Best Tent Camping near Lindrith, NM

Camped 2 nights at site #38 on the Puerco Loop. Reserved thru rec.gov while at the site. Wonderful campground hosts. Site was not quite level for our campervan, but close enough. Good views of lake & surrounding area from site. Vault toilet & drinking water a short walk away. Juniper provided minimal privacy. Site has lantern poll, fire ring, trash can & table. No hookups at this site. $6/night with senior pass. Restroom/shower house within walking distance. Facilities & vault toilets were very clean. Hiking trail in campground. AT&T & T-Mobile service. Overall, quiet & peaceful stay.

The entrance is very understated and underwhelming, you will pass a oil construction area as you enter the park. As you continue driving almost instantly notice the gorge. You will pass three day use areas all of which offer amazing views. Continue to drive until you reach the campground (which by the way is free) there are six campsites situated on the rim of the canyon. All campgrounds have picnic tables, some have covered picnic tables with fire rings. There are very well maintained trails that offer spectacular sights from all direction. There is vault toilets that are very clean, but no electricity, trash or water. So trash in, trash out.

A nice campground set north of the town of Jemenz Springs. There was a fire ban in place and the Forest Service was planning on closing the entire forest the morning after I showed up. I had enough time to camp and get in one hike to a social spring before they came through and closed everything up for safety. The campground was nice, but there was no water available (it had been shut off in preparation for the closure). The campsites were nice and well spaced with lots of pine trees around each site, so there was a lot of privacy. There was an abundance of pine needle duff covering the ground which would have been great until you considered the fire danger. Each site had a picnic table and fire pit (with bright tape over it to remind you not to use it).

I did a fair amount of research online regarding walk-in tent camping at Heron Lake, during the week. See the great maps and detail at https://newmexicostateparks.reserveamerica.com/camping/heron-lake/r/campgroundDetails.do?contractCode=NM&parkId=430012 . I called the visitor center to confirm that being a walk-in would not be a problem during the week. Once one arrives as a walk-in, look for the campsites with a green tag on them.

The Heron Lake camp sites shown at the above reserveamerica website all have a fair amount of trees for shade. What the reserveamerica site does not show is a few more Heron Lake campgrounds southwest along Highway 95 (beyond the dam). The southwesterly sites are way more exposed to the sun than the first four campgrounds. Otherwise, the southwesterly campgrounds have fine views of the lake.

I was at Island View campground, in a loop that was convoluted enough that I do not think a trailer (with its inevitable noisy generator) could get in. I guess that this is the point. As a result, all I heard from time to time were muffled voices and no generators. It's the first tent spring-summer-fall camping I have enjoyed in years that was generator-free. I had at least one empty campsite on either side of me as an additional buffer to noise.

I walked along the lakeshore. It did not seem that low. I saw large fish jumping in one cove. I hiked the Salmon Run Trail to the dam. The Salmon Run Trail is a beautiful hike, not all level but not too steep for this older person's knees and walking poles. On the lake side of the dam, walking along the highway to get a good look at the dam, I saw several schools of large fish.

The vault bathrooms and the flush-toilet bathrooms were fine. Not super clean and not super dirty. I did not try the shower but it looked like people were using it.

This time of year, bring some bug repellent or wear jeans and a light long sleeve shirt at night. New Mexico has had a lot of moisture this season, so I think the bug-giness is higher than usual. Still, I sat outside and read for an hour or so pretty comfortably.

The camp host was lovely.

Access to the Angel Peak Scenic Area is off US Highway 550, 15 miles south of Bloomfield on County Road 7175. Follow the gravel road along the canyon rim for approximately six miles to reach the campground. It is important to note the gravel road may become dangerous in bad weather. 

First of picnic areas is a mile down a gravel road. Many RV's seem to be using this for boondocking. I don't blame them, but try and keep them open for day trippers if possible. The Picnic areas are on the rim of the canyon. The campground is 6 miles down the same road.

 Three picnic areas and a campground are located along the canyon rim overlooking Angel Peak and the Kutz Canyon badlands. Three picnic areas(Sage, Castle Rock, and Cliffs). In total there are seven developed sites located along the rim road. Each site has a shelter, tables on a concrete slab, a gravel pathway, and a fire grate. Trash cans are located in all three picnic areas. There are vault toilets available at both Sage and Cliffs picnic areas. These are BLM sites and are incredibly well maintained in the Winter. No electrical hookups or water is available.

Angel Peak Campground has nine sites available for tent camping. They each have picnic tables on a concrete underfoot, gravel pathways, and fire grates. Picnic shelters are located at three campsites; two with single shelters and one with a double shelter that seems to be a great spot for larger groups. Two accessible vault toilets and trash receptacles are in the campground. 

There is a nature trail that heads though light brush and along the rim to a beautiful bench that overlooks the incredible canyon.

Jemez Falls campground is located in the heart of the Jemez, close to climbing, great hiking, fishing, hot springs, the Valles Caldera NP and Bandelier National Monument.

The campsites have plenty of space, and are more private than most campgrounds with the exception of those that are heavily wooded. The ponderosa canopy provides a fair amount of shade during the hot days. There are picnic tables and campfire rings at every site. There are vault toilets that are surprisingly clean. Just down the road are the Jemez Falls, a great place to splash in the river.

The campground is generally a family friendly environment where kids can roam in bicycle gangs, and dogs can chase a frisbee. Warning though, on many occasions the weekends have been a little noisy with rowdy campers that don’t think quiet hours apply. Don’t get me wrong, who doesn’t like kicking back by a campfire with friends? Who needs to be so loud that their voices ring through all of the camping loops and keep 70 other campers awake until 1 a.m? So yes, the quiet hours are from 10-6 or 8, but they don’t seem to be enforced. As a result, our family tries to weeknight camp at Jemez Falls whenever possible.