SporkSports - Tonto Natural Bridge Photographs

(5-31-08)

There are a few places in Arizona which I really enjoy visiting over and over just for the beauty of the scenery and also the fun of hiking around it. Tonto Natural Bridge is one of those places. Located about 10 miles north of Payson, the main attraction is the natural bridge. Called a bridge, it's actually kind of more of a tunnel, although since it's open at both ends it's considered a bridge.

There is a stream which runs through the valley both along the base of the valley and also along the top of the bridge. At the edge of the bridge, it then trickles down as a small waterfall. Well, it's pretty weak as waterfalls go, but it's still pretty neat since you can get right up close to it both at the top and also when you hike down to the bottom. There's 4 or 5 hiking trails around the area, so you can easily spend 2 or 3 hours just hiking around to see the whole area.

June 7th, 2003, Overcast skys permitted balanced light to see inside
June 7th, 2003, Clouds fill the sky just past the the natural bridge edge
June 7th, 2003, Rocks at the bottom show the signs of centuries of water flow

June 7th, 2003, lots of greenery at the bottom of the valley
June 7th, 2003, Wooden bridge crossing a dry creek
June 7th, 2003, Trees along the valley

April 6th, 2002, A view from the west ridge
April 6th, 2002, Joel and Maralee joined me for a hike through the valley
April 6th, 2002, This is where I pretend like I am an artful candid photographer

April 6th, 2002, The slow moving stream at the bottom of the valley
April 6th, 2002, The water under the bridge
April 6th, 2002, Sunset on the drive home

January 1999, Another area of the park with water running down the valley
January 1999, Water frozen forming icicles on the branches of small shrubs
January 1999, Closeup picture of a cactus patch.

January 1999, A water reflection in the stream at the bottom of the valley
January 1999, Water flowing between the rocks in the stream
January 1999, A view downstream from the pedestrian bridge

January 1999, A view of the natural bridge from the pedestrian bridge. Unfortunately, it looks a little washed out because part is in the shade and part is in direct sunlight. You can faintly see the waterfall from this view.
January 1999, Another view of the water reflections
July 1998, My friend Lori jumping off a rock while hiking one of the easy trails

June 1998, A stream at the base of the Tonto Natural Bridge park
June 1998, A view into the natural bridge
June 1998, Looking upstream just outside the entrance of the natural bridge

July 1998, A shot of waterfall which runs 187 feet down to a stream below
July 1998, A view down the canyon from on top the bridge near the waterfall seen in the previous picture
July 1998, Looking back at the natural bridge. It's kind of more like a tunnel, but considered a bridge. Unfortunately you can't really see the waterfall in this picture but it runs from the mossy area from the top/center left to the stream below.

Page Updated: 8-24-03

June 7th, 2003, Overcast skys permitted balanced light to see inside	June 7th, 2003, Clouds fill the sky just past the the natural bridge edge	June 7th, 2003, Rocks at the bottom show the signs of centuries of water flow
June 7th, 2003, lots of greenery at the bottom of the valley	June 7th, 2003, Wooden bridge crossing a dry creek	June 7th, 2003, Trees along the valley
April 6th, 2002, A view from the west ridge	April 6th, 2002, Joel and Maralee joined me for a hike through the valley	April 6th, 2002, This is where I pretend like I am an artful candid photographer

April 6th, 2002, The slow moving stream at the bottom of the valley	April 6th, 2002, The water under the bridge	April 6th, 2002, Sunset on the drive home
January 1999, Another area of the park with water running down the valley	January 1999, Water frozen forming icicles on the branches of small shrubs	January 1999, Closeup picture of a cactus patch.
January 1999, A water reflection in the stream at the bottom of the valley	January 1999, Water flowing between the rocks in the stream	January 1999, A view downstream from the pedestrian bridge
January 1999, A view of the natural bridge from the pedestrian bridge. Unfortunately, it looks a little washed out because part is in the shade and part is in direct sunlight. You can faintly see the waterfall from this view.	January 1999, Another view of the water reflections	July 1998, My friend Lori jumping off a rock while hiking one of the easy trails
June 1998, A stream at the base of the Tonto Natural Bridge park	June 1998, A view into the natural bridge	June 1998, Looking upstream just outside the entrance of the natural bridge
July 1998, A shot of waterfall which runs 187 feet down to a stream below	July 1998, A view down the canyon from on top the bridge near the waterfall seen in the previous picture	July 1998, Looking back at the natural bridge. It's kind of more like a tunnel, but considered a bridge. Unfortunately you can't really see the waterfall in this picture but it runs from the mossy area from the top/center left to the stream below.