Fawn Lakes

A nice campground along the Red River in amongst spruce and ponderosa pines.

A slightly nicer campground nearby is Columbine Canyon.

Campground data:

Controlling agency:	Carson National Forest; Questa Ranger District; campground web site
Location in the state:	North-central; Carson National Forest
Waypoint(s):	FWNLKCG
Elevation:	8558ft; 2608m
Number of campsites:	18
When we visited it:	2004-07-15.
Cleanliness:	9/10
Fee:	$10.00.
Water:	Yes.
Garbage cans:	Yes.
Fire pits:	Yes. Firepits have cooking grates.
Cooking grills:	No.
Toilets:	Vault.
Showers:	No.
Handicapped accessible:	Yes. Site 16 is reserved for handicapped.
RV info:	No electrical hookups. No water hookups. No sewer hookups.
When to camp:	Jan--Dec. According to the campground host in the Columbine Canyon campground, Fawn Lakes is the campground in the Red River canyon open year-round. However, the Forest Service web page for the campground says it is closed in winter.

Maps:

USGS 1:24000 Red River
USGS 1:100000 Wheeler Peak
USGS 1:250000 Raton
Carson National Forest Map

Getting to the campground:

From the stoplight in Questa where NM 522 and NM 38 meet, head east on NM 38, toward Red River. After about 8.3(?) miles, you should see the campground on your right.

Note that the campground is not located where the 1995 Carson National Forest map (nor the 1995 USGS Red River quad) says it is; it is after Elephant Rock campground as you head from Questa to Red River.

The campground:

The campground is close to the highway, as you can see in this photo (that Suburban is on the highway, not in a campsite).

Reader comments about this campground:

On Fri Aug 12 13:06:23 2005 cindy from Somewhere said:
Fawn Lakes was the only campground in the area (including the state sites in Cimarron Canyon) that had one tiny five-site loop disallowing RVs! For tent campers who adore silence or simply the wind and river sounds, the generators of RVs are a nightmare. More campgrounds need to set aside areas where huge mobile homes cannot set up next to tent campers. And Rvers need to rethink their abusive running of motors!

The camp host, although working for a private contractor (United Land Management) and not a Forest service person, was very nice, knowledgeable about the area, and nonintrusive.

The lakes were lovely and the Red River was wonderful. There are lots of interesting dirt roads in the area for excursions.

On Sat Jul 29 20:08:26 2006 Sherrie from Llano, Texas said:
Our family just returned from a camping trip in Red River. Out of all the choices in Red River, and we checked them all out including Columbine, Fawn Lakes is by far the best for tent campers! There are only 5 campsites in the tent only area, but four of them are fantastic. We were right next to the beautiful Red River, and our teenagers caught enough trout right off the bank to have a wonderful meal one night. No generator noise, and the area is away from all the RVs. Red River is RV city Ive never seen so many in one place before! All the campsites are clogged with them. The area is beautiful, with lots of trees. The campsites are very clean the vault toilet isnt so great but its better than nothing. People were very friendly. Lots to do in town. We were very impressed with this beautiful place, and will try to return soon. If you can snag one of these sites, youre in luck. They dont last long, other campers are usually waiting for your site before you leave.

On Tue Sep 5 22:03:09 2006 Scott from Fort Worth, Tx said:
My Family and I really enjoyed our say at the Fawn Lakes tent site #11. What a beautiful setting and a perfect escape from the hot muggy weather in the Ft. Worth Tx. area. Temperatures ranged from low 40's at night to low 70's in the day. My two Boys, under the age of 6, really enjoyed camping. They spent their time fishing, playing chase and throwing pine cones. Since the tent site is right next to the river, my sons were able to have a great time; and my wife and I were able to relax, with the boys never leaving our view. It did rain on us twice. Both of the thunder showers lasted about 30-45 minuets. One of those times we just so happened to be ridding the ski lift in the town of Red River, we were soaked and cold but the view from the lift was Amazing to behold. We left our camp site every morning to go fishing, hiking or window shopping in town. Our tent site and belongings were never bothered or tampered with while we were away. The Camp Host was very friendly and informative. The camp ground did have a vault toilet which was a little stinky. It would have been nice if there was a Shower Facility. Also... Camp Fees have gone Up from $10 to $15 per night. We had a wonderful time and plan to vacation there again next year.

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