Fossil Creek - Arizona's Hidden Oasis
- Emily Miner
- Jun 9
- 4 min read
Fossil Creek? Fossil Springs? Which is which and what important details you'll need to know before your trip, and would I do it again?
There are two waterfalls in this area here's how you remember them.
(Bob Bear Trail)
Fossil Creek
Located about 3 hours from Phoenix in Camp Verde, lies Fossil Creek. An amazing creek that is only a short hike but ends in an amazing water fall!
Know before you go: PERMITS REQUIRED April 1st through October 1st
You can get a permit at: https://www.recreation.gov/permits/4251919
PRINT PERMIT: Listen up millennials, permits are required to be printed and I know most of us don't have printers so keep that in mind.
ARRIVE BEFORE 2PM: There are rangers checking permits and IDs when you arrive. You are not allowed to go further than the parking lot for which you have a permit. They no longer allow drop offs.
NO CELL SERVICE: Be prepared
Best Way to get a Permit
Permit release times are at 8:00 a.m. Arizona Mountain Standard Time.
80% of permits are released on a one-month, daily rolling basis.
For example, if you wanted a permit for August 4th, the earliest you could purchase a permit for that date would be July 4th at 8:00 a.m. Arizona Mountain Standard Time.
Every day from March 1st through September 1st, permits are available to be purchased one month in advance on a daily, rolling basis.
20% of permits are released 2 days in advance.
For example, if you wanted a permit for August 4th and were unable to secure a permit one month in advance, permits will be available for purchase for August 4th on August 2nd at 8:00 a.m. AZ MST.
A "NR" on the reservation tool means the late release permits are not yet released, but are available to purchase 2 days before hand beginning at 8:00 a.m. Arizona Mountain Standard Time.
Getting There:
Do not trust your apple or google maps. You'll want to take State Route 260 near Camp Verde to Forest Road 708.
The closest Parking lot to the trailhead is Dixon Lewis Trailhead. The furthest parking lot would be Mazatzal.
Fossil Creek Falls: AllTrails hike info
Length: 2.2mi Elevation Gain: 190ft Average time: 49hr Difficulty: Moderate
If you are looking for the waterfall, the actual trailhead starts right at the Dixon Lewis Parking lot. It's about a 45min walk from the start of the trailhead. But the further you park, the longer the walk. For reference when I went, I was in parking lot #5 Homestead, and it took me an hour and a half to reach the waterfall. So that is a total of 3hours walking. Its an easy hike. You're just walking on the dirt road until you reach the trailhead which is also easy and heavily trafficked. Although, you don't have to go all the way to the waterfall. You can walk down from any of the parking lots down to the creek.
At the site of the waterfall, it consists of large smooth boulders. Pictured below. It's not a super great place to set up a towel to sit but you'll make do. There are trees where you can set up a hammock. I love sitting by waterfalls because even its busy its still peaceful because you can only hear the sounds of water rushing over the head and not any voices.
Dogs are welcome but must be on a leash. There are also bathrooms at each parking lot.
You can also climb to the top of the waterfall but be careful because the rocks are slippery and it takes some tricky navigating.
Fossil Springs - AKA Bob Bear Trail
Located about 2 hours from Phoenix in Strawberry lies Fossil Springs which is now called the Bob Bear Trail. I personally have not done this hike yet because of it's difficulty but I wanted to give you the info on it.
Know before you go: PERMITS REQUIRED April 1st through October 1st
Permits can be purchased here: https://www.recreation.gov/permits/4251903
Best way to get a Permit:
On March 1, permits are available to purchase for the following month of April
On April 1, permits are available to purchase for the following month of May
On May 1, permits are available to purchase for the following month of June.
On June 1, permits are available to purchase for the following month of July.
On July 1, permits are available to purchase for the following month of August.
On August 1, permits are available to purchase for the following month of September and October 1.
Bob Bear Trail to Fossil Creek Falls: AllTrails hike info
Length: 8.4mi Elevation Gain: 1512ft Average time: 5hr Difficulty: Hard
This is a LONG and difficult hike. Do not attempt in the summer! There is not much shade and Arizona is dry. Its very easy to get dehydrated. You'll first go ALL DOWNHILL to the water and then on the way back to the parking lot you'll be going ALL UPHILL. Dogs are welcome.
But it will all be worth once you reach the water and the beautiful waterfall!
This is also called "The Toilet Bowl" but do not try to swim this. Unfortunately many people have died trying to swim in this whirlpool.
There is also a cave where you can really see the amazing blue color of the water!
Would I do it again?
#Realtalk Would I actually do Fossil Creek again?
To be honest I might not. It was a long walk from the parking lot on a road that doesn't have the prettiest sights until you get on the trail. Although I might reconsider if I had a permit for the closest parking lot. It was very green and beautiful on our walk back though because it started raining.
Overall the location is a little hard to reach and there wasn't many places to sit when you reach the waterfall.
If I was already in the area (Camp Verde), I might do it again except not walk all the way to waterfall and just walk down to the creek from the parking lot. That being said it was definitely worth doing one time! You just need to do some extra planning for this.
Woo that was a lot of information. If you have any questions please reach out! Thank you for reading! :) :)
Comments