Hi, I am retired Navy and I just went to Bartlett Lake here in Arizona. Where is a good spot for shore fishing?  I went to Bartlett Flats but the deep water was a ways out...Is there a better place to go to get deep water without sand about 4-6 feet deep..I am without a boat and it seems you need one to fish in Arizona Lakes...Thanks a bunch....

Without a boat your options are severely limited on any of the lakes in the central Arizona area. Before I read your post entirely, I was going to suggest you try Bartlett Flats, it is an area many shore bound anglers use, and one of the very few accessable without a boat. My suggestion is to rent a boat for a day, and purchase a lake map of Bartlett Reservoir to locate areas you would like to fish. They are published on thin waterproof plastic by Fish-n-Map and available at Sportsmen's Warehouse, Cabela's, and BPS. These are topo maps showing water depth, fish habitat, etc and well worth having. I have one for Bartlett/Horseshoe, Saguaro/Canyon/Apache, Pleasant, and Roosevelt. Best of luck and Happy Fishing!

Hi, I appreciate your help. It seems like I have to go north to lets say, Fool Hollows Lake, to get some quality shore fishing....do you know others....I am not into in city fisihing as the point is to get away from everything and enjoy the outdoors...again, thanks for your candor..I just don't have a boat at this time and it seems that all Tonto lakes require this...or at least require it for any kind of fishing at all.....again, Thanks.

Woods Canyon lake and the other lakes on the rim. Dead Horse Canyon lake. The lakes in the White Mountains. Upper and Lower Lakes Mary in Flagstaff. Also try the Verde River below Horseshoe lake, between Horseshoe and Bartlett lakes. This can be a very good spot for catfish and bass. Best of luck and Happy Fishing.