Best Tent Camping near San Cristobal, NM

I liked the small roadside campground in the Carson National Forest. It’s located near some of the smaller ski slopes about 30 miles south of Taos NM on Highway 518 near Rock Wall New Mexico. The National Forest Service campground has 10 sites along a nice mountain stream. The campground is just off the highway with some privacy between the campsites. They have picnic tables and fire rings and clean Pit toilets. This site did not have a host and works from a self service. The hiking and fishing are the highlights here along with the scenery. I also appreciated this was mostly empty in the peak summer season. This is a nice option if you want to avoid the crowds a do some trout fishing in a relatively quite location. The only downside is the noise from the highway.

My wife and I have stayed at Hopewell Lake twice now. The first time we stayed here, we stumbled upon this little gem of a site while driving from Durango, CO to Taos, NM. It was enchanting enough that we made sure to make it back for an opportunity to take in the scenery and relax during a long weekend. The only issue we ran into was an abundance of mosquitos, but this should be expected during the late Spring/early Summer in northern New Mexico and can be easily addressed with a citronella candle and a bit of bug spray. Our most recent stay was on one of those rare nights where you can pull off the rain fly and not worry about a midnight downpour, which left us with a wonderful view of the stars, and the sites are private enough that, as long as you don't set up next to the table, it's comfortable with an open tent and away from prying eyes.

The campground is nice, very well maintained, and the site host is friendly and helpful. The grounds are a

I can’t remember when I’ve seen a better view for less than$10 per night. New Mexico, in general, has some of the least expensive camping in the contiguous 48 states. The road in is a little rough in spots, but a pretty short drive along dirt from the pavement. 

Backing up the rig to the overview of the lake is something else. Just waiting for the sun to set over the Nacimiento Mountain range is worth the price of admission…what a show! With just a few trees the campground is great for solar power, while still providing shade for cooling off. We also had no problem connecting with Starlink to get some work done and had some LTE in the campground. 

Each campsite has a picnic table with shade structure, and a fire ring. The vault toilet was clean and well supplied, but there is no fresh drinking water. Come prepared, because the nearest town (Espanola) with food and water is about 20 minutes or so away. 

The area is good for hiking, biking, paddling and getting your fishing grove on, but there’s no easy access to take boats down to the water from the campsite. There is an excellent trail leading down for everyone to enjoy. But the boat launch is on the north end of the lake, in the aptly North Lake Campground. We stayed here for a couple of days in late fall and temperatures were just lovely!

Reservations are a must on summer weekends with some one night only walk-ups available. Large but sparse tree cover and fairly close sites limit privacy. Campground is on the banks of the Red River which was running high from extraordinary snow melt and had taken out a dam between the lakes. These circumstances limited fly fishing success but we still saw people bringing in a catch from time to time. The camp is close enough for day trips to Red River, Rio Grande del Norte National Monument, Taos, and the Enchanted Circle. The Scenic Canyons contract camp hosts from neighboring campgrounds went the extra mile to cover this campground when its host fell ill and did a marvelous job maintaining the grounds and vault toilets and keeping fire wood available. Campground accommodates anything from tents to large RVs in most sites with a truck or tent area only as well. Recreation.gov does need to refine its on-line info about extra vehicles. There is an extra vehicle charge of $5.00 per day even if the site info says 2 vehicles are allowed. Overall, it’s a very nice place to camp.

Hamlet went to visit his fun cousins for the weekend -- Diego, Thelma, Louise, Frida, Ralphie, Sunnie, and others– all vintage campers available for rent at this amazingly cool space just outside of Taos, NM. 

It was Thanksgiving weekend, and while many of the campers were fully booked, there was lots of space in the dry camping area just beyond the vintage trailers. There’s lots of room here for dozens of campers, vans and RV’s. There are no trees or shade structures in the dry camping area, just a few randomly placed fire rings. But camping here means you have access to the very clean bathrooms/showers, water, and other services at the "hotel." 

Surprise!  The weather went from day-time highs in the 60’s to blizzard conditions with overnight lows in the teens.  We busted out our Airskirts Insulation to help keep our floor warmer and our heated air inside. 

It’s a great place to base your Taos adventures, hiking near the Rio Grande Gorge, or going further up into the mountains. Nearby activities include fishing, rafting, cycling, mountain biking, and skiing in winter.  Across the road from the campground is the Taos Mesa Brewery where you can get amazing craft beers and some great food. 

It was the perfect place to hang out on a cold, wintery night.

Taos also has all the restaurants and services that you might need, and some of the best southwest eateries you’ll find anywhere. The campground is ideal for solar power, as is the New Mexico weather. We also had no problem connecting with Starlink and had LTE in the campground.  If you love the combination of vintages, views, and brews...check this fun place out!