Airplane
Flat Campground is one of those campgrounds described
as dispersed. The name comes from an old plane crash in
the past. You will need to be self contained including
water when you come back to this out of the way campground.
The ride in can be a little rough and 4 wheel drive is
almost a must after a heavy rain or snow.
The
campground is set among a thick stand of ponderosa pines,
white and douglas firs, and is a very short walk to Canyon
Creek (fly and lure fishing only),
a trout creek that is stocked from the Canyon Creek Hatchery
just a couple miles up the road. The hatchery has self
guided tours running throughout the week until 4 p.m.
When
I made my way back into Airplane Flat, a fisherman had caught
a couple of nice 11 - 12 inch rainbow trout, perfect pan size.
You
will need to bear-proof your camp here as the local wildlife
includes black bear, elk, javelina, mountain lion, turkey
and deer. Also, there is no trash service here so you will
need to practice PACK IT IN, PACK IT OUT!
Directions
From
Payson travel 33 miles east on S.R. 260 to F.R. 512 (Young
Road). Turn left 2.5 miles south at F.R. 33 (Colcord
Ridge Campground) and continue another 5 miles on
a windy road to the campground on your right.
