Cool Arizona Places: Roosevelt Lake

Once the largest man-made lake in the world, Roosevelt Lake is still the largest lake entirely in Arizona. The Theodore Roosevelt Dam is 280 feet high and 723 feet long. The dam was finished in 1911 and its height increased in 1995. Roosevelt Lake is 23 miles long, with 128 miles of shoreline and a surface area of about 21,000 acres (water levels fluctuate and so does size accordingly). Two major drainages feed into the lake, Salt River and Tonto Creek. 

Fishing is a common recreational activity at Roosevelt Lake. The lake is home to a variety of game fish including crappie carp, Sunfish, flathead and channel catfish, and small mouth bass and largemouth bass. There is a slot size limit for the bass. Only one bass can be taken per day measuring between 13 and 16 inches.

Until recently, it also hosted the state's most significant population of the federally endangered Southwestern Willow Flycatcher. Since the lake's rise following heavy rains in the winter of 2005, the population dynamics between this site and the other significant Arizona population (on the San Pedro River) are unclear.

There are several Arizona Trail trailheads in the vicinity. The 800 mile (1,280 km) long hiking trail extending from the Arizona-Mexico border to Utah crosses the Salt River on the State Route 188 bridge that crosses Theodore Roosevelt Lake just northeast of Roosevelt Dam.

Roosevelt Lake Wildlife Area encompasses much of the west end of Theodore Roosevelt Lake. The wildlife area extends from the northwest portion of the lake southward to where Tonto Creek enters to Cottonwood Creek on the southwest portion of the lake. Due to its size, the habitat in the wildlife area is quite diverse and consists of lush upper Sonoran Desert, marsh, open water and, depending on flows, inundated vegetation. 

As a result of the diversity of habitat types, a visitor can expect to see a wide array of wildlife during all seasons. In addition, this end of the lake is surrounded by Four Peaks, Superstition, Mazatzal, and Sierra Ancha Mountain Ranges, making it a picturesque place to view wildlife. A visitor can expect sweltering summer temperatures to regularly exceed 100 degrees F while winter temperatures may drop below freezing.

Website:  http://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/tonto/recreation/fishing/recarea/?recid=35797&actid=42

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