. There is an $8 daily pass needed for parking in the Tonto National Forest , plus $4 for each watercraft you are launching, and Saguaro del Norte is where you will want to park and launch.

Or, turn to Saguaro Lake Ranch for a kayak rental – they will not let you down!

And as always with any kind of outdoor activity, a little PSA…remember to LYP:

Don’t LITTER.
YIELD to hikers that are climbing.
PACK in/PACK out.