SP Campground Review – Eagle Nest Lake State Park, Eagle Nest, NM
A primitive lake-side State Park campground with gorgeous 360-degree views on the Enchanted Circle in NE New Mexico.
Link to campground here: Eagle Nest Lake State Park, NM
Link to map location here: Eagle Nest Lake State Park, NM
- Site Quality = 3.5/5
This is a primitive (no hookup) campground, but sites are very nice. The sites on the outside of the loop are all flat, spacious dirt pull-throughs with lake views and lovely “sitting area” (shelter, picnic table, fire-pit/grill). Inside sites are long back-ins. Easy access throughout, even for bigger rigs and good separation between campers. No shade, but excellent 360-degree views of the surrounding mountains and lake. - Facilities = 2/5
Very basic facilities here. There are pit toilets in the campground, one set of flush toilets at the visitors center and that’s about it. No showers or dump station. On-site water spigot and day-use areas with access to the lake for boating & fishing. - Location = 5/5
Lovely location for the area. You’re right next to beautiful Eagle Nest Lake with access to boating/fishing (apparently some of the best fishing in the area). Very close to the cute ski-town of Angel Fire as well as the pretty Cimarron Canyon with hiking in both. Short drive to popular Red River. - Pet Friendliness = 5/5
Another lovely doggie spot. Plenty of space to hang out in camp as well as opportunity to splash and swim in the lake. Nearby hiking in Angel Fire and Cimarron Canyon.
Overall Rating = 3.9
BONUS ALERT = Camp with 360-degree views of alpine mountains and lake!
Summary: This is a rather new State Park set right next to the gorgeous Eagle Nest Lake in a wide, alpine valley at ~8,300 feet. The campground is small (19 sites only) and primitive (deliberately kept that way so as not to compete with the nearby RV parks..of which there are several) so there are no showers, no hookups and no dump station. But, all that is made amply up for by the location and the view! Sites are lovely, large, flat with nice “sitting areas” (shelters/table/fire-pit) and 360-degree views including the stunning Mt.Wheeler. All have good lake views and you’re only a short 100-feet from the water with some of the best fishing in the area (according to locals). No shade in camp and you need to be ready for the famous NM winds, but temperatures are cooler than surrounding lower elevations in summer. The road coming into camp is dirt, but access is excellent and there is lots to see and do in the surrounding area. We had a look at the nearby Cimarron Canyon State Park, but it’s a lot more cramped with very limited access for bigger rigs so we were happy with our choice to stay at Eagle Nest. Overall a lovely little park with gorgeous views. We would certainly come again.
Extra Info: Verizon extended network only here, so you’ll get a good 1X connection, but no more. Sites cost $10/night (no hookups). Camping fees can be covered with New Mexico Annual Camping Permit. 19 sites overall. Approx. half of sites are reservable, half are first-come-first-serve. On-site water spigot, but NO dump station.
Sold! That looks great and uncrowded.
Do you mean that the $10 is covered if you buy the pass, or that part of it is covered, or what? Sorry, I’m sure you’ve covered this before.
Yup if you buy the pass ($225 for 1 year) then the $10 fee is covered (you pay nothing to camp). With electric hookups the standard rate is $14/night, but if you’ve got the pass then you only pay $4/night. Water hookups are free.
New Mexico is the only state I know which offers that good a deal. Basically if you stay 23 days in State Parks you’ve paid for the cost of the yearly camping pass.
While your on the Enchanted Circle, if you make it over to Taos, chack out Este’s Brew Pub. It’s a great little local place, good food and fresh beer. We had a great time there a couple of years ago.
http://www.eskesbrewpub.com/index.php
Enjoy
Kevin and Sheryl
We saw that spot coming into Taos and wondered if it was a good stop. We’ll be back again in town this week-end so will check it out. Cheers for the tip!
Nina
Thanks for all of your fantastic reviews and pics! Is it windy in NM all year round? What is the weather like Nov-Dec??
Now, that’s a good question. Locals tell me there are 2 “wind” seasons in NM…spring and winter.
Spring is apparently the biggest wind-time and this particular year has been the longest season that anyone can remember (apparently NM hasn’t had this windy a spring since the 30’s!).
Winter is alot milder, from what everyone tells us -> it’s dry and less windy than spring, but I’d still expect some breeze. They do get snowfall in the northern mountains during winter (lots of ski resorts here), so temps will drop. I think it would be a very nice time to visit.
You can see some historical wind speed data here:
http://www.wrcc.dri.edu/htmlfiles/westwind.final.html
And…historical weather on Weather Undergound.com. Here’s the chart for Albuqueque:
http://www.wunderground.com/NORMS/DisplayNORMS.asp?AirportCode=KABQ&SafeCityName=Albuquerque&StateCode=NM&Units=none&IATA=ABQ
Nina
Thanks for the great review and pictures! We will be there next week and I could not find pictures or maps of that campground.
Now we are really excited!!
Thanks again
Oh I’m so happy they’re useful! The campground is in a gorgeous location and we really enjoyed it.
DO be ready for the winds (that’s just life in New Mexico at the moment), We picked a site
with our butt to the wind and that helped quite a bit. Lots to see and do around there!
Nina
Thanks for this post. I have resevation here for mid-August, but was looking for pictures. These help alot. I was planning to go to Coyote Creek State Park, but it is now closed due to fire hazard. I stumbled across Eagles Nest just when I was about to give up on NM for this summer. I was about to head to Arkanas, but really wanted to head for the moutains to get out of the Dallas heat. Eagle Nest Lake looks like just the ticket.
It’s a lovely campground. Not alot of shade from sun or winds, but a simply GORGEOUS location.
Hope you enjoy the trip! Do let me know how it goes!
Nina