Payson (pop: 15,220) is a town at the meeting of three roads in Gila County, Arizona, United States. Its location puts it almost exactly in the geographic center of Arizona where it has been called "The Heart of Arizona".

In 1918 author Zane Grey made his first trip to the area surrounding Payson. He would come back with regularity through 1929. Grey wrote numerous books about the area and also filmed some movies, such as To the Last Man, in the Payson area in the 1920s.

Ninety-seven percent of the land around Payson is under the jurisdiction of the United States Forest Service (Payson is surrounded by the Tonto National Forest) or by tribal governments. Consequently much of the land is available for hiking, horseback riding, and other outdoor activities.

Tonto Natural Bridge, the largest known travertine natural bridge in the world, is located just northwest of Payson in Tonto Natural Bridge State Park, a unit of the Arizona State Park system. The area incorporates three golf courses, two of which belong to private country clubs. Mazatzal Casino, a tribal casino, is operated by the Tonto Apache Indian Reservation near the south end of the city.

The Payson area is a popular destination for rockhounds. In various areas surrounding the community can be found quartz crystals rivaling Herkimer diamonds in quality, geodes, agate, and onyx. Fossils are commonly found in the Paleozoic strata that is exposed along the Mogollon Rim to the north and east of Payson along State Route 87 and State Route 260.

Camp Geronimo
Grand Canyon Council
2599 W Webber Creek Rd , Payson, AZ 85541;
928-474-2818; Camp Website;
Located north of Payson in the shadows of the magnificent Mogollon Rim on nearly 200 acres of forest and meadows. Surrounded by over 5,000 acres of ponderosa pine forest, trails lead from camp to the top of the rim where Scouts can stand at the very edge of the Colorado Plateau.

Camp Geronimo is located approximately 20 miles north of Payson, Arizona and is at an elevation of 5,420 feet. The coordinates of the Camp are: 34` 24.160`` N; 111` 22.101`` W.

Activity Venues at the Camp
Use of the camp and facilities is by reservation only with GCC.

• Forest Trailheads - backpacking, hiking, forestry, geocache, nature merit badge programs
• Webber Pond - canoeing
• Shooting Ranges - archery, rifle, and muskets
• Climbing Tower -
• Spade Ranch - original 1890s cowboy bunk house

Camp Theodore Roosevelt
Grand Canyon Council
Cub Scout Resident Camp
Camp Website;
Location: East of Kohl's Ranch on SR-260

Located east of Payson, along the banks of Christopher Creek, Camp Theodore Roosevelt / R-C Scout Ranch occupies 75 acres of tall, cool ponderosa pines.

Facilities include 10 fully developed campsites with tents, a BB gun range and archery range. There is a full featured dining hall, plus a lodge that can accommodate up to 30 people and six cabins that can accommodate sixteen people each.

Every July, the Camp is transformed into Camp Sunrise by the Arizona chapter of the American Cancer Society. Throughout the month, children with cancer and their families enjoy the area with their own special programs.