The hotel is not much to look at, the rooms are no more than adequate, but it is THE closest hotel to Roosevelt Lake in the Tonto National Forest. The Inn is in a sparsely populated area on the edge of a national park, a long way from. The price was right - $52 a night for a double (in late December). The Inn seems well set up for summer. There are bays to park boat trailers in. There are outdoor grills and tables and chairs on the open porch area. It must be a fun social scene in warmer weather. I understand some of the rooms have kitchens, too.

The manager (owner?) was friendly and laid back. When we arrived, he had stepped out for a while, so he just left a note on the office door telling us our room numbers. The rooms were unlocked and the keys inside. He put up with a number of calls we made to his cell phone asking him for advice about where to hike, and where to go for a meal. His advice on where to hike included a list of potentially dangerous wild animals we might encounter.

He sent us to The Butcher Hook about a mile down the road, which serves as a restaurant/bar/grocery store. Nice local color. On the way to the restaurant we passed a pizza joint. There is also a bar next to the Inn which my adult daughter and her bf enjoyed.

The Inn had free wi-fi, but it turned out the access code the manager gave us didn't work. We could have called him again to get the right code, but it was late by then and getting online wasn't vital.

Sunrise over Roosevelt Lake the next morning - about a 10 minute drive from the Inn - was spectacular! As was the drive down Rte 88, the Apache Trail. We couldn't have asked for a better starting point than the hotel.