Manager doesn't know how to manage. Weeds overgrown, bathrooms trashed and full. Disgusting place…read more Don't waste your time

This is a miserable place to spend a night in the winter. Wind blows constantly and no one is…read morearound to answer questions. The gates close at 5pm so dinner out is out. Lake wa primarily clear of ice on Feb 16, 2024. No water is available in campgrounds so trek to the dump station. Overall a really crap place to stay, better off staying at a private place! You could even go out for dinner.

My most recent bucket list adventure was fly fishing in New Mexico. Not to be disappointed I called…read moreand spoke to Van Beacham the man that literally wrote the book 'Fly Fishers Guide to New Mexico'. 575-758-5653. Van set me up with the most patient and and learned instructor for all ages and abilities in Mr. Conner Cooper who is also a middle school teacher of social studies and art and history, play by ear musician, (Upright Bass) and classically trained artist at the Pratt Institute in NYC, and UNM adjunct professor, originally hails from Amarillo, Texas (I knew I liked him for a reason) and now living in New Mexico of course. He has been to Argentina 4 times fly fishing and has studied the fly casting techniques of Joan Wulff ,who at 21 years in 1951, she became the first woman in history to win the Fisherman's Distance Event, casting 131 feet against all-male competition, a truly remarkable achievement. I had only fly fished for Bass in stock ponds or "tanks" as we call them in Texas and had a self taught fly casting technique about as rough as Park road 102 in Kit Carson national forest. (You better have Jeep if you want to try that one. Glad we did cause I told my wife it was short cut, got in trouble for the underestimation of comfort even a Grand Cherokee can provide) What you will learn is the "DRIFT" how to place cast, the power snap, , the double haul and other techniques (don't expect to master these right away it does a bit a bit practice but no worries you not be casting but a few feet most of the time, and to use the correct amount of line, the correct stroke, to use the lanes or clock approach to covering a body of water and rising the line as it comes towards you while only keeping just enough line in the water so your fly or nymph does not speed to fast because you had too much line in the water. Et al. It is those little things that make the difference. It is all about finesse fishing. The art and beauty of the presentation of a perfectly placed lure that nets a catch. Ah.... the essence of the physical beauty of the stroke up and then wait for it then forward right into the lair of the waiting trout! It is truly a gift of motion and fishing and surroundings and the air, the place, the drive in, lunch in the open air, even bottled water tastes better for some reason, the knowledgeable guide, all the tiny techniques if you listen to Conner no matter what you think know about fly fishing, peace and be still and listen to make you a better fisherman a better person, patience enhanced human that takes the day back to the family and celebrates the event as it relates in some way to some area of your life. Look for it and you will find how it has that meaning. WOW - you got all that out of a guide fly fishing day. Yes and more. A lifetime memory that cannot easily be diminished all to the thanks of Conner Cooper teacher of young minds, musician, artist, fly fishing guide extraordinaire. Do yourself a favor. If you have not fly fished and want a guide with the patients of Job (and I don't mean Dr. Job) that can put you on the fish here is the man, the legend, outstanding in the field (but will come inside for dinner) the one, the only Conner Cooper.

If I could give six stars I would - we fished the Holy Waters with Rick today! It was my first time…read morefly fishing and Rick was so patient with me, funny, and just a blast to hang out with!! I can't wait to go fishing with him again!!!

Rio Grande Del Norte is vast-there are many different areas to explore and various corners of this…read morenational monument that range from moderately trafficked to fairly remote. Taos.org has a great summary page of the different areas. https://taos.org/explore/landmarks/rio-grande-del-norte-national-monument/ I had done some further research after this overview and opted to visit the Wild Rivers area in the morning and the Rio Grande Gorge area later in the day after lunch back in Taos. Wild Rivers is about 50 minutes from Taos but a scenic drive. Once you are in the public lands, the scenery gets more and more amazing. In the Wild Rivers area, there's a visitor center (currently only open on weekends), a scenic byway with overlooks, campgrounds and hiking trails that take you down to the river. I opted to do the trail to Big Arsenic Springs. The byway was very well signed and there's day use parking that does have a self paid fee. Since it's a BLM administered park (federal) you can instead display your America the Beautiful National Parks pass. Amazing scenery of the river and surrounding canyons along the petroglyphs towards the end of the Big Arsenic trail. The hike I opted for was short (2.5 miles but with an 800 ft elevation gain on the way back up from the river.) The park does an amazing job maintaining the trails and the well graded switchbacks made it a pleasant hike. On the drive out, after my hike, I stopped at other scenic view points. Later in the day, I visited another section of the park, closer to Taos where you can walk across and take in vistas of the Rio Grande Gorge bridge. If you're visiting Taos and love the outdoors, a visit to this park is a must. It's quieter than your typical national parks with fewer amenities but still an awe inspiring outdoor adventure (without the crowds!)

We took an hour walk on the West Rim Trail that's part of Rio Grande del Norte National Monument…read morewhile visiting the Rio Grande bridge in late May 2023. The trail starts right at the parking lot and it's beautiful. Gorgeous views of the river too. Many bunnies that day.

This was a cool free spot for the group to check out after a 2 hour horseback riding trip nearby…read more I've never seen a fish hatchery before so I thought it was pretty neat! They had a mini exhibit in a couple of buildings to show how fish eggs are laid, hatched, and fish are grown.

Love the kids fishing pond. Not only is this place educational and cool to see all the fish but the…read morechildren/over 65 pond was such a blast to fish with my four-year-old. It was never super busy and it was great experience so much so that we came back a few times on our vacation. Highly recommend

So it's a dry camp. No water. No showers. Gray water dump by hand only. No black water dump. No…read moreelectrical. It's still way better than most RV campgrounds with full hookups. This is why I go camping. Scenery, ample space between the campsites, nice cool weather. It would be a bargain for 5 times the nightly rate. Just don't tell the state of New Mexico.

My family enjoyed the scenery in this park. Driving along, there were places to stop and take in…read morethe view. Tried unsuccessfully to do some fishing, but that didn't stop us from having a nice time. Sat in the shade, enjoyed the sound of the water, and ate a picnic lunch from our cooler. Would come here again!

This guy will take out as many clients as he possibly can. Whick means that you'll be left alone,…read morenot really knowing what you're doing. One person can't really instruct another seven people that efficiently. No one in our group caught a fish. With seven people you'd think that at least one of us would catch something

I called Joey for my first time fly fishing out west because he provides ALL the equipment you need…read more(including lunch). He met us at the Plaza in the morning and drove us to a wide open wild trout stream up by the Colorado border. I got a little nervous with how far we had to drive and how patient he was setting up our gear. I was worried that we would barely get to fish before he would say it was time to head back. But that is definitely not how Joey works. When you are out with Joey there is not "clock." You fish until you are finished and call it a day. I never felt rushed once. Joey took care of all the gear and had multiple rods ready for us if we wanted to try different set ups. We caught some fish, saw some great sights, and had a great experience. Joey is a native New Mexican, but has guided around the world. He was a pleasure to be around, and gave me some good food and book recommendations as well. I highly recommend calling Joey for your fishing needs if you are in the Taos area.

Captain James was spot on w/ FISH ON! all day long! Continued admiration from the other boats as I…read morefought 18-22 inchers...Beautiful Rainbows or Beastly Browns! The envy on the San Juan Quality Waters River to All others! FISH ON! then call Captain James. Unless I beat you to it! & let's not forget his guided FISH ON! Thanks Captain! See you soon

Diggin' It!…read more However, for full disclosure, we went rather late in the fishing season (mid July) for optimal fishing success! We stayed at El Vado Lake State Park, rolled in on a Saturday afternoon and there were a fair amount of campers there at that time. However, most were recreational boaters, skiing and such. But by Sunday night they rolled out and we damn near had the entire campground, and lake, to ourselves. It was awesome! During our weeklong stay we only caught about six keepers (small mouth bass), but tons of babies! Early Spring must be awesome fishing, and according to the nearby Ranger, right after the ice thaws it's amazing! Duly Noted! The campground is very nice with decent showers nearby, running water and each site has really nice sturdy covers to keep out of both the sun and rain. If I were to list a negative point it might be the fact that the bank is rather steep and rocky. So bank fishing isn't the greatest, but we plan on giving it another go earlier in the season. And so should you!

I was pleasantly surprised at this state park. The scenery is great! Unfortunately, there were no…read moretrees for shade, and no internet service, even with Verizon, although I did manage to snag a few minutes during my stay. I have heard of people using other roads to get there, but if you use 112, you should be fine. Photos - https://landcruisingadventure.blogspot.com/2019/07/el-vado-state-park-new-mexico.html

Highly recommend. Clean amenities and friendly owners/ staff. Will stay again if ever passing…read morethrough. Made our stay easy and welcoming.

Enjoyed a week in this fabulous place. I highly recommend it to all who are looking for beauty, and…read morepeaceful environment. The people here are wonderful.