Payson News

The Arizona Court of Appeals on Tuesday threw out a murder conviction of a hiker who claimed self-defense after he shot a man to death on a hiking trail north of Payson in May 2004.

Some young men dream about being professional baseball, football or basketball players.

What Fourth of July celebration is complete without cold watermelon, good music, hometown parades, and oohing and aahing over the rockets' red - and green and gold and blue - glare? Despite budget squeezes, most Arizona communities are still commemorating Independence Day with bang-up celebrations.

650 acres, anticipated to grow to about 1,350 acres today. Smoke is visible from Pine, Strawberry, Payson and Verde Valley, and should dissipate by Thursday.

PAYSON, Ariz. -- Jo Freeman uses two words to describe her friend Arlene Stastny: 'elfkin' and 'angel.' She calls her 'elfkin' because Stastny, 82, stands just 5 feet tall with extremely short, white pixie hair, Freeman said.

Cindy Pool's friends and family can't believe that she's gone. Not because her death was sudden, or because she was too young.

The US Forest Service is managing a wildfire along the Mogollon Rim near Pine. The Point Fire has burned 1,010 acres, with an additional 300 acres anticipated Wednesday.

The remains of a Chandler planning and zoning commissioner who disappeared from his family's vacation cabin in January were found Saturday by four Phoenix-area tourists on the shore of Chevlon Canyon Lake east of Payson.

When: 4-10 p.m. today, 9 a.m.-10 p.m. Saturday and 7 a.m.-1 p.m. Sunday. Getting there: About 220 miles from central Phoenix.

HIKING TRAILS D ogie Trail This trail comes by its name honestly. Dogie is cowboy slang for a motherless calf, alluding to the area's ranching history.

A placard that reads "Cucina Creativa Italiana" hangs on the wall of Gerardo's Italian Bistro in Payson.

An uncredited writer in the Payson, Arizona Roundup writes a hilarious, tongue-in-cheek set of suggestions for avoiding disaster while fly fishing.

The lunker cat, measuring over 37 inches in length, shatters the previous Urban Fishing Program record 11.4 pound catfish caught in 2002 from Evelyn Hallman Pond in Tempe.

I've never claimed to be a genius. As I get older, I'm finding that's a good thing.

PAYSON, Ariz. - " Around noon, Tucson co-angler Vu Au wasn't feeling very good about his position in the Stren Series Western Division event on Lake Roosevelt.

PAYSON, Ariz. - " The weather warmed, optimism rose and the fish, well, they apparently didn't get the memo about being more cooperative for Stren Western Division anglers on Lake Roosevelt.

The Mogollon Rim is a lovely place, where creeks splash down rugged canyons, cumulus clouds billow up in the afternoon and hawks soar overhead.

As befits a mountain village, Payson has plenty of rustic lodges and cozy cabins, where you can relax among the pines and creeks while enjoying spa-like amenities.

Freeway construction in Arizona will get a boost from federal stimulus funds. The Arizona Department of Transportation announced Wednesday its first priorities for utilizing $85 million of the $350 million it expects to receive from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

Land roving Pine Canyon Trail a treat for the senses By Doug Kreutz Arizona Daily Star PINE a ' Warbling mountain birds waft sweet avian melodies into cool morning air along the Pine Canyon Trail.