- List of New Mexico state parks
-
Map of State Parks of New Mexico
Hold cursor over locations to display park name;
click to go to park article.This is a list of state parks and reserves in the New Mexico state park system. The system began with the establishment of Bottomless Lakes State Park on November 18, 1933.[1] New Mexico currently has 35 state parks. It has been calculated that 70% of the state's population lives within 40 miles (64 km) of a New Mexico state park.[2] The system as a whole saw 4.5 million visitors in 2009.[2] The parks are managed by the New Mexico State Parks Division of the New Mexico Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department. The mission of the State Parks Division is to "protect and enhance natural and cultural resources, provide first-class recreational and education facilities and opportunities, and promote public safety to benefit and enrich the lives of visitors."[3]
Park Name Web-
siteCounty or Counties Area in Acres (km²)[4] Elevation[4] Date
Established[5]Remarks[4] Bluewater Lake State Park [1] Cibola 3,000 acres (12 km²) 7,400 ft (2256 m) 1937 Encircles a 1,200-acre (490 ha) reservoir in the Zuni Mountains. Bottomless Lakes State Park [2] Chaves 1,400 acres (5.6 km²) 3,500 ft (1067 m) 1933 Encompasses eight cenotes whose greenish-blue water disguises their true depth.[6] Brantley Lake State Park [3] Eddy 3,000 acres (12 km²) 3,300 ft (1006 m) 1989 Features New Mexico's southernmost lake, a 4,000-acre (1,600 ha) reservoir on the Pecos River. Caballo Lake State Park [4] Sierra 5,384 acres (21.8 km²) 4,100 ft (1250 m) 1964 Surrounds Caballo Lake, a 11,500-acre (4,700 ha) reservoir on the Rio Grande. Cerrillos Hills State Park [5] Santa Fe 1,116 acres (4.5 km²) 2009 Provides day-use recreation amidst 1,100 years of mining history. Cimarron Canyon State Park [6] Colfax 378 acres (1.5 km²) 7,500 ft (2286 m) 1979 Showcases the canyon of the Cimarron River and the Palisades Sill formation. City of Rocks State Park [7] Grant 1,230 acres (4.97 km²) 5,250 ft (1600 m) 1953 Features rock formations eroded out of 35 million year old volcanic ash, and a public observatory. Clayton Lake State Park [8] Union 471 acres (1.9 km²) 5,040 ft (1536 m) 1965 Features a 170-acre (69 ha) reservoir and an extensive trackway of fossilized dinosaur footprints. Conchas Lake State Park [9] San Miguel 359 acres (1.45 km²)[7] 4,200 ft (1280 m) 1955 Adjoins a 16,400-acre (6,600 ha) reservoir on the Canadian River. Coyote Creek State Park [10] Mora 462 acres (1.87 km²) 7,700 ft (1280 m) 1969 Offers the most densely stocked trout stream in New Mexico. Eagle Nest Lake State Park [11] Colfax 3,488 acres (1.41 km²) 8,300 ft (2530 m) 2004 Provides access to a 2,400-acre (970 ha) reservoir in a scenic mountain valley. Elephant Butte Lake State Park [12] Sierra 24,500 acres (99 km²) 4,500 ft (1372 m) 1964 Surrounds Elephant Butte Reservoir, the state's largest and most popular reservoir. El Vado Lake State Park [13] Rio Arriba 1,730 acres (7 km²) 6,900 ft (2103 m) 1961 Provides access to a 3,200-acre (1,300 ha) reservoir adjacent to Heron Lake State Park. Fenton Lake State Park [14] Sandoval 700 acres (2.8 km²) 7,900 ft (2408 m) 1984 Encompasses a 37-acre (15 ha) reservoir surrounded by ponderosa pine forest. Heron Lake State Park [15] Rio Arriba 4,100 acres (1.66 km²) 7,200 ft (2195 m) Provides access to a 5,900-acre (2,400 ha) no-wake reservoir adjacent to El Vado Lake State Park. Hyde Memorial State Park [16] Santa Fe 350 acres (1.42 km²) 8,500 ft (2591 m) 1938 Provides outdoor recreation amenities near Santa Fe. Leasburg Dam State Park [17] Doña Ana 293 acres (1.19 km²) 4,200 ft (1280 m) 1971 Features a quiet stretch of the Rio Grande below a 1908 diversion dam. Living Desert Zoo and Gardens State Park [18] Eddy 1,500 acres (6.07 km²) 3,200 ft (975 m) 1967 Comprises a zoo and botanical garden of wildlife native to the Chihuahuan Desert in the city of Carlsbad. Manzano Mountains State Park [19] Torrance 160 acres (0.65 km²) 7,600 ft (2316 m) 1973 Protects part of the forested foothills of the Manzano Mountains. Mesilla Valley Bosque State Park [20] Doña Ana 305 acres (1.23 km²) 3,900 ft (1189 m) 2003 Interprets a bosque on the Rio Grande and adjacent Chihuahuan Desert. Morphy Lake State Park [21] Mora 30 acres (0.12 km²) 8,000 ft (2438 m) 1965 Preserves a small, secluded lake in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. Navajo Lake State Park [22] Rio Arriba and San Juan 21,000 acres (85 km²) 6,100 ft (1859 m) 1995 Comprises three units on New Mexico's second-largest reservoir. Oasis State Park [23] Roosevelt 193 acres (0.78 km²) 4,100 ft (1250 m) 1961 Features a fishing pond and sand dunes amidst the east-central plains. Oliver Lee Memorial State Park [24] Otero 640 acres (2.59 km²) 4,363 ft (1330 m) 1980 Showcases a verdant canyon in the Sacramento Mountains and Oliver Lee's restored 1893 ranch house. Pancho Villa State Park [25] Luna 60 acres (0.24 km²) 4,060 ft (1237 m) 1961 Interprets the 1916 Battle of Columbus (Pancho Villa's raid onto U.S. soil) and the retaliatory Pancho Villa Expedition. Percha Dam State Park [26] Sierra 80 acres (0.32 km²) 4,100 ft (1250 m) 1970 Provides outdoor recreation on an impounded section of the Rio Grande. Rio Grande Nature Center State Park [27] Bernalillo 38 acres (0.15 km²) 5,000 ft (1524 m) 1982 Inteprets a bosque on the Rio Grande in Albuquerque. Rockhound State Park [28] Luna 1,100 acres (4.45 km²) 4,500 ft (1372 m) 1965 Allows mineral collecting for amateur geology in the Florida Mountains. Santa Rosa Lake State Park [29] Guadalupe 550 acres (2.23 km²) 4,800 ft (1463 m) Adjoins a 3,800-acre (1,500 ha) reservoir. Storrie Lake State Park [30] San Miguel 80 acres (0.32 km²) 6,600 ft (2012 m) 1960 Adjoins a 1,100-acre (450 ha) reservoir in the Zuni Mountains. Sugarite Canyon State Park [31] Colfax 3,600 acres (14.57 km²) 6,950 ft (2118 m) 1985 Interprets the ruins of a historic early-20th Century coal-mining camp. Sumner Lake State Park [32] De Baca 6,700 acres (27 km²) 4,300 ft (1311 m) 1966 Adjoins a 4,500-acre (1,800 ha) reservoir on the Pecos River. Ute Lake State Park [33] Quay 1,500 acres (6.07 km²) 3,900 ft (1189 m) 1964 Adjoins an 8,200-acre (3,300 ha) reservoir on the Canadian River. Vietnam Veterans Memorial State Park [34] Colfax 8,500 ft (2591 m) 2005 Honors the veterans of the Vietnam War, the country's oldest such memorial (established 1968) and the only one comprising a whole state park. Villanueva State Park [35] San Miguel 1,600 acres (6.48 km²) 5,600 ft (1707 m) 1967 Preserves a red sandstone canyon on the Pecos River. See also
References
- ^ "Bottomless Lakes State Park Management and Development Plan". http://www.emnrd.state.nm.us/PRD/documents/BottomlessLakeStatePark.pdf. Retrieved 2011-02-09.
- ^ a b New Mexico State Parks Division. "New Mexico State Parks". http://www.emnrd.state.nm.us/PRD/index.htm. Retrieved 2011-02-08.
- ^ New Mexico State Parks Division: Energy, Minerals, and Natural Resources Department (2010). "Cimarron Canyon State Park Management Plan 2010". New Mexico State Parks. http://www.emnrd.state.nm.us/prd/documents/CimarronPMPFinalPDFs_000.pdf. Retrieved 2011-02-08.
- ^ a b c All data come from respective New Mexico State Parks Division webpage unless otherwise noted.
- ^ All data come from respective state park management plans unless otherwise noted.
- ^ New Mexico Bureau of Geology & Mineral Resources. "NMBGMR Geologic Tour: Bottomless Lakes State Park". http://geoinfo.nmt.edu/tour/state/bottomless_lakes/home.html.
- ^ "Conchas Lake State Park Management Plan 2010". New Mexico State Parks Division - Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department. 2010. http://www.emnrd.state.nm.us/prd/documents/ConchasLPMPFINALPDF_000.pdf.
External links
State of New MexicoTopics Delegations · Geography · Government · History · Landmarks · Military · Natural history · New Mexicans · Settlements · Transportation · Tribes · Visitor attractions
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Counties Bernalillo · Catron · Chaves · Cibola · Colfax · Curry · De Baca · Doña Ana · Eddy · Grant · Guadalupe · Harding · Hidalgo · Lea · Lincoln · Los Alamos · Luna · McKinley · Mora · Otero · Quay · Rio Arriba · Roosevelt · Sandoval · San Juan · San Miguel · Santa Fe · Sierra · Socorro · Taos · Torrance · Union · Valencia
Categories:- Lists of parks by U.S. state
- New Mexico state parks
- New Mexico-related lists
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