Prescott is one of my favorite cities with green in my state of Arizona! Located in Central Arizona, Prescott remains special in my heart because I spent quite some time there with solo hikes, with family, and with friends. It has an average elevation of 5,000+ feet and it is not a super crowded tourist area like other cities like Phoenix and Tucson are. It became one of the cities I’d escape to, to avoid the heat during the summer with cooler weather to be found in Prescott.
Prescott remains in touch with its traditional pioneer-era roots and its western-country roots; it prides itself in its rich history as a town for frontier gold and silver mining. Because of how I enjoy this city, I wanted to share with you some of the best things you can do if you plan on visiting Prescott, with some spots that aren’t exactly in the city, but are in nearby cities.
1. Goldwater Lake
A reservoir that is connected to the dam on Banning Creek, this 15-acre lake is among the beautiful sights of Prescott. It’s perfect for fishing and water activities like kayaking, canoeing, and boating. The water here melts from snow that falls during winter so the water will be cold all year. However, this lake is not meant for swimming due to the use of electric motors on the lake and it isn’t the biggest lake.
Attached to Prescott National Forest, I enjoyed doing the 5.1-mile long Bannon Creek Trail to Trail #396, which features a forested trail around Goldwater Lake, although you will hike through forest a lot of the time but then transitions to views of the dam and lake.
2. Sharlot Hall Museum
This is one of the more historic museums you’ll discover in Arizona. In this museum, you’ll see a number of historic buildings, eight of which are included on the National Register of Historic Places. Some gems to find to here: the oldest surviving log cabin in Arizona, a replica of Prescott’s first schoolhouse, transportation vehicles from a freight wagon to a 1917 Ford Model-T farm truck and more, prehistory towards the first indigenous people, and exhibits that change from time to time that feature folk art. There is also a beautiful Rose Garden around the Sharlot Hall Museum.
3. Watson Lake
The picturesque water view of Watson Lake looks like a scenery built out of nature, but it is actually a reservoir of the Granite Dells when a dam was built on Granite Creek. Bought in 1997 by the city of Prescott, the city wanted to preserve it. With very blue water, Watson Lake prohibits swimming due to the fact there’s pollution and that the source of the water is from an old strip mining of mercury. You can do other activities here: rock climbing, hiking, fishing, overnight camping, picnics, kayaking, and barbecue grilling.
4. Downtown Prescott and Courthouse Plaza
The Courthouse Plaza surrounds the Neo-classical Revival styled courthouse in Prescott. They have grassy areas here and special events in Courthouse Plaza. It is a serene place to just hangout during the warmer seasons. Nearby is also where downtown Prescott is, so you don’t have to walk far to go from one business to another. You’ll find bars, cafes, and restaurants here. Check out the events that will be hosted around Courthouse Plaza here (from Experience Prescott’s site).
5. Whiskey Row
Whiskey Row’s name is exactly a place you would picture when you hear it: a row of places to find whiskey, because Whiskey Row is known in Prescott for having a large number of saloons. This area is historic for having been a place during the gold rush where it attracted cowboys, settlers, gamblers (one of the famous ones that actually lived in Prescott is Wyatt Earp), and even outlaws that come to visit town. However, in this present time, there are more than just saloons there, but there are now some candy stores and art galleries in the row.
6. Lynx Lake
Another stunning lake to find in Prescott is Lynx Lake, a 55-acre reservoir that is surrounded by the ponderosa pine trees of Prescott. Swimming is prohibited here, but you can do other activities around this lake like hiking, boating, fishing, camping, kayaking, and canoeing. There are ruins you can look at that are actually around Lynx Creek. These ruins were from around 700 years ago from the Pueblo Indians and it can be located on trail No. 301 with a $5 day fee.
7. Lynx Cafe
If you’re feeling hungry after or before exploring Lynx Lake, Lynx Cafe is within the vicinity of the lake. Lynx Cafe is a German-American restaurant that not only offers food for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, but you can rent rowboats and kayaks from here too. If you don’t want to sit in the rustic restaurant with their amusing signs and decor around, there is also outdoor seating that overlooks Lynx Lake. Their menu is a combination of American and German favorites, including a variety of schnitzels.
8. Mogollon Vineyards
If you’re looking for an escapade to drink some wine and relax at a vineyard, Mogollon Vineyards is perfect for that. Started by two different couples who are friends and found a passion for winemaking, Mogollon Vineyards features their wines and they also have flatbread pizzas as well as a tasting flight. Located in Dewey, which is the neighboring small city by Prescott, the views around Mogollon Vineyards are peaceful and beautiful. The vineyard has a few game activities for you to play with your friends or family and they also host events like live music.
9. Mortimer Farms
Also located in Dewey, Mortimer Farms is a farm with a farmer’s market store with a deli and bakery. In their farm, they offer picking for fruits and vegetables that are grown from there and on their farm park, they have games, activities, and farm rides. In their market, they have a variety of their products grown by them such as salsa, strawberry preserves, honey, coffee, and pickled vegetables. I bought their quinoa and pickled gingers, so it is a great stop if you enjoy organic and farm-grown healthier foods.
10. Phippen Museum
Phippen Museum is a wonderful art museum in Prescott that graces cowboy-themed and Native American-themed art. They feature permanent exhibits there like their Western Heritage Gallery or some art work by Ray Swanson, a famous painter who painted the American West and loved painting Native Americans and had moved to Arizona to open his studio. Phippen Museum features exhibits that are only current too. Their permanent collection of artwork is large with about 800 pieces to display!
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