Campground Overview:
Windy Hill Campground, located on central Arizona’s largest lake on the Tonto National Forest, offers great water recreation opportunities to the public. Because of its close proximity to the Roosevelt Lake, Windy Hill allows fishing, non-motorized and motorized boating, along with hiking trails. There are plenty of developed campsites available at Windy Hill, which allows for an easy, quick escape during any time of the year for families and individuals.
Campsite:
Windy Hill Campground is one of the largest campgrounds around. It includes 347 camp units with shade ramadas, fire rings with grills, picnic tables, and potable water hydrants. Toilets and showers are located throughout the camp loops. There are also playgrounds and an amphitheater. The sites are fairly spacious, level and gravel and most sites have trees. Rarely crowded, similar to Cholla Campground down the road, Windy Hill is an under-utilized campground that has all the features a family needs for an amazing trip.
This site is 6 miles southeast of historic Roosevelt Dam. From Mesa: take State Route (SR) 87/Beeline Highway north for about 60 miles to its junction with SR 188. Turn right onto SR 188 for 33 miles to the junction of SR 88. Continue south on SR 188 for 4 miles to Forest Road (FR) 82 (Windy Hill Recreation Site entrance). Turn left and continue for 2 miles to the site. The entire route is paved.
From the Globe area: take SR 188 north for 25 miles to FR 82 (Windy Hill Recreation Site entrance), turn right and continue for 2 miles to the site. The entire route is paved.
Campground at a Glance
Level: |
Developed w/ Shower |
Season: |
Year-Round |
Nearby City: |
Globe |
Fishing: |
Roosevelt Lake |
Campground Website: |
Windy Hill Campground |
Campground Map: |
Click Here/ Roosevelt Lake Recreation Areas |
Reservations: |
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Location: |
Nearby Attractions and Activities:
Theodore Roosevelt Lake was formed by the construction of the Theodore Roosevelt Dam on the Salt River in 1911, making it the oldest artificial reservoir in Arizona. Although not as popular as other lakes located near Phoenix, the reservoir and surrounding area is now a major center for fishing, boating, camping, hiking, and general vacationing.
The recreation area is apart of the Tonto National Forest- Tonto Basin Ranger District and encompasses over 500,000 acres and includes numerous recreational opportunities located along the shores of Roosevelt Lake. Bermuda Flat Shoreline Area contains miles of sandy shoreline accessible to most vehicles including RVs, and is one of the main locations for primitive camping. Cholla Campground is the largest official site, with paved roads and full hookups, and it benefits from a scenic setting on a low mesa, projecting out into the lake. Vineyard Canyon, a day use area, has picnic facilities and short trails to the lakeshore, here lined by stony slopes rather than sandy beaches. A pull-out just west of Theodore Roosevelt Dam is the start point for the Vineyard Trail, the only maintained hiking path along the lake, climbing the cactus-covered hills for fine views over the Salt River Valley and the Apache Trail.
East of the dam are various facilities including the Roosevelt Lake Visitors Center, day use areas, and Roosevelt Lake Marina. The visitor center is worth a stop; exhibits display many interesting artifacts from the early 1900’s. Across the street, the Cemetery Trail takes visitors to the Roosevelt Cemetery, the final resting place of some of the local settlers and also workers who built the Theodore Roosevelt Dam. Further southeast, the highway moves away from the shoreline though the side roads lead to more lakeside recreation areas: Windy Hill, Grapevine Point, and Schoolhouse Campground.
Tonto National Monument protects two well-preserved prehistoric cliff dwellings and diverse artifacts. Located within the Tonto Basin of the Upper Sonoran Desert, this National Park Service site provides opportunities to experience a thriving culture deeply rooted in its natural setting, while encouraging our own connections to our environment. For nearly 10 millennia, the Tonto Basin has provided, and continues to provide, a home to many diverse people. Archaeological evidence suggests that Ancient peoples traveled extensively throughout this and aurrounding areas. Several American Indian tribes such as White Mountain, Chiricauhua, and Tonto Apaches, Yavapais, Pima-Maricopas and more call this area home today. Many of these tribes feel strong spiritual ties to the cliff dwellings, deeming them to be an ancestral home.
Nearby Campgrounds:
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