Prescott Valley AZ was established in the 1880s as Lonesome Valley by ranchers supplying beef to local miners. Some of the pioneer ranchers’ descendents are still ranching in the valley today. In the following decade, Thomas Gibson Barlow-Massicks, who owned a hydraulic gold mining company in Lynx Creek Canyon, built his home (known as the Castle and still standing in modern Fain Park) and a mining camp just east of it.

Years after it was established, in the 1960s, a real estate company called Prescott Valley Incorporated purchased Lonesome Valley and promoted sales and inviting residents to move into the area. The valley was renamed, and between 1990 and 2000, Prescott Valley was the seventh fastest growing urban area in Arizona. It is located not far from another town named Prescott.

Prescott National Forest

Covering an area of 1.25 million acres, Prescott National Forest spreads throughout the surrounding mountains east and west of Prescott. Campgrounds, developed as well as primitive sites, are located throughout the forest and offer a great way to experience the natural wilderness of the park.

Arizona Map

Tonto National Forest

The largest of all of the national forests in Arizona, numbering six in total, Tonto National Forest sprawls over nearly 3 million acres, with an assortment of landscapes at wide-ranging elevations, from 1,400 feet to 7,400 feet. In the mid 1990s, the Tonto National Forest began charging for visitation at expanded recreational areas; there are five different passes available for purchase for entry to this most visited urban forest in the United States. This area provides excellent hiking and cycling trails.