Salt River
4.6(1.3K)google
4.0(449)yelp
RiverRaftingWild Horses
Overview
The Salt River is a scenic and vital waterway flowing through central Arizona, offering an exceptional escape into the Sonoran Desert. Renowned for its recreational activities, visitors can embark on popular river tubing adventures, kayak through gentle rapids, or paddleboard along calm stretches. The river basin is flanked by dramatic desert cliffs, towering saguaro cacti, and lush riparian vegetation. It serves as a sanctuary for diverse wildlife, allowing sharp-eyed travelers to spot wild horses grazing near the shores, blue herons, and bald eagles. The tranquil waters contrasting with the rugged arid landscape create an unmissable destination for outdoor enthusiasts seeking both relaxation and adventure.
Practical Info
Suggested Duration4-7 hours
Best TimeIf you're here to see wild horses, early morning or dusk from October to April is best; if you're here for the exciting water tubing, you must come in midsummer. Since it's under Tonto National Forest jurisdiction, you must buy a "Tonto Daily Pass" parking permit in advance at a roadside supply station
Getting ThereLocated within the Tonto National Forest in the mountains east of Phoenix. By car, take I-60 (US-60) and head north on Power Road, then turn onto Bush Highway to arrive directly; there are more than a dozen well-equipped paid pull-offs along the river, such as Blue Point
Travel Tips
- This is a clear river of life flowing through the vast Arizona desert, wondrously merging the azure streams on both banks with the giant Saguaro cactus forests towering several stories high alongside
- This is a core habitat of the famous wild "Salt River Wild Horses"
- When walking along the river or boating, there's a very high chance of seeing herds of wild horses up close drinking, playing, and even swimming in the cool stream
- Every May to September, this is Arizona's hugely popular "Salt River Tubing" mecca
- Tens of thousands of young people rent a huge black inner tube, hold an ice-cold cola, and float lying down for hours along the gentle plains river channel
Reviews
Positive
- Phoenix's most stunning hidden waterside paradise! Sitting in a kayak drifting down the azure river, then rounding a bend to suddenly see four or five huge wild brown horses grazing leisurely on the shallows less than five meters away—in that moment my eyes welled up with excitement, and the photos have incredible visual impact
- Summer tubing is so fun and so wild! Young people from all across the American Midwest gather here, tying their big rubber tubes together to float down the river, huge sacred cacti on both banks, sipping cold drinks while watching wild horses pass by—it's the purest kind of laid-back, chic city living
Heads up
- Because it's a completely open, huge natural forest river, the channel gets fairly noisy on summer weekends from the tubing crowds. Also, wild rattlesnakes live year-round in the cactus scrub, so when hiking by the river you must absolutely never step into the deep grass