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The Nature Conservancy in New Mexico New Mexico Home Places We Protect Science & Stewardship Bear Mountain Lodge Press Releases Events Volunteer Ways of Giving Contact Us |
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Santa Fe Canyon Preserve
Updated Bird Checklist (pdf, 175kb)
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| ©Alan Eckert Photography |
Once the center of Santa Fe’s hydroelectric activity, Santa Fe Canyon Preserve is today a peaceful nature preserve brimming with wildflowers, willows, ponderosa pine, songbirds, deer, bear and even a beaver or two.
This 190-acres of open space, only a few miles from Santa Fe's bustling historic Plaza, offers a thriving bosque of cottonwood and willow trees, a pond, the ruins of an historic Victorian-era dam, hiking trails, more than 140 species of birds and the original route of the Santa Fe River. One of the last unspoiled riparian areas along the river, the preserve is nestled in the foothills adjacent to the Santa Fe National Forest. Once here you can see red-wing blackbirds, a beaver lodge, colorful wildflowers and remnants of the city’s historic past.
The preserve was launched in April 2000 when PNM (Public Service Company of New Mexico) donated the site to the Conservancy. Since then the Conservancy, with a little help from Mother Nature, has worked to restore the land to its natural state and constructed a 1.5-mile interpretive loop trail detailing the colorful history and fragile ecology of the place.
Within the preserve are the ruins of Old Stone Dam, built in 1881. This was the city’s first official attempt to harness the Santa Fe River to supply local residents with water. A flood in 1904 filled the dam with silt. By then, Two-Mile Dam, the remains of which are also on the property, was in place to meet Santa Fe’s growing water needs. Completed in 1893, Two-Mile Dam was the second of four dams built on the Santa Fe River to store its seasonal flow.
Interpretive panels along the preserve trail detail this colorful past through archival photographs intertwined with information concerning the area’s ecology. The preserve also serves as a trailhead for the 20-mile Dale Ball Foothill Trail System -- a joint effort now being constructed by the city, county, the Foothills Trail Trust and other private landowners. Pets and bicycles, while welcomed on the Foothill Trails, are not allowed on the preserve trails.
Directions : ©Alan Eckert Photography
Coming from Albuquerque on I25 North: Take the Old Pecos Trail exit into Santa Fe. Go north into the city's center. At Paseo de Peralta (there is a stoplight here) take a right. Go round the bend and take a right on East Alameda (the next light). Alameda Road will wind along for about a mile until it ends at a three-way stop. Take a left here on to Upper Canyon Road. Drive about a mile along Upper Canyon Road until it merges with Cerro Gordo Road on the left. Turn onto Cerro Gordo and immediately on your left is a small parking lot and the entrance to the Preserve.
Coming from Taos/Los Alamos on US 285: Take US 285 south into Santa Fe. Turn left on Paseo de Peralta (there is a stop light). Paseo de Peralta will head east until just past Washington Ave when it will wind south. Continue on this road until you reach East Alameda Road (the next street after Palace Ave). Take a left on East Alameda and drive along this street for about a mile until it ends at a three-way stop. Take a left here on to Upper Canyon Road. Drive about a mile along Upper Canyon Road until it merges with Cerro Gordo Road on the left. Turn onto Cerro Gordo and immediately on your left is a small parking lot and the entrance to the Preserve.
