Now this was my by far favorite hike/picnic in New Mexico…read more On the way from Valles Caldera to Santa Fe, we noticed few cars parked on the side off NM State Highway 4. I read about this trailhead but was also sure we'll probably miss it since location was not very detailed. There are two smaller parking areas (both on the left side of the road if you're driving to Santa Fe) and they fill out fast. This trailhead provides access to the East Fork Jemez River and views of lush meadows, gorgeous wildflowers and animals on the way. The trail is rated as easy for the first 2 miles and than moderate for the rest of the way to the East Fork Trailhead ( 5 miles). We only walked 1.5 miles, took some food with us and had a lunch on the banks of the East Fork Jemez River. It was mesmerizing. I wish we had more time to walk the whole trail, maybe some other time.

The drive from Santa Fe is nail-biting in spots. 10mph hairpin curves after Los Alamos. Once past…read morethat area, I was able to release my trepidation. The tall pines are beautiful except for the fire damaged areas. The lake is very low. None the less, lots of fishing happening and campers seemed relaxed, enjoying their spot in this peacefully quiet place in nature.

Let me preface by writing lake reviews should be based off of other similar lakes in a general…read moregeographical location. You simply can't compare this little trout lake with say, Lake Superior! Right? So, I haven't been to enough New Mexico fishing lakes to provide an honest assessment. Having that written, it's a nice little lake. Not horrendously far from us city folk in Albuquerque. It has camping spots and is just as accommodating for day use folk as it is for campers. Rather small though, and for the curious, no motorized craft allowed. Just canoes and little blow up guys out there. We went on Father's Day, arrived at about 0730 and we were still hard pressed to lay claim to a good spot. However, by the time we rolled at noon, insane infestation of humans crawling all over, under, and beside one another for a place to cast their line. In fact, as we drove out the forest rangers had the entrance blocked off. It was 100% full! What did that do for the fish catching odds? It ruined it! Or, maybe I'm just a lousy fisherman, IDK. In any case, it wasn't the best day to land that big one. But you know what they say, a bad day of fishing beats a good day at work every time! Give 'em a go, I think you be pleased. Cheers!

This waterfall blew my mind! I didn't know that such a large waterfall existed in NM! I'm so glad…read morewe hiked it, and I'll be back! The water was pretty frigid, but still fun!

The staff here is rude and act like they are doing you a favor by letting you pay them $20 to see a…read morefalls, the view of which is ruined by the dam, clearly built above it. I do not recommend.

A beautiful lake and campground. Quiet. Turquoise blue waters. Able to see deer and eagles on your…read moredrive up here. Just wish that the lake levels haven't been so low the past few years to the point where it was impossible to use the boat ramp. Also, having water close to Albuquerque is a necessity and makes the 6 hour roundtrip day trip worth it

This is a nice place to go hiking and kayaking/canoeing. There are several campgrounds in the area…read morebut most of them are closed due to Covid. The hiking and water activities is worth the trip!

A big lake on the otherside of a magnificent dam. Very quiet. We ate our picnic by the boat ramp…read morewatching a solitary small yacht sail away and some kyakers close behind. The lake was very still. Bathrooms are available. Campsite looks good. Not really any trees or shade other than the picnic huts. Was clean when we were there.

Dirty. Litter everywhere. No shade. Lots of wasps. Just was not an enjoyable trip. We won't be back.read more

My wife and I had a wonderful day fishing the Pecos! The places, scenery, and fishing were…read morefantastic, but Jess, our guide, made the day perfect. She was so knowledgeable and thoughtful in everything she did. The experience was beyond our expectations!

These guys have a treasure trove of information and will help point you in the right direction in…read morethe Northern NM waters! Great shop, I highly recommend.

Ten years later, Gayle and I revisited the Valles Caldera as we took the long way back to…read moreAlbuquerque from Santa Fe (via Los Alamos). It was a big winding from Los Alamos, but finally the stunning view of the Valle came into full display. Wonderful stuff, with my only regret not driving a bit into it to take in the Visitor Center. Next time.

What an absolutely stunning oasis in the middle of the Jemez Mountains! We saw quite a few…read morecreatures on our trip today! A Groundhog, prairie dogs, Chipmunks, Elk and a coyote all in the span of about an hour! Truly a stunning place to visit with amazing views and kind National Park workers!

Seemingly small park that really isn't. It's surprising well equipped with a huge grassy area,…read morewalking trails, horseshoe pits, picnic areas - some covered and the requirement for all parks kids toys - swings, slides, etc. There's a small duck pond - no fishing, swimming, wading or feeding the animals. For all the times I've been there it's rarely busy. A hidden green escape in a xeriscaped world.

Still a great park. Nice benefit for the Taylor Ranch community …read more Typically a nice level of usage: not too much, not too little.

My partner and I did a KAYAK trip on the Rio Grande yesterday from about 8 miles north of Alameda…read moredown to the Alameda bridge. Nick offers this full service. You meet at the End of the trip pick-up point , The Alameda Bridge, then Nick takes you to the put-in point , About 8 miles north.He sets up the kayaks gave us a few brief pointers on what you remember and off we went. The cruise was great. The water was cold but not at all uncomfortable. Even though the kayaks are hardshell and a bit wider, hence more stable, we still managed to capsize one after a mistake we made approaching a narrow passage. We capsized the kayak BUT righting it was surprisingly easy. With the mountains to the east and the natural environment along the river, with ducks and egrets, the trip down the river was scenic. We both really loved the solitude, and the quiet, except for the sounds of nature. Just a thoroughly enjoyable paddle down the river. We were grateful to come across this business,Spirit Fly Expeditions, to be able to do this. Have thought often about maybe getting kayaks but at 68 & 72 years old I'm not sure how much we would use them, especially given the processes of getting them on and then off the river. We found this to be a great opportunity to experience the river via KAYAK without having to purchase them and then deal with those processes. With this option available to us, I see us on the river several times a year, maybe with friends, visitors to Albuquerque, etc. as well. When we arrived at the pick up point. Nick was there to greet us. We got out of the kayaks thanked him and off we went. He took care of everything else. Again, we were grateful to have this service to be able to have the river kayaking experience. Without this service it would not have happened for us. We're already planning another trip with some friends. If this sounds like an experience you would enjoy we highly recommend Nick and Spirit Fly Expeditions.

From the owner: Explore New Mexico like never before with our Guided Fly Fishing trips! Discover some of the…read morestate’s best fisheries, home to species like Smallmouth Bass, Trout, and Pike. One of our signature experiences is our Orvis®-endorsed private water adventure, where you can target Smallmouth, Largemouth, Carp, and other warm-water species in a stunning desert oasis. We offer Wade Trips, Kayak Floats, Bass Boat excursions, and Drift Boat trips—all with shuttle service available from Albuquerque. Whether we’re stalking warm-water species on a hidden stretch of river or chasing trophy Trout on the legendary San Juan River, we take you to the very best lakes and rivers New Mexico has to offer.

Absolutely had the best time horseback riding here at ghost ranch! We had the best wrangler--Emma!…read moreWe had a private 1.5 tour with her through the fields and by all the Georgia OKeefe spots! The horses were beautiful and super fun to take out there! Emma made our adventure so fun! If you can get her you will be so pleased! We also hiked chimney rock--a quick 1.5 hour trail up and back! So much to explore and have fun!

I have different feelings about the ranch than I do about the accommodations of staying at the…read moreranch. The first part of this review is going to be about the accomedations: First- I will admit that I am not camper. We did not camp- we stayed in a cottage (Pine 3) which was a queen sized bed. The room fit the bed. I'll give it that. The mattress was so smooshy that I thought I was going to slide between the mattress and the headboard. You get three pillows. Two standard and one queen. You also get about 13" of clearance between the corner of the bed frame and a table. My knees hit that black metal bed corner every time. You also get a lot of bugs because none of the screens seem to really fit the windows. The bathroom was spacious and gave you about 17 options as to where to hang your towels which is good as there are no closets. They are upfront about the rooms. There are no phones or TVs or coffee makers (we brought instant coffee that I made with hot tap water and I do not recommend doing that. Something really screwed up my intestines and I suspect it was drinking the tap water) (there is coffee in the dining hall but it doesn't open until 7am -or rather you can generally sneak in there around 7 but breakfast isn't until 7:30am). I have AT&T and my husband has T-Mobile. I had connectivity for the most part- not a strong signal but enough to get through. We ate at the dining hall during our stay. The first night did not set a great tone- the salmon looked like it had been baking for 3 weeks. Initially i thought that was maybe what my stomach was upset about but I am pretty sure it was the tap water. One day there was a salad bar with no greens. Just shredded cheese and cherry tomatoes. And another time there was no iced tea. We also were looking forward to using the pool but nope. Apparently they had no lifeguard so no one was allowed to use the pool which was a huge bummer because we wasted the space to pack for pool use. Overall I would stay somewhere else (there was a cute looking place nearby called the Abiquiu inn) and paying $10 to visit the ranch which is absolutely stunning views and trails. But for the cost of our stay it felt....not worth it.