Cholla Bay

US Forest Service · Arizona

Cholla Bay in Arizona. Ringed marker is this site; the other dots are the 327 public campsites we map in Arizona.

Located along the shoreline of central Arizona's largest lake. The setting is in the Upper Sonoran Desert. Vegetation includes mesquite, cat-claw, desert broom, and cholla and saguaro cacti. This site provides a spectacular view of the Sierra Ancha Mountains. Stay limit 14 days, closed during high lake level, pack it in pack it out, internal roads are unpaved, size of site varies greatly; lake levels determine size of availability. Cholla Bay Shoreline is closed for camping, but remains open for walk-in or boat-in day use.

What we know about it

Managed by

US Forest Service

Fee

Not published (the agency does not list one)

Booking

first-come, first-served

Dogs

Allowed on a leash (USFS policy)

Site type

Camping area

Number of sites

250

Coordinates

33.71857, -111.20414

Nearest sites we map

• Cholla Campground1 km · US Forest Service
• Bermuda Flat Camping Area4 km · US Forest Service
• Indian Point Campground6 km · US Forest Service
• Frazier Horse Campground9 km · US Forest Service
• Frazier Group Campground9 km · US Forest Service
• Upper Burn Corral9 km · US Forest Service

Source: US Forest Service, dated 2026-01-20, fetched 2026-09-07. Official listing.

All camping near Payson · All camping in Arizona