The trout waters of Arizona are underfished, underpublicized, and remote, making them the sleepers of the West. In one of the artificial lure/fly lakes you can even enjoy fishing for the aggressive Artic Grayling. For those anglers who have a goal of fishing for every species of trout, this area has the unique native Apache Trout.

This area is well known for its trout fishing including Rainbow, Brown, Brook, and Cutthroat. Located roughly a little more than three hours east of Phoenix, Arizona's White Mountains offer you over 40 lakes and more than 25 streams with greater than 240 fishable miles.

The White Mountain Area is located in the eastern part of the state, and much of the best fishing is on private Indian lands, fishable to the public by daily fees. Anglers can fish for rainbows, browns, cuttthroat, and in a few fisheries, the Apache trout. This is perhaps the best trout fishing area in the state, containing more than 600 miles of fishable streams and over twenty-four major trout lakes. But the big boys are holding in the stillwaters. The streams are not big by western standards but are worthy in their own right. They hold big fish in spectacular mountain settings. You can fish in the spring before other states' trout fishing turns on. And I am using the White Mountains in a general sense since there are many ranges in the eastern part of the state including the Cabinet Mountains and the Blue Range. But there's no Lees Ferry here and most of the fish in the streams are in the 9-12 inch range but. Some lakes and streams are fishable year-round. The state is stocking the rare Apache trout in the headwaters and in appropriate streams, can catch big fish in small streams. The hues of green and orange of the grassy hillsides and dark forests are cut clean by twisting blue rivers, dotted by turquoise lakes. This is remote but intimate country, primitive, a place where an angler can drop a line in a stream where no one else has fished in a year or more, maybe longer. Trails and old forest roads lead deep into the backcountry past high-altitude riparian habitat, through vertical breaks, along singing creeks, through big rock pinnacles. But because of the geographic isolation, few anglers (compared to Colorado for instance) fish these waters. Baldy is a sacred place and off limits to all but the Indians of the Apache Reservation. Four rivers (Black, Blue, White and Little Colorado) have their headwaters on the slopes of an ancient volcano, Mount Baldy (11,403 feet), the second highest peak in Arizona. The tallest mountains barely rise to 11,000 feet. The White Mountains aren't as tall as many ranges, nor as rugged. The forests are thick with Englemann Spruce, white pine, ponderosa pine, aspen, fir and corkbark. Retreating glaciers carved out U-shaped park-like valleys with wide meadows and steep-sided canyons. The gentle White Mountains rise from the desert floors (from searing heat to cooling breezes). The drive from the Grand Canyon is just too far for most tourists and honestly, most folks just don't know about the fruitful trout streams of the White Mountains. Fishing for the rare Apache trout on sparkling small streams remains somewhat of a solitary experience even with the increased exposure. The high country scenery would look right at home in Colorado or Montana but without all of the crowds. Two or three good guidebooks have come out in the last three years exposing the blue ribbon trout streams and lunker trout mountain lakes of the White Mountains of eastern Arizona. More than before, the cat is out of the bag, at least for Arizona locals. We've been back many times but this is the first time I've written in-depth about it. When I first heard about undiscovered trout streams running clear and cold through aspen forests in a state more associated with scorpions scooting around in hot deserts, I called my brother-in-law Kenny and we lit out for this promised land for a week's angling. I can't believe I am telling you about this place. The White Mountains of Arizona: Apache Trout and More The White Mountains of Arizona: Apache Trout and More The White Mountains of Arizona: Apache Trout and More