About West Fork Rio Chama Trailhead - Trail #740
The West Fork Rio Chama trail is 1 1/4 miles long. It begins at Forest Trail 738 and ends at the junction with Trail 741. Trail 741 was formerly numbered as Trail 740 from this junction on. The West ChamaTrail provides access to upper Chama Basin, an area of virgin spruce-fir forests surrounding steep and coloful volcanic cliffs. Waterfalls tumbling over the cliffs can be seen from almost any vantage point. The fall is an especially good time to visit Chama Basin, when the slopes of aspen are in full splendor. The West Chama Trail climbs steeply away from the Chama River along a small tributary stream within an aspen forest. As the trail leaves this tributary and follows the Chama River to the confluence of the East and West Forks, it stays high above the river and passes through dry subalpine meadows and scattered aspen stands. A spectacular view of the entire valley is afforded from…
- Managed by: USFS - Rio Grande National Forest
- Where: 12 mi north of Chama, NM · 37.05618, -106.55004
Things to do:
Official page for this camp (fees, closures, booking)
Weather by month
Typical daily highs and lows (°F), 1991–2020 NOAA normals. Best months: Jun–Aug (comfortable days, mild nights, little rain). Nights below freezing: Oct–Apr.
Fly over it in 3D, check today's weather and fire news, plan the drive and print a trip plan.
Trails near camp
| Trail | Open to | From camp | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chama River | Horse | at camp | 5.1 mi |
| Chama | ATV road | 0.5 mi | 7.2 mi |
| West Fork Rio Chama | Horse | 0.5 mi | 1.5 mi |
| Archuleta Cr | ATV road | 1.3 mi | 0.3 mi |
| Archuleta | ATV / OHV, Dirt bike | 1.4 mi | 12.8 mi |
| Continental Divide NST | Horse | 2.1 mi | 197.3 mi |
Straight-line distance from camp, from Forest Service, BLM, state and OpenStreetMap trail data.
Good to know
No signal at camp
From the carriers' FCC coverage maps, which tend to be generous.The Milky Way casts shadows and the sky is crowded with stars.
Class 1 of 9, from NASA/NOAA night-light data.Dump station: 24.9 mi
Nearest of each within 25 miles, straight-line.