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The unincorporated communities of Lake Montezuma and Rimrock enjoy the pristine mountain air of the Verde  Valley. Sycamore and Cottonwood trees line the green belt riparian areas, and several large ponds host migrating birds. We have beautiful dark skies with the Milky Way very visible and striking views of the red rocks, the riparian area, the golf course, or the ridges, from just about anywhere in the area.
Centrally located, our villages start near Exit 293 at McGuireville on I-17. Located one exit south of Sedona, it is 35 minutes to Prescott Valley, 45 minutes to Flagstaff, and 1 hour, 30 minutes from Phoenix. Historic Camp Verde offers many tourist and recreational opportunities just 15 minutes down the road and the old mining town of Jerome is a great place for breakfast and shopping for original works by local artists.
Central Lake Montezuma began as a planned area development in the mid-1960's around the Beaver Creek Golf course and includes 36 subdivisions in Rimrock and Lake Montezuma. It has a small retail plaza which includes Rollins Park, a post office, restaurants, a medical facility, and tourist-oriented retail shops. The county helped residents create Sycamore Park. This park has a play ground, walking trails, picnic areas and access to the creek for swimming and fishing.
An oral history of the area can be found in the book, By the Banks of Beaver Creek, by Til Lightbourn and Mary Lyons, Copyright 1989, by the Lake Montezuma Women's Civic Club, Printed in U.S.A., by Evangel Press. Copies can be purchased from Jeannette Estes (567-5421), at the Camp Verde Historical Society and at Fort Verde State Historical Park.
The region is sometimes known as Beaver Creek because the stream has played a large role in the history of the area. The headwaters of Beaver Creek begin in the northern high country and the stream descends from the Mogollon Rim to its junction with the Verde River in lower country at Camp Verde. The total identifiable length of its course is about fifty miles.
The area boasts its own school district, (Beaver Creek School District, grades k-8), a modern fire station, a post office and several important tourist attractions. Montezuma Castle and Montezuma Well are two of the most famous attractions.
The Castle is an outstanding example of how the ancient ones lived in the walls of the canyon with much of the original dwellings still in place. The Well is about 11,000 years old and was probably formed by the collapse of one of the many limestone caverns which are common in this region. It is an active spring with a constant flow of 1.100 million gallons of water per day with about 10 percent flowing out of the well into an old irrigation ditch that was used for watering farm lands at that time.
We invite you to visit us and enjoy the many hiking and biking trails that are in and around our community. This is a wonderful place to live, grow, and retire. We have it all! Four seasons with mild weather , year-round golf, horseback riding, outdoor activities, an old-time Fourth of July parade, community dinners, a branch library, the Beaver Creek Adult Center, and lots of organizations to make your life interesting.
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