We are very happy we have found this state park. Its just a couple hours from Mesa, AZ and a great place to get away for the weekend or holiday. The park is in the thick of Cottonwoods and Mesquite trees with miles of hiking paths, mountain biking trails and equestrian staging areas and trails. We just returned from a three-day weekend with all the colors of fall in November. We also found a great trail that leads to the Tuzigoot Ancient Ruins. One of three ancient archeology sites in the area.

As a Sonoran Desert Dweller, I do miss the fall season. What a surprise to visit this park with colorful fall leaves all around us. We hiked along the river, around the lakes, and over the rocky Lime Kiln Trail. The landscape of this state park is diverse with a little of something for everyone. A repeat visit is definitely on the calendar.

I really don’t want to reveal this hidden gem but we’ve already booked our next stay, so I will be honest and highly recommend it. Camping areas are very well designed and maintained. We were in Cooper’s Hawk loop site 104. Sites are large with a picnic table, fire pit, natural vegetation and paved parking pad. Sites have water and electric and there is a dump station at the park entrance/exit. We had no problem backing in or getting level. The interior roads are paved, smooth, wide and easy to navigate with a big rig. There are some trees but not every site has them. No WiFi but we had good T-mobile signal. There are always workers raking and doing general cleanup. Red-Tail Hawk Loop was similar to our loop with mostly large sites. Quail Loop seemed to us to be better suited to smaller rigs since it has quite a few shorter sites and some with height restrictions due to tree branches. Length and height restrictions are listed on the booking site so choose carefully. The state park is beautiful and has much to offer in terms of walking, hiking, fishing, biking, birding, and horseback riding. It’s close to many tourist attractions. It’s very popular, so book early.

Great clean pet friendly cabins with power, AC, grills, picnic tables and nice community bathrooms/showers. As soon as we got hear, the kids asked if we could come back again sometime. Would be good for all seasons and weather. Right on the Verde River. The Verde isn’t super clear for swimming, but some areas are ok. Looks like fishing would be great. My dog loved it. Also looks like dishing would be nice. Plenty of shade in the cabin area and along the river.

Very nice park and a great location with lots of hiking right outside your camper. We stayed for a week in a travel trailer with no issues. Sites are large and private, and the work campers quite helpful and nice. My only issue were the bathrooms which seemed clean, but are old and need to be updated. The shower heads point outward so when you turn on your shower, you better have the curtain pulled in front of you or you will be soaked before you even get your clothes off.

Used to camp here 20 years ago. Huge improvements since then.Fish were biting ( mostly nibbling) but didnt catch anything.Seems most people at lake didnt catch today, too hot.There are a few benches around the lake, and picnic tables scattered around area. (We took camp chairs). Lots of shade trees.Bathrooms were clean enough, could use spider web maintenance above head area. Park appeared clean, rangers always patrolling.

Wonderful park to camp in! We loved Quail Loop which is shady with trees. Camping is a pleasure here with spacious sites, nice bathrooms, showers, and a wash station for dishes! We also love our campground host! Close to Sedona, tons of amazing hikes, and cute towns.

Its a nice park have stayed there several times and had a good time with no problems but this time we camped in white hawk instead of quail and the camp host is a bully and likes to act authoritative sort of like a mall cop who cant cut it as a real cop. Its too bad that a camp host can ruin an otherwise good place. This is supposed to be a park not a retirement community, dogs are going to bark kids are going to play thats the whole point of getting out in nature. I think he should not he allowed to continue as a camp host.

Really 3.5. Pros: Inexpensive, day views of mountains and night skies are brilliant. 50 Amp and water! Well spaced. Blacktop roads. Convenient to hikes and historic towns. Very Quiet. Convenient trash and recycling areas. Cons: Old, smelly bathrooms. Very dusty, not much shade. Some sites (95 in particular) are not level.

It was so fun!! I went with my cousins and family and it was great. It smelled clean and was clean. The best part of it was the river! The river was beautiful but there are a lot of animals, which is expected from a place that displays pure nature!!

Fun place for some outdoor adventures. Campgrounds and cabins available to camp at. The cabins were nice and clean, and had AC for the rooms. A couple showers available too if needed. Lots of small trails to hike and a couple lagoons to fish at. Close to town so you dont have to travel far to resupply.

Friendly staff, decent facilities, but sites in the Quail loop were some of the smallest and closest together I’ve ever seen. It’s maybe fine if you’re in an RV, but if you’re in a tent, you’re about 15 yards from other people on all sides with no privacy. Not ideal!

Very Beautiful, enjoyed the walk, the scenery and especially appreciated the clean bathrooms Thank You

Love this place....theres fishing, hiking, biking, horseback riding and camping!

This is undoubtedly one of the best campsites within 2 hours drive from phoenix with all amenities and the Cottonwood town nearby. Posting couple of pictures of the campsites we loved.

Great facilities. Lots are spacious and views are beautiful. Will definitely be back

Its beautiful I love all the space.... theres MANY different trails to walk

Great park, good camping spots, very clean, many great trails to hike. Horseback riding was fun

Nice Cute lil Cabins, clean restrooms & showers. A/C in cabins for a Hot Summer Day. Camp Host were Great & very informative as to where the Good Swimming Holes are. The only thing Missing in cabins were a refrigerator that I would recommend they get.️**BEWARE: SKUNKS ARE LIVING UNDER CABIN 5 & 7MY sisters dog got SPRAYED & SMELLED HORRIBLE!!!

Loved it quiet lots of trees three ponds to fish from and the picnic tables arent to close to each other if youve never been you should go

Love Dead Horse Ranch but hot at this time of year. Great to stop over for 1 night before our last leg of a long trip.

We really enjoyed our stay at Dead Horse Ranch State Park. We are looking forward to staying again very soon. Next time we will bring our kayak.

We had a great stay at the campground. Originally we were only going to stay one night. Mike, the wonderful camp host, told us about several sights near by. We ended up staying several nights. We took several side trips visiting the sites Mike suggested and a few we found on our own. The campground itself is well laid out with ample space between units. There is a large bath facility (which I did not use) that looks very nice from the outside. The dump is located away from the sites and is well maintained. I would not hesitate to stay here again.

Great place to be for peace and quiet amongst the Red Rock Canyons. Well laid out campground. Easy.to make a reservation online. Fire rings and grills.super nice & clean showers. Book exchange box near the showers. Outside sink wash for campers. Tent camping. Trail tours with a Park Ranger. Lagoon for boating. Two dump stations, one in, one out. Price is reasonable compared to other campground. 30/50 Amp service, water hookup. Large pull-thrus.

Have a great time this morning. Richard was great

Second visit. Love this place! Very clean, quiet, great trails.

This place is beautiful. Went with my family over the Christmas break. We walked around the lake, went near the river. Nobody was there except a few people. Peaceful. You can fish if you have a permit.

Wonderful place to camp or simply daily visit. Provided many activities, camping, hiking, riding and more. A very nice playground was set up there. Kids would love it.

This place extremely quiet and dark. I have not totally explored it. The rv parking are paved and pretty level. Fire ring and table supplied. Staff at front gait are very friendly. Very close to town.

Very nice campground. The facilities were very clean and well stocked. Every site was in use however it was also quiet. There are no generators allowed which also helps keep it quiet. Fishing at the lagoons is a little far for kids to walk but there is plenty of parking. There is a gift shop with some supplies but town is right there.

Excellent RV camp spots with great places to explore!

Beautiful day. Great hikes. Nice place to spend a relaxing morning.

It was amazingly beautiful. ... there a lots of hiking trails. ... we did verse river trail. ...it was quite an adventure. ... very raw. ...Then we did the 3 fishing ponds. ... its very romantic. Seeing couples sweetly walking with hands held together. Families with small children playing and having picnics. ... the playground was great. I specially like the small zipline for kids. ...There is also horse adventure and stuffs. ...If you like fishing this one is the best. ... they even have a cleaning section and you can have a small boat. ...The price for day use is $8. ...See cabin and camping price at the website. ...We had a great time . ...

Great place for family camping and fishing. The morning high was 66 on 6/22. My family had a great time celebrating fathers day cooling off in the river.

Great park for hiking and walking your dog. The three lagoons are beautiful and make for a peaceful walk with your dog. There are several more rugged trails with gorgeous scenery too. They have trail maps at the ranger station when you drive in.

**Please be aware that it says they require masks, and signs are posted sporadically on doors, but it is definitely not enforced in any public areas! Including the showers/bathroom. We were the only family there with them when we needed to leave our campsite.**My family rented this place for tent camping (spot 25) for the past 2 nights and we have really enjoyed it. Its quiet and spaced out way more than a LOT of campgrounds. It is very dusty though and I suggest putting down tarps to cut down on the kick-up. We stayed at the only non-electric permanent site and it was nicely shaded and totally private. And we had the most wonderful hostess across from us. She was funny as could be and so kind. We were really glad to have met her and her two pups. I did not personally see ANY hovering from the hosts. They drive by on golf carts every once in a while just like any other place. I believe if you behave yourself, you wont catch heat. Plain and simple.My whole family stayed the first night then just my son and husband are there tonight. (Being VERY pregnant and roughing it on an air mattress on 85 degree nights wasnt my most brilliant idea, lol. Thats the only reason I drove home early!) We may be back but perhaps with an RV next time! And a whole lot less pregnant.

Beautiful campsite. Beautiful breezes. Very well kept and clean. Friendly people! Close to Sedona for a day trip. Loved it! There is also a dog park near by for your pets.

Great camping. A little windy at the campsite but a five minute walk to fishing and a stream with plenty of trees. Peaceful getaway from the city and beautifully taken care of.

When we arrived to our site, there was someone already there so we went to our camp host cathy. I had seen so many bad reviews on here regarding camp hosts so I was a bit scared to approach her about our situation. Our site ended up being double booked. She helped us so much and was very apologetic about a situation that she never caused she was so so sweet. She helped us find another site. Although this was inconvenient for us because we wanted that particular site, and paid for that specific site, Cathy made it better. Thank you cathy!

Lots of camping spaces for RVs and tents. 3 lagoo s for fishing, Verde river access. Not a lot of shade in the middle of July. Well be back when it is cooler.

Clean park. Az does it great. Heated bathroom and clean sites. Rangers were super nice...lots of places to walk or hike

Nice little place, 3 small ponds and some access to the verde river makes for a great quiet weekend!

We enjoyed the park very much. Its a beautiful park with lovely views of the Verde Valley. Jerome in the distance sparkles at night. Cool, comfortable nights even in mid June. Well be back.

A beautiful place to have a picnic or just explore! It is a fairly easy hike around a beautiful lake. If you look carefully you can see eagles flying above the mountains!

Great place to camp/or bring your trailer. Clean, and friendly staff!!

What a lovely park. They are really investing in their community up here.

Great place to camp! Real toilets ( clean), and showers! Gets colder at night so bring extra blankets or youll freeze your pachonkies off! Nice trails! Hosts were very kind and helpful!

Great place to stay when visiting the area. And the staff was amazing!

It was nice, people fishing, and a nice walking path, but you have to pay to enter.

HORRIBLE! NEVER COMING BACK! The sites are literally on top of each other. Camp host is practically breathing down our necks about our dogs but ever other dog is NOT on a leash. Why dont you go bother them!!!! Ive been here all but 1 hour and already hate it.UPDATE:There are TWO campsites that have fires and FIVE campsites with dogs OFF THE LEASH but go ahead and keep harassing us about our dogs.Update: I changed my rating becasue even though the camp host was soooooooo annoying, the trail was super pretty. The views and the creek were gorgeous and a lot of fun. Still not enough for me to come back though.

Cabins that are marked as handicap are not. They are to far from the bathrooms. Cabins need more lights in them. DO NOT cut grass around cabins at the time of the year that the little nit/fruit fly things are migrating. Just about drove us crazy. AND I dont care what anybody says those little stinkers bite.

Awesome place for the family. There are plugs and A/C in the cabins.

Very nice state park, great camping spots clean bathrooms and nice lakes

December 2018 - Stayed a week on Quail Loop and it was really nice. The spots are spacious and flat. Bathrooms have showers with hooks to hang your towels and clothes with outlets near the sink.With water/electric hook up sites this time of year, my heated hose was handy. There is a dump station at the front gate and dumpsters at each loop. People were very friendly and I had very few neighbors while I was here.I’d love to come back when it’s warmer and check out more of the trails That are everywhere here.You will hear (and likely see) the coyotes singing and something that looked like a wild boar walking around the property in the early hours too so make sure you pets are safe.

Very pretty desert park. Large RV spaces, lots of Mesquite trees for shade. Looks like they have a riding stable and fishing in the lagoons. There is also a small Zipline and merry-go-round in the park for the kids Has 50 & 30 Amp Elec and water but no sewer.

If you enjoy having camp hosts hover over you and call you out for every little infraction, then this is the campground for you! I called the AZ State Parks phone number, plus the direct Dead Horse Ranch number to confirm the number of cars, campers and tents we could have per site. The answer from both numbers were the same...up to 9 campers per site, 3 cars were ok as long as we paid extra car fees, and as many tents as we could fit on the site. After leaving our campsite we received a nasty call saying we left A LOT of garbage (we did not), we werent allowed to have 3 cars, and there was a limit of 7 campers per site and 2 tents (we only had 7 campers, so Im not sure why the Ranger pointed that out?!?)Our group of seasoned campers, camp together once a month and have visited several of Arizonas State and National parks and we have never experienced this amount of difficulty with camp hosts. The Rangers were friendly and left us alone for the most part, but the hosts came by hourly or more all weekend. We wont be spending our money to visit this campground ever again.

Great place to fish, kayak, and camp!!! Three stocked ponds, lots of hiking trails, streams and the verde river. Clean bathrooms and great showers. One of my favorite places to camp.

This is a wonderful camping site. Good hookups big lots

This is a great state park. There is a lot to do and see here for all types of people. If you a hard core adventurer like me, there are hiking and serious mountain bulge trails, swimming holes, creek walks, a big playground with a zip line for kids, lots of campsites, play areas, bathrooms, the works. Plan to spend some time exploring. Youll not regret it If you do.Its great for families, couples or even single folk. All in all a great 4 star park, well maintained and scenic.

Went here and went horseback riding at trail horse adventures what a awesome ride. Horses well taken care of and great. The employees are awesome they have a summer special going on. This is the place to go horseback riding.

Great spot for fishing, camping, etc. Day use fee is $7.00 per car (up to 4 adults). There are several lagoons located in the park, stocked with various types of fish. Really beautiful foliage and is peaceful. You can hear frogs and cicadas.

Enjoyed our stay at Dead Horse Ranch State Park. Lots to see and do in this area of AZ. There are lots of trails in the park. There are three lagoons with two that allow fishing. There are horse trails and horse comping in designated areas. The little store offers drinks ice cream and other items. There is fishing also in the Verde river that runs parallel to the park. It looked to be a nice river for kayaking also. In the tent camping area it would be nice if the picnic tables were covered due to the heat in the summer.

Amazing place to camp and get outdoors. Lots of hiking, gretat views, friendly, relaxing and quiet! 3 lagoons for nature walks. We go back every months.

Such a nice place to relax and enjoy yourself.

Campsites are not my thing but friends stayed in the cabins, so we camped in one of the RV spots. The RV area restroom was very clean with showers. We were there on a cold weekend and it was so nice to go into a heated restroom instead of using our RV and dealing with the cleaning later. The cabins are primitive with just a double and single bunk beds. It has electric but I question heat as our friends brought their own heaters. The gazebo area is great for large gatherings but the camp host was a bit zealous with the rules especially since our group rented all the cabins. Cant play around when the hosts were out. The cabin area has 2 unisex bathrooms that are heated but can be an issue if all the cabins have been rented. You can buy wood from the host but it isnt the best as it burns quickly. Bring your own but keep in mind you must take back what you dont use. Hope you have a great time.

Great campsite! Clean restrooms, beautiful hiking trails, views, creek, lagoon and park.

Great spring hiking, fishing, kayaking. We will be back

Nice tables with covered ramadas next to lagoons. Restrooms clean and close by. Enjoyed the trail over to the Verde River.

Beautiful place to hike. Wonderful clean little self help log cabins. Amazing nature. Incredible huge old cottonwood trees. State park attendant readily available to welcome and help out guests as needed. Lots of hiking paths. River runs thru it.

This is our 2nd time camping at Deadhorse Ranch. We were here early May prior to this weekend. We love it here. Its beautiful. Very well kept. The Rangers are friendly and the Camp Hosts are wonderful. We had a great time despite camping neighbors from hell. The group of adults camping across from us had absolutely no consideration for anyone around them. Constant loud music for 2 solid days. Dogs not leashed or contained. Even when the Camp Hosts asked them to turn the music down relatively no response. Of course they would turn it down when the Camp Host would make their rounds. Now I dont mind music. And I know that sound carries. I dont care if you want to party and thats how you have a good time. But I would appreciate camping neighbors that respect that to some of us a good time is a quiet weekend away. It is currently 8:00PM. I have heard the bumping of their music literally non stop since 7:00 AM. And last night it went on up until close to 11:00 PM. Enough already...

It was great was having an awesome time til some kids started a fire & it got out of hand so everybody had 2 leave & cause the fire department didnt know if they would b able 2 put it out

Host make rounds every hour to find something wrong and complain about it.Our campsite was right in front of the entrance. Of course I noticed the arrows on the road but I broke my front drive shaft on my way up there and was making a very loud annyoing noise. So, I did a U-turn the wrong direction in front of the Host. I was trying not to disturb the other campers and not go around the whole loop with my loud truck. She gave me so much attitude as I continued to apologize. Beautiful area, but my experience was enough for me not to come back.

Wow, multiple campsite areas, three to four lakes, hiking trails everywhere, very clean and well organized. Definitely coming back to camp soon.

The campground was clean, pretty, and close to Old Cottenwood — cute small town with many restaurants, art/craft stores and wine tasting. The park has many walking, biking and horse trails. We walked from our campground to the near by Pueblo.

My husband and I went tent camping at Deadhorse state park in November for two nights. The weather was still warm enough to enjoy being outside most of the day. There are many walks suitable to all physical abilities. The restrooms were quite acceptable and the area relatively quiet after dark. The best thing was being able to enjoy a campfire right at your site. We have plans to return!

Gotta bring your kids Awesome place!!

We went fishing here and caught quite a few trout with our fly rods. Beautiful park with what looked to be a vast amount of activities from hiking to camping and of course fishing. We would definitely spend lots of time here if we lived in the area.

A great place to camp or picnic with family and friends.

We had a nice time at Dead Horse Ranch State Park. Large spots with electric, water, fire ring, grill & picnic table. Dump station is available. Camp Hosts were great. Cant wait to go backa

Beautiful park with water to fish. Clean cabins and bathrooms with hot water. Quiet. Hiking paths are relatively easy and not heavily used. Only complaint is sr260 where the road is rated for 55mpg, but one has to slow down to 20mpg for the roundabout every mile

Beautiful, peaceful and there are some accessible trails.

Good fishing, and a beautiful walk/hiking path around the park. Plenty of activities like disc golf and horse back riding are available. This would be a great family day trip for anyone looking to get out!

Neat park. We only accessed the park because we wanted to use the trails that start here. My husband had a great bike ride and I had a great hike. The campground looked wonderful, and Id love to take a horseback trail ride some day. One of the fishing ponds was being stocked while we were driving by - they dont mess around! Lots of fish going in. Neat place all around.

Great place to relax. Nice and clean. Peaceful.

It is a beautiful campground with clean facilities including nice, hot showers. The lakes are great for kayaking and very beautiful. There is a lot of wildlife: coyotes, rabbits, deer, and a large variety of water fowl and other birds.

Beautiful park, so many trails to explore!!

Great state park. Tons of hiking trails. Horse rides available.

Best local fishing spot. I mostly catch bluegill out of it.

What an amazing beautiful place. We caught three Rainbow trouts and now have a yummy dinner. Such a great experience for my kids and family.

Great camping experience RV and tent together on lotsFriendly staff and campers pleasant stay

Nice trails, clean and friendly hosts.

We rented one of the cabins. It was great! Yes, the bathroom/shower is separate and shared. Ut very clean. The park has plenty of fishing, hiking and relaxing options. There is even a stanle that offers several horse riding options. It is only about one mile from town so it is very easy to get ice and groceries. We cant wait to get back for another stay!

While most sites are treeless, this is still a great place to Camp due to the trail system within the park. Most trails are a moderate hike and the views of the mountains are terrific! Trails are mostly rock hewn, dusty and powdery, although there are a few stretches of groomed areas. Wear your hiking boots for safety!

Nice bathrooms and campsites. It is very hot in the summer though.

Best place to go fishing in Arizona! Ive never not caught anything here. Plus its just gorgeous and all the rangers are very friendly!

Despite the name, the place is wonderful! Had a great time there.

Nice park. Our cabin was great.

Awesome place to spend with family, the agua fria river also runs through the park and theres a lot of trail to hike.

What an amazing place to explore with family or by yourself!

What a nice camping night I had. Well maintained place, friendly people.