Dry Dude Creek

5/5 (4 reviews)
Payson, Arizona (Gila County)
Last Updated: 07/07/2021

Trail Information

Highlights

If camping and exploring trails in the pines with your 4x4 sounds like a great time, then this would be the spot to start. Camping in this area makes for a great starting point for exploring the Arizona Mogollon Rim country near Payson, Arizona. The trail is easily accessible from FR64, Control Road, and located near the East Verde Creek at Verde Glen. All within an easy trail ride from camp, you can hunt geodes at Brody Hill, rock crawl Pyeatt Draw, or go for a hike on the Highline Trail #31.

Trail Difficulty and Assessment

Trail Navigation

Trail Reviews

5/5 (4)
Official Crew
74350
Open
Visited: 07/07/2021

Arizona National Forests and State Lands are back open for travel. There are still some very important fire restrictions in place. These restrictions can often change by specific areas.
Official Crew
74350
Temporary Closure
Visited: 06/25/2021

Tonto National Forest officials will close the state’s largest national forest due to ongoing extreme fire danger beginning at 8 a.m. on Friday, June 25. The forest is implementing this forest closure as a precaution to protect the health and safety of the public, employees and firefighters by reducing the risk of human-caused fires. No one is allowed in the closure area, including Forest Service personnel, unless they are responding to a wildfire or other emergency or patrolling to ensure enforcement of the closure. The order shall remain in effect until July 31, 2021 or until rescinded, whichever occurs first. Residents or businesses using roads in the restricted area to the extent necessary to access their private property are exempt.
Official Crew
74350
Temporary Closure
Rated 5/5
Visited: 07/03/2020

Tonto National Forest has been temporarily closed because of extreme fire conditions. This is a link to the official closure notice https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/tonto/news-events/?cid=FSEPRD759503
Open
Visited: 06/03/2017

This is a pretty short & easy trail through the woods right off of FR195 that basically dead ends into the East Verde River. There was plenty of great campsites along this road next to Dry Dude Creek and at the junction with the East Verde, but the forest service has since closed this are along Dry Dude and all the other sites along the East Verde to camping. It's still open for day use but closed to camping, bummer because it's a great area to camp. It had definitely been overrun with knuckleheads in the past so it's easy to see why the forest service closed this. Anyway super short and easy road, I've seen large RVs back there. Nice area but no more camping, hopefully that changes.

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