Heron Lake State Park has a nice lake and hiking trails and creek fishing. The state park is about 20 miles from Chama, about 30 minutes. Heron Lake is an anglers delight, stocked with Rainbow Trout and Kokanee Salmon. *Heron lake has 6,000-acre normal surface acres. The lake has approximately 35 miles of shoreline. Maximum depth at the dam is 215 feet when full and 142 feet at minimum storage level (7,186 feet elevation). Lake is restricted to sailing and no-wake speed operation of motorboats. Coldwater fishery. Rainbow trout, brown trout, lake trout, carp, and kokanee salmon. Optimum fishing levels around 7,170' Ice fishing depending on conditions. One can will find good lake kayak/canoe exploration above the Narrows up Willow Creek and along the west side from the West Side Primitive Camping area. Another day can be spent exploring some of the Rio Chama Canyon with water backed up the Canyon where it enters El Vado Lake. North Ramp Access point for that paddle is just 2 miles west of Heron Lake on the way to the Stone House Lodge on NM 95.
Heron Lake State Park: One can drive, bike or walk to a section of Vado Lake State Park, but Vado Lake allows speed boats, canoed a lot on *Heron, even canoed on the section of Vado by Heron up the Rio Chama which is "flooded" or backed up by Vado Lake water for some distance until it became two shallow to canoe easily).
Park Map . & .
Activities & Amenities . & .
Campsite PhotosOne can hike down from the Dam Area to the Rio Chama at Heron. We didn't take time in 2012 to hike down. It was very neat down in the canyon as I remember from years ago. Many fisherman fish along the Chama River by Chama as well.
There are Llama 'farms' or maybe ranches between Chama & Los Ojos which can be seen grazing from the Hwy. We stopped a couple Osprey nest between there as well & one near the campground area a Heron SP.
If time allows check out the wool weavers workshop Tierra Wools in Los Ojos near the turn off to Heron Lake SP.
Clicky Two neat stops, north of Abiquiu, worth a see would be the Echo Amphitheater, a Natural rock formation, and the Ghost Ranch Piedra Lumbre Education and Visitor Center, located on U.S. Highway 84 just one mile north of the main Ghost Ranch entrance, has exhibits and a gift shop. A very nice museum in "O´Keefe Country." The Echo Amphitheater is past the visitor center some miles.
We did the Chama to Alamosa route last summer. No real problem. Just have to drive like one is in the mountains. I believe it is even more fun to drive up following the Steam Train. Getting ahead of the Train to stop at some of the key sites to get extremely neat Photos of the Train & Hearing the oh so neat sounds of a steam train chugging up the grades. Watching it take on water at the Cumbres Pass Station. Seeing it off in the distance going through the hills & dales & meadows.
Cumbres Pass, elevation 10,020 ft. Chama is at 7,871 ft.
A nice drive to Antonito, the second pass between Chama & Antonito is La Manga Pass (10,230').
NM/CO Route 17 Cumbres Toltec Steam Train runs from & to Chama & Antonito turns soon after Cumbres Pass Station & head cross country to Antonito. One or two Train Chasers followed it into the back country some way. Waved at them often, but not sure how they got out in the back country. Ha!
Heron Lake State Park, Chama, Train Photos
