Columbine Canyon
This campground is probably the nicest of the four campgrounds in the
Red River canyon. While camping there, we were buzzed by hummingbirds,
and we saw three chipmunks working over a campsite while the people were
gone. This campground is also the trailhead for the Columbine Canyon hike.
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Campground data:
| Controlling agency: | Carson National Forest; Questa Ranger District; campground web site |
| Location in the state: | North-central; Carson National Forest |
| Waypoint(s): | COLMBNCNCG |
| Elevation: | 7893ft; 2406m |
| Number of campsites: | 27 |
| When we visited it: | 2004-07-14. |
| Cleanliness: | 9/10 |
| Fee: | $10.00. |
| Water: | Yes. The water faucets have hose connectors for easy filling of RV water tanks (if you have a hose). |
| Garbage cans: | Yes. A dumpster is near the entrance. |
| Fire pits: | Yes. |
| Cooking grills: | No. Sites 1-8 have fire pits plus cooking grills. Most of the rest of the sites only have fire pits with grates. |
| Toilets: | Vault. Very clean. |
| Showers: | No. |
| Handicapped accessible: | Yes. Sites 1 and 8 are reserved for handicapped, but all of 1-8 would probably be fine. The restroom for sites 1-8 is accessible (others may be also; we did not check them). |
| RV info: | No electrical hookups. No water hookups. No sewer hookups. Six sites are pull-through sites. Parking is on the asphalt only. |
| When to camp: | May--Oct. Fawn Lake campground is nearby and open all year. |
| General comments: |
Sites 1-4 have good tent areas nearby. We also saw tents in other sites.
A truck comes by selling block ice at around 8:30am.
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Maps:
Getting to the campground:
From the stoplight in Questa where NM 522 and NM 38 meet, head east on
38, toward Red River. After about 3.8 miles, you should see the
campground on your right. The entrance is right after a collection of
privately-owned buildings (a motel and a store).
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The campground:
 | This is site one, one of the wheelchair accessible sites.
|
Like many campgrounds in the northern New Mexico mountains, this one has
its share of chipmunks.
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 | Site 16 is probably the most isolated site.
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Columbine Creek runs through the campground. The Red River also runs between
the campground and the road.
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Reader comments about this campground:
On Mon Sep 27 15:06:14 2004 jim may from AMARILLO said:
GREAT CAMP GROUND
On Sun Dec 11 01:54:23 2005 RBK from Texas from Somewhere said:
Very nice campground. Back in the early '60s before this campground
was established, there was dispersed camping in what I assume is
the "Meadows" area. My Dad drove our '61 Chevy in, (note: trail
used to be a road) through several creek crossings and we set up
our canvas umbrella tent and stayed a week. One of my fondest
memories of camping with my family.
On Tue Sep 5 10:20:45 2006 Chip from Santa Fe said:
WOW! Just returned from a great stay here! It was very quite and considering Labor Day weekend, it was not to crowded. Had a great spot by the stream 25, I was in a tent which I was one of only about 3 in the campground. All the RVs were very good with generators waiting until about 11am to turn on and only ran for a short time and then again about 8pm again for only a short time, no all night generators! The other campgrounds were packed and not nearly as clean and quite. The Host was great and the vaults were cleaned every morning.
It did get cool at night down to 34 one morning, that made it even better on the first week of September.
This is a must stay place!
On Fri Jul 6 08:54:30 2007 Troy and Jennifer Duck from Amarillo said:
We love going and do every chance that we get - we are building memories with our 3 daughters who love the fresh mountain air, the streams, and beautiful nature that surrounds the campsite. We plan to return year after year. It is close to Red River and it is fun to take the girls in for ice cream or a meal and still have the chance to return to nature within minutes of doing so. We've gone a number of times and each trip there is special and we meet the nicest people. The sites are clean and not to crowded.
On Thu Aug 16 11:20:48 2007 Sam & Denise from Tulsa, OK said:
We also stayed here on Labor Day weekend 2006. It was the cleanest campground I've seen in 20 years. The camp host was excellent, very personable and a hard worker. She cleaned the restrooms every morning and checked paper stock in the evenings. Campsights are just far enough apart with enough trees in between to make you feel your the only ones around. A firewood salesman came around in the evenings. Maybe I shouldn't post nice things as we plan to go back in two weeks and I want there to be room when we get there.
On Sun Jun 15 22:01:59 2008 Lee from Des Moines, Iowa said:
One of the nicest campgrounds we've stayed in in 20 years. Stayed a week. Beautiful, clean with large sites, great hiking access. We got showers in Questa at a new fitness facility (Questa Fitness and Health) for $3 a day. That included access to the fitness equipment if desired. Very clean and friendly. There is a wonderful guy with llamas that offers day picnics or camping excursions up the trail--Stewart of Wild Earth Llama Adventures (www.LlamaAdventures.com). Pretty neat.
On Mon Sep 1 12:27:26 2008 Anonymous from Denver, CO said:
This campground exceeded our expectations. The sites are spaced far apart and have nice views of the forest, stream and canyon. The camp ground host was very hard-working and kept things clean. Our camp site (#15) was next to a stream so we could barely hear the generator of the RV at the next site or the road. Apparently, August is the monsoon season so it rained on and off so maybe that explains why the campground wasn't full on Labor Day weekend. All the rain made the forest very lush with moss, mushrooms and wildflowers. Things to note: The campground is $15 per night now and the best showers were in Taos at the new swimming pool for $2. Next time we visit, we will probably camp at the Wild Rivers BLM campground (Cebolla Mesa). It was $7, had nice picnic shelters and the toilets were the cleanest I had ever seen.
On Mon May 25 18:27:36 2009 AUSTIN from Lubbock, TX said:
Very nice place, We stayed at the end of June 2008 by the creek in # 15, I think ,the best!! The trail seemed very good
we only went up it @ 1 mile,, very good facilities .
Just watch out for the people from California,, they make big fires ,,no wonder their state is on fire!!!
On Thu Jan 21 23:06:58 2010 Stephen from Dallas, TX said:
I visited in late August 2009 and had a very relaxing time. Except for a few generators running for a couple of hours at a time, it was very quiet and dark at night like I've never seen darkness! In addition to the trail at the campground there is a lot to see close by, including the Rio Grande Wild and Scenic Rivers. The La Junta Point trail is very scenic, but very steep. The campground was mostly full but never felt crowded. The temperature cooled quickly in the evening down to the low 40's but then warmed quickly in the morning to the 60's and 70's. I look forward to a return visit.
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