USFS · Arizona

Prescott National Forest

The Prescott National Forest is a 1.25 million-acre United States National Forest located in north central Arizona in the vicinity of Prescott. The forest is located in the mountains southwest of Flagstaff and north of Phoenix in Yavapai County, with a small portion extending into southwestern Coconino County.

From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

National Forest1.4 million acresUSFSAZ22 campgrounds within 10 mi58 Forest Service sites310 trails
Official page at U.S. Forest Service ↗

Facts

Where each comes from ↓
DesignationNational Forest
Managed byU.S. Forest Service
StateArizona
Size1.4 million acres (Forest Service administrative boundary (gis_acres))
Forest Service code0309, region 03
Center point34.6287, -112.7022
Night skyVery dark ground, a faint glow at most (Black Marble reading 24)

Boundary map

2 outlines

Boundary, simplified to about 0.005 degrees Federal campground Forest Service recreation site

The outline is the agency boundary simplified for display, so small parcels and inholdings may not show. The agency page has the authoritative map.

Weather by month

NOAA climate normals →
Weather by month near Prescott National Forest30°40°50°60°70°80°January: 1.52 inches of precipitation, 1.9 inches of snowFebruary: 1.78 inches of precipitation, 3.1 inches of snowMarch: 1.46 inches of precipitation, 2.5 inches of snowApril: 0.57 inches of precipitation, 0.4 inches of snowMay: 0.51 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowJune: 0.23 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowJuly: 2.69 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowAugust: 2.78 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowSeptember: 1.64 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowOctober: 0.96 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowNovember: 0.87 inches of precipitation, 0.9 inches of snowDecember: 1.45 inches of precipitation, 1.4 inches of snowJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJanuary: 38.2°F averageFebruary: 40.8°F averageMarch: 46.4°F averageApril: 52.5°F averageMay: 60.6°F averageJune: 70.3°F averageJuly: 75.3°F averageAugust: 73.5°F averageSeptember: 67.3°F averageOctober: 56.5°F averageNovember: 45.7°F averageDecember: 37.7°F average0 in1 in2 in3 in4 inTemp °FInches
The line is the average temperature and the bars are average precipitation at Prescott, 16 miles from the center point at 5,205 feet, station USC00026796 in the NOAA monthly climate normals for 1991 to 2020. Precipitation totals about 16 inches a year. The dotted line is average snowfall, about 10 inches a year on the same inches scale.

Large units span more than one climate. The station stands in for the center point, and the outer parts of the boundary can be warmer or colder.

Where to camp

Campsite Atlas →

19 federal campgrounds sit inside the boundary and 3 more are within ten miles of it. Nearest first. Distances are from the campground point to the boundary edge, from the Campsite Atlas index.

FS · Inside
Alto Pit Ohv Campground
Reservable11 sites
FS · Inside
Eagle Ridge Group Campground
Reservable2 sites
FS · Inside
Groom Creek Horse Camp
Reservable37 sites
FS · Inside
Groom Creek Schoolhouse
Reservable1 site
FS · Inside
Hazlett Hollow Campground
First-come15 sites
FS · Inside
Hilltop Campground
Reservable37 sites
FS · Inside
Horsethief Cabin
Reservable1 site
FS · Inside
Lower Wolf Creek Campground
First-come20 sites
Show 4 more

10 more within ten miles are not listed here.

Trailheads and sites

Forest Service directory · 58

The Forest Service lists 58 recreation sites in this forest, among them 9 campgrounds, 8 trailheads, 7 picnic areas, 6 paddling accesss. Each links to its page on fs.usda.gov, which carries the season, fees and current status.

Show all 58

Distance is from the center point of the boundary, not from a road or town.

Trails

Every trail on Trailhead Atlas →

The Forest Service trail layer records 310 named trails in this forest, 811 miles in all. The 10 longest are listed here.

TrailMiles
Sycamore Basin ↗18.2
Camp Verde ↗12.4
Yankee Doodle ↗12.1
General Crook ↗11.4
Bullroad ↗10.9
Box T ↗10.4
Blind Indian ↗9.8
Ranch ↗9.7
Groom Creek Loop ↗9.4
Yew Thicket ↗8.8

Lengths and allowed uses come from the Forest Service trail layer by way of Trailhead Atlas, refreshed September 18, 2026. Trails in plain text have no page there yet.

All 310 trails in Prescott National Forest on Trailhead Atlas ↗

Explore

Nearby on the other atlases

National Park System units within 30 miles · Park Atlas
National Monument · 2 mi
Tuzigoot National Monument
National Monument · 4 mi
Montezuma Castle National Monument
National Monument · 28 mi
Walnut Canyon National Monument
National Register listings within 15 miles · 112 in all · Register Atlas

Landmarks are listed first, then by distance from the boundary.

Reference

Questions people ask

How big is Prescott National Forest?

1.4 million acres.

Source: Forest Service boundary data

Who manages Prescott National Forest?

The U.S. Forest Service.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

What state is Prescott National Forest in?

Arizona.

Source: How states are assigned

Can I camp at Prescott National Forest?

19 federal campgrounds sit inside the boundary, including Alto Pit Ohv Campground, Eagle Ridge Group Campground and Groom Creek Horse Camp. 22 in all are within ten miles. Dispersed camping is allowed on most national forest land outside developed sites; check the forest page for closures.

Source: Where to camp

Where are the trailheads in Prescott National Forest?

The Forest Service lists 58 recreation sites here, including 9 campground campgrounds, 8 trailheads and 7 picnickings. Each one links to its Forest Service page.

Source: Trailheads and sites

How do I get to Prescott National Forest?

A point inside the boundary is at 34.629, -112.702. Tuzigoot National Monument is 2 miles away. The official page carries directions and the office address.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

How dark is the night sky at Prescott National Forest?

NASA’s Black Marble night-lights image reads 24 on a 0 to 255 scale at the center point, very dark ground, a faint glow at most.

Source: NASA Black Marble

Which national parks are near Prescott National Forest?

Tuzigoot National Monument (2 mi), Montezuma Castle National Monument (4 mi) and Walnut Canyon National Monument (28 mi). Park Atlas has fees, hours and alerts for each.

Source: Nearby on the other atlases

Are there historic places near Prescott National Forest?

112 National Register listings within 15 miles, including Camp Verde Grammar School and Crown King Ranger Station.

Source: Register Atlas

Sources

  • Boundary, name, acreage and code: the Forest Service Enterprise Data Warehouse.
  • States: computed by intersecting the boundary with Census state polygons; a state is listed when it holds at least one percent of the area.
  • Description: Prescott National Forest on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. The article was accepted because its title contains this unit’s name.
  • Campgrounds: the Campsite Atlas index of federal campgrounds, matched to this boundary at build time.
  • Trailheads and sites: the Forest Service Recreation Opportunities layer, matched by forest code.
  • Trails: the Trailhead Atlas open-data file of Forest Service trails, matched by forest code.
  • Night sky: NASA Black Marble (VIIRS, 2016 composite) sampled at zoom 6 around the center point.
  • Weather, alerts, air quality, river flow and earthquakes load live in your browser from NWS, AirNow, USGS and iNaturalist when you open the page.