Tonto National Forest
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Tonto National Forest | |
|---|---|
| IUCN Category VI (Managed Resource Protected Area) | |
  |
|
| Location: | Arizona, USA |
| Nearest city: | Payson, Arizona |
| Area: | 2,873,200 acres (11,627 km²) |
| Established: | 1905 |
| Visitation: | 5,922,000 (in 2005) |
| Governing body: | United States Forest Service |
Encompassing 2,873,200 acres (11,627 km²), the Tonto National Forest is the largest of the six national forests in Arizona and is the fifth largest national forest in the United States.[1] The Tonto National Forest has diverse scenery, with elevations ranging from 1,400 feet (427 m) in the Sonoran Desert to 7,400 feet (2,256 m) in the ponderosa pine forests of the Mogollon Rim (pronounced muggy-own). The boundaries of the Tonto National Forest are the Phoenix metropolitan area to the south, the Mogollon Rim to the north and the San Carlos and Fort Apache Indian Reservation to the east. The Tonto (Spanish for "fool") is managed by the USDA Forest Service and its headquarters are in Phoenix.
Contents |
[edit] Lakes, rivers and streams
The Tonto National Forest has six notable cold water reservoirs:
- Bartlett Reservoir
- Horseshoe Reservoir
The next four are created by the Salt River chain of dams:
- Saguaro Lake
- Canyon Lake
- Apache Lake
- Theodore Roosevelt Lake
[edit] Wilderness areas
There are seven federally designated wilderness areas within the Tonto National Forest:
- Four Peaks Wilderness
- Hell's Gate Wilderness
- Mazatzal Wilderness
- Salome Wilderness
- Salt River Canyon Wilderness
- Sierra Ancha Wilderness
- Superstition Wilderness
Together, these protected areas encompass 589,000 (2,383 km²) acres of forest land[2]
A portion of the Verde Wild and Scenic River also lies within the forest.
[edit] References
- ^ Tonto National Forest - History and Development. U.S. Forest Service, Tonto National Forest. Retrieved on 2006-09-15.
- ^ Tonto National Forest - Wilderness Area. U.S. Forest Service, Tonto National Forest. Retrieved on 2006-09-15.
