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Slide Rock State Park
Frank Pendley's homestead apple farm in Oak Creek Canyon, now a state park known for the natural sandstone water slide in the creek. The swim area has reopened after the 2026 Pocket Fire closures, but the nearby West Fork of Oak Creek stays closed through Oct. 31.
Access
Arizona State Parks, public, fee area. Entry is by vehicle only, through the entry station: no walk-ins, drop-offs or bicycles, no reservations, and no lining up on the driveway or highway before opening or when the lot is full. Hours (as of Oct 2026, check the park site): Jan. 31–Nov. 20, 8 a.m.–6 p.m., with entry and the swim area closing at 5 p.m.; Nov. 21–Jan. 30, 9 a.m.–5 p.m., with entry and the swim area closing at 4 p.m. Entrance fees (as of Oct 2026, check the park site): $20 per vehicle (1–4 people) from Aug. 22, 2026 to April 2027, plus $5 per additional person; children under 6 free. The park says it won't offer apple picking in fall 2026. Pets aren't allowed in the creek area at any time.
Safety & respect
After the 2026 Pocket Fire, Oak Creek can flood fast. If it rains upstream, or the water rises or turns muddy, get out of the creek at once. Wet sandstone is very slick and the water is cold. Follow every park and Forest Service closure: the West Fork of Oak Creek and West Fork Trail #108 are closed through Oct. 31, 2026. Don't park on the SR 89A shoulders.
Lore note
The park began as the Pendley Homestead, a 43-acre apple farm. Frank L. Pendley arrived in the canyon in 1907 and got the land under the Homestead Act in 1910. He built an irrigation system the park still uses, planted his first orchard in 1912, and in 1933 put up rustic cabins for tourists after the canyon road was paved. The park calls it one of the few homesteads left intact in the canyon. There's no anomaly here, only Rim-country pioneer history.
Map links
Official / public map link · Approx. 34.9443, -111.7528 (public reference only — verify on official maps before travel)
Sources
- Arizona State Parks — Slide Rock State Park (hours, fees, swim-area status; checked 4 Oct 2026): https://azstateparks.com/slide-rock
- Arizona State Parks — Slide Rock park history: https://azstateparks.com/slide-rock/explore/park-history
- Arizona State Parks — Slide Rock maps (GPS coordinates to park entrance, 34.944347, −111.752801 WGS84): https://azstateparks.com/slide-rock/explore/maps
- USDA Forest Service, Coconino NF — West Fork Temporary Area Closure (Extended), Order No. 03-04-00-26-007, in effect Sept. 26 – Oct. 31, 2026 (read 4 Oct 2026): https://www.fs.usda.gov/r03/coconino/alerts/west-fork-temporary-area-closure-extended
- USDA Forest Service, Coconino NF — Oak Creek temporary area closure lifts (news release): https://www.fs.usda.gov/r03/coconino/newsroom/releases/oak-creek-temporary-area-closure-lifts-week
Slide Rock is named for a stretch of Oak Creek where the water runs over a long, slick sandstone chute. The park around it is older than its fame. It’s the Pendley Homestead, an apple farm Frank L. Pendley built up from 1910. The park still uses his irrigation system to water the orchard.
Current conditions (dated 4 Oct 2026)
Swim area open; West Fork closed through Oct. 31. The park says its swim area has reopened, in step with the Forest Service’s revised closure order for Oak Creek. The West Fork of Oak Creek is still closed. Coconino National Forest Order No. 03-04-00-26-007 closes Forest land within 100 feet of the West Fork drainage, plus all of West Fork Trail #108, from Sept. 26 through 11:59 p.m. on Oct. 31, 2026, unless it’s lifted sooner. The Forest Service gives the reason as rockfall and flood debris after rain in the area the Pocket Fire burned. Entering the closed area is a federal misdemeanor. Check the order and the park page before you go.
Post-fire flash floods. Burned slopes upstream shed water and debris fast. If it’s raining upstream, or the creek rises or turns muddy, get out at once and move to high ground. Wet sandstone is very slippery and the water is cold.
The homestead
The park’s history is a short guide to how Oak Creek Canyon became a tourist canyon:
- 1907–1910. Frank L. Pendley arrives in the canyon and gets the land under the Homestead Act.
- 1912. His first apple orchard goes in, watered by his own irrigation system.
- 1914 and 1938. The canyon road is completed and then paved.
- 1933. Pendley builds rustic cabins for sightseers.
The park calls it one of the few homesteads left intact in the canyon. On weekend mornings it opens the old apple packing shed. There’s no apple picking in fall 2026, per the park.
This page is for curiosity and trip planning. It isn’t safety or navigation advice, and Anomaly Ledger accepts no liability for your visit. Check the park site for current hours, fees and closures before you go.
Archivist’s margin
The famous slide is geology. The orchard is the history, and it’s still being watered by a ditch dug more than a century ago.