New Mexico may be high desert, but it’s full of surprising and beautiful lakes – from vast Rio Grande reservoirs and a world-class trout river to high-mountain salmon lakes, no-wake sailing waters and even desert sinkholes. This is our running guide to the best lakes in New Mexico; every lake links to a full guide in our New Mexico Lakes Database.
The biggest lakes
Elephant Butte is the largest lake in the state – a 40-mile Rio Grande reservoir and the heart of New Mexico’s biggest state park. Navajo Lake, Conchas and Ute Lake round out the giants.
Best lakes for fishing
For walleye, hit Ute Lake and Elephant Butte; for bass, the Rio Grande and Pecos reservoirs; for the rare tiger muskie, Bluewater Lake. And the San Juan River below Navajo Lake is one of the best trout tailwaters on Earth. See fishing in New Mexico.
Best mountain & trout lakes
High in the mountains, Eagle Nest Lake (near Taos) and Heron Lake offer trout, kokanee salmon and stunning scenery, while Fenton, Lake Maloya and Quemado are gorgeous small trout lakes. See our trout lakes guide.
Best for sailing & quiet water
Cochiti and Heron are no-wake lakes ideal for sailing and paddling, and Storrie Lake is a windsurfing favorite.
Most unique
Bottomless Lakes near Roswell are natural sinkhole lakes (and the state’s first state park) where you can scuba dive, and Clayton Lake pairs fishing with a dinosaur trackway and dark skies.
This guide grows as we add lakes. Browse the full database by Largest Lakes and Small Lakes, or head back to the New Mexico Lakes Database.
