Our favorite things to do in our little mountain town: Pinetop, Arizona

We bought our cabin in the little mountain town of Pinetop, AZ in February 2017…and we fall in love with the town more and more every time we’re there! If you missed our cabin tour, click here.

We love this town. It’s small enough to feel like you’re secluded, but big enough to have a Home Depot and a WalMart – ha! But for real, from the hiking and scenery to the many lakes and awesome ski mountain…there are endless things to do. Not to mention the 25 degree difference in weather from Phoenix!

Since we both work remotely, we are lucky enough to live up here in the summers to escape the triple digits. And we try to escape every chance we can throughout the year.

A little glimpse of our cabin:

You can also find more photos of the cabin in our engagement photos in this post.

Billy Creek Lodge:

If you’re looking for a great place to stay, we bought the most unique 4,100 square-foot log cabin that you can find on Airbnb here!

You can read all about the unexpected journey and why we bought it to begin with in another blog post here.

Adventures:

Trail Systems

Here is a great resource for all the trail systems in the White Mountains.

Blue Ridge Trail System:

Also goes to the Ice Cave and around Scott Reservoir

Woodland Lake Park:

We walk here every day! It connects to an entire trail system that has lots of things to explore like a natural spring and creeks, as well as a beautiful paved trail around the lake. There are baseball fields, kids parks, tennis/pickleball courts, and lots more. More about the actual lake down below in the lakes section.

Mt. Baldy Wilderness – East and West Forks

We have done both forks of this one, East and West Fork. It is probably THE most ethereal hike I’ve ever done. And we’ve hiked through the Sierras, Colorado, and Utah!

West Fork is pretty mellow, hiking through big open pastures along the creek.

East Fork starts mellow along the creek, and then gets steep and more challenging. The views at the top are absolutely breathtaking (literally, breathtaking – the elevation is killer).

It’s a great day trip – bring a picnic and eat by the creek. Or you can backpack it! You’ll see a few people camped out along the creek on your hike.

This is a Summer and Fall hike unless you like the snow, it’s really snowy in the Winter and Spring. There will still be snow at the summit at the end of May.

The summit is 11,409 feet – so make sure to bring water and go at a slow enough pace!

Lakes

Woodland Lake

Woodland Lake is attached to Woodland Lake Park (mentioned above) and there is a paved pathway all the way around. There is also a fishing dock a boat ramp to drop a small boat or kayak/paddleboard on. There is also a whole trail system around Woodland Lake that is great to hike or bike on. It meets up with a beautiful spring and a creek!

Hawley Lake

Further away but by far the biggest lake and such a beautiful drive. It’s a great lake to bring a picnic to, and great for fishing! Make sure to grab a fishing permit if you’re fishing on the reservation.

Horseshoe Cienega

A fun lake to chill, fish, kayak and BBQ.

Show Low Lake

The biggest lake in the Pinetop/Show Low area. Boats with trolling motors are allowed, or pedal boats and kayaks, paddle boards, etc. It can get busy in the Summer but there is a beach side on the other side that you can drive to, and if you paddle out to the far end it’s much more secluded.

Big Lake

This one is in Greer about 45 minutes away, but the lake is the largest in the White Mountains. You can rent boats or kayaks, fish, or just picnic and take in the scenery. It’s definitely worthy of a trip.

Scott Reservoir

When it’s full, it’s absolutely gorgeous. Take the kayak and a picnic with some chairs and just hang out, enjoying how beautiful it is.

There is a camping section and big, beautiful box canyon with some waterfalls to explore to (pictured below).

There are also lots of hiking trails around the lake if you get restless. You can definitely spend a full day there!

Other Outdoor Activities

Off Roading

Our favorite thing to do is to just go get lost in the pines. There are endless amounts of fire roads behind Pinetop Country Club and off of Porter Mountain Road. You can just drive for hours and hours. Bring a picnic and some beers!

There are some spots off the roads to go shooting, and two fire towers that have pretty lookouts (see one of them below).

Lookout Mountain Fire Tower

The oldest fire tower. On a perfectly clear day, you can see Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, and Tucson. Say hello to Alan Allen for us! He’s been up there for 25 years.

Springer Mountain Lookout

Another fire tower that is right in town, behind the Pinetop Safeway. It’s so beautiful up there. Make sure to check the hours before going! It’s closed in the Fall/Winter as well.

Funny story about this place – it’s actually the reason we bought Billy Creek Lodge!

We were driving to Springer Mountain Lookout Father’s Day weekend 2021 to bring my family up there, and we saw the for sale sign that led down a dirt road. We immediately thought whoah, so we checked it out. We crept around the property a little and looked through the windows (it was vacant) and we called the agent immediately!

Sunrise Ski Park

Where we got engaged! Sunrise is the bigger ski mountain in Arizona with three peaks, but it’s much less crowded than the mountain in Flagstaff because it’s an hour further away from Phoenix. They also have snow tubing and kids activities/day care as well!

In the Spring and Summertime, you can ride the chairlift up and mountain bike down the mountain – the mtb park just got redone by a pro and it’s awesome now. They also offer tons of fun activities like zip lining, rock climbing, a scenic ski lift ride, and a big jump onto an air bag.

Porter Mountain Stables

Right off Scott Reservoir, Porter Mountain Stables is a fun hour-long scenic tour around the lake on horseback. They also have ponies for the kids. The ride is so peaceful and therapeutic.

Golf

Pinetop Lakes Country Club

Our favorite! It’s a well-kept executive course and the scenery is amazing.

Bison Ridge

Longer, harder and absolutely beautiful. It’s also at a gorgeous club.

Silver Creek

Further away in Show Low, but an inexpensive, mild round.

Restaurants:

Breakfast, Lunch, & Coffee

Darbi’s Cafe:

If you’re looking for a huge, filling, terribly bad for you, delicious breakfast…this is the place! My favorite naughty breakfast is biscuits and gravy, and they have multiple types! So good.

Baked in Pinetop:

Amazing baked goods. Danny loves the pastries and I loooove the sourdough bowl for some homemade chowder.

Cycleogical Coffee:

The CUTEST coffee shop with the absolute best lattes. Try the honey oat latte or the Ojai matcha! We love our coffee at home, so I can honestly say that their coffee is the only coffee worth buying.

White Mountain Donuts Cafe & Deli:

Donuts. Delicious breakfast. Yummy sandwiches. ‘Nuff said.

Lunch & Dinner

The House Show Low:

The owner of The House actually catered our wedding and he is a super talented chef! This is a casual spot that makes you feel like you’re at a friend’s house. It includes a “backyard” with fire pits, cornhole, and outdoor bar, hanging chairs, couches…the whole shebang. If you come on a weekend they will likely have live music playing on their stage. Just next door is the yummiest ice cream at the Red Barn Creamery (get the fruity pebbles flavor!).

Pinetop Brewing Co.:

We go here at least once every time we’re in Pinetop. They have several gold medal winning beers, and their food is super good. Really, you can’t go wrong with anything on their menu.

Bistro at Annie’s

Munich Haus

One of our newest favorites. A German-style joint with a fun outdoor area and lawn games. You could probably spend an entire day here!

Wine Mountains

This spot replaced our old fave – La Vie, but definitely does not disappoint! It has great chill “hangout” vibes with live music most evenings and light bites like bruschetta, charcuterie and salads. I love most of the wine they offer as well.

Mexican – Los Corrales & El Rancho

We LOVE these two spots equally! We eat Mexican up here about once a week and they never disappoint. El Rancho also has a spot in Payson which we frequent on the way home, and Los Corrales has a spot in Show Low with a little more vibrant of an atmosphere.

Grumpy Jake’s BBQ

DELISH BBQ. Like, SO good.

Pasta House and Cafe Pinoli

Two yummy Italian options for a nice night out.

The Italian Lady of Pinetop

A great lunch spot for Italian subs, soup and more. We frequent this place on the reg. They have select hours, though. So keep an eye out.

Charlie Clark’s

The ‘ol classic. Classic steakhouse food and they have over 2 acres of historic property called “The Orchard at Charlie Clarks” which is an outdoor area for games events.

Molly Butler

This one is in Greer, but is SO worth the drive. We had our wedding welcome party here and make it a point to come back every time we’re back in the mountains.

Molly was a local celebrity in Greer in the late 1800’s when she opened the joint. Their story is very cool, and you’ll get to read about it when you’re there. The building is original and was actually the town’s first schoolhouse for a while.

The no-bean Prime Rib Chili is famous – President Herbert Hoover’s favorite!

While you’re in Greer, you can stop by Greer Lakes and the Little Colorado River.

Bars + Line Dancing

The Lion’s Den:

Our favorite bar! They always have a live country cover band and their outdoor space is super fun (pictured below). Their late night food isn’t bad, either.

The Orchard at Charlie Clark’s:

A historic restaurant, and a biiig open yard outside (the Orchard). During the daytime there are lawn games and live music with a BBQ area in the Orchard. They also host some events like the Art Festival and Wine in the Pines.

The Lodge

Free pool tables and fun music. Plus Thursday nights they have line dancing lessons from our wedding dance instructors, Steve & Deena!

Molly Butler

This one is in Greer, but is SO worth the drive. We had our wedding welcome party here and it’s always a good time. They have line dancing some nights – check their schedules or Steve & Deena’s Facebook page!