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Whether you feel like strapping on a pair of jeans and cow boy boots and hoping in the saddle of on of our beautiful horses, flying around in our four wheelers or venturing out on your own for a hike, you’ll take in the Arizona wilderness like never before. Feel like experiencing rustic Arizona but don’t want to leave the comfort of the lodge? You don’t have to! There is plenty to do right outside our front door including fishing on Lake Sharon (watch out the fish bite like piranha!) or practicing your archery or shotgun skills. Before booking an activity check out our package deals. Here are some of the exciting activities to do around the lodge:
Average temperatures do tend to vary at the lodge over the year, giving us a very temperate climate compared to most of Arizona. The lodge receives a dusting of snow each year, but has seen up to three feet of snow before! Temperatures reach just over 100° in the summer. Please be sure to pack correctly for the season. Below is a chart from the Arizona Game & Fish Department with yearly averages. Climate Information
Source: Arizona Game & Fish Dept. In case of emergencies, the USDA
has a Pleasant
Valley Ranger Station Equestrian
Our rock-strewn trails wind through the forest, up the mountains and hills, over the ridges and across the open grass lands around Cherry Creek Lodge. There are many different trails for each level of rider. The ranch has stabled eight horses. Four are of a beginner level, two for intermediates and two feisty horses for expert riders only. All eight are solid horses bred to traverse the rocky paths, open plain and close cropped brush terrain of Pleasant Valley. Our staff will help find the horse just right for you! Each staff member has grown up with horses and taken care of them all their life. They take pride in the quality and care of each animal at the lodge. Stables are always kept clean, horses well-fed and frequent grooming is a must. Our animals are happy to be a part of the Cherry Creek Lodge family. Guests are welcome to bring their own horses – there is always room in the stable! If you do decide to bring your own, please be aware that the trails around the lodge are very rocky and may not be suitable for horses with delicate feet.
Beginners will enjoy our wide, slow-curving trails that wind around the hills and through the gullies around the lodge. These trails are relatively flat, mostly grated and very easy to follow. Our staff is always available to take riders out on guided tours of the land. There are several vantage points that provide a spectacular view of the lodge and the whole of Pleasant Valley. Intermediate and expert riders can take full advantage of all the trails around the lodge. Many different paths traverse up steep, rocky slopes to the tops of the hills and ridges in the area. These trails often are full of switchbacks and are fairly narrow. However, they provide some of the most spectacular views of Pleasant Valley and the wildlife hidden deep in the woods. Lawyer talk: As you know because of the unpredictable nature and irrational behavior of horses, regardless of the extent of their training and past performance, horseback riding is considered "inherently dangerous" and involves risks that may cause serious injury and in some cases death. A signed acknowledgment and release will be required before you participate in equestrian activities.
Archery
Cherry Creek Lodge is equipped with a variety of
modern composite bows and many different arrow types. At our archery
range, learn how to shoot a Guests are welcome to bring their own equipment, but are discouraged from using broad-head hunting arrows on the archery range. For the safety of all our guests, the archery range is only for ages 12 and up. To learn more about equipment rental call (928) 462-4029.
Clay
Shooting (Available Spring
2009)
Adjacent to the lodge’s archery range is our clay pigeon practice shot arena. Beginners can learn the proper way to fire a gun or experts brush up on their aim before a hunt. All guests are required to take a brief course on gun safety before entering the shooting arena. Guests are welcome to bring their own equipment. For the safety of all our guests, the clay shooting is only for ages 16 and up.
Cattle
drives
Experienced and most intermediate riders are welcome to join us for a cattle drive. Re-live the feeling of the old west with us!
Learn how to saddle and groom a horse, use the reins and balance. When you’re comfortable our staff will take you on the wide, beginners’ trails around the ranch. Children can enjoy the animals without ever leaving the safety of our corrals under the supervision of our staff. Inquire about booking lessons when you book your visit. Hiking
The Tonto National Forest is the largest of six Arizona national forests and the fifth largest in the United States, encompassing roughly 2,873,200 acres of Arizona wilderness. The landscape varies considerably from open, rock-spattered grass lands to densely forested thickets of Ponderosa pines. Though the forest is comprised mostly of Chaparral, Pinyon-Juniper and Ponderosa pines, several deciduous trees including Ash and Birch light up the landscape with a cornucopia of color during the fall season. Small cacti such as Prickly Pear dot the plains. A variety of large wildlife can be found around the lodge including Merriam’s turkey, elk, black bears and javelina. Many small birds, lizards and all manner of invertebrates are scattered within the various valleys and hilltops. The USDA Forest Service has catalogued over 400 different vertebrate species within the Tonto National Forest, including 21 on the endangered species list. Average temperatures vary from just over 100° during the heat of the summer day down to near freezing temperatures during winter nights. The lodge receives a dusting of snow each year, but has seen up to three feet of snow before! Please be sure to prepare for the climate you will be hiking in. Lots of water is a must all throughout the year, but take extra precautions from heat exhaustion during the summer and bring lots of warm clothing and sleeping bags in the winter. A chart from the Arizona Game & Fish Department with yearly average temperatures can be found at the top of the page, as well as emergency contact numbers should you bump into any troubles. Fishing
Beginners and children alike will love spending
a relaxing morning or afternoon with a good book and fishing reel.
However, you won’t get far into that first chapter before
a bite. The fish in Lake Sharon are hungry all the time –
watch your toes!
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Trails
are abundant around the lodge! There are generally three levels
or types of trails that weave through the Tonto National Forest
and Pleasant Valley wilderness.
Skill
with a bow and arrow has been prized within small communities and
awarded throughout the history of man up until the invention of
gun powder. Today’s composite bows are a far improvement from
the curved branches and sinew bow strings of our ancestors. 
bow
for the very first time or practice up on your aim. Our experienced
staff will be there to help you learn the basics. 
