The Santa Fe National Forest is a protected national forest in northern

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...

in the

Southwestern United States The Southwestern United States, also known as the American Southwest or simply the Southwest, is a geographic and cultural region of the United States that generally includes Arizona, New Mexico, and adjacent portions of California, Colorado, Ne ...

. It was established in 1915 and covers . Elevations range from 5,300 feet (1600 m) to 13,103 feet (4000 m) at the summit of

Truchas Peak Truchas Peak (more precisely, South Truchas Peak) is the second highest peak in the U.S. State of New Mexico behind Wheeler Peak. It is in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains northeast of Santa Fe. It lies within the Pecos Wilderness, part of the S ...

, located within the

Pecos Wilderness The Pecos Wilderness is a protected wilderness area within the Santa Fe National Forest and Carson National Forest. The Pecos Wilderness lies within the Camino Real Ranger District of the Carson National Forest, and the Pecos Ranger District and Es ...

. The Jemez, Coyote, and Cuba districts are located in the

Jemez Mountains The Jemez Mountains are a group of mountains in Rio Arriba, Sandoval, and Los Alamos counties, New Mexico, United States. Numerous Puebloan Indian tribes have lived in the Jemez Mountains region since before the Spanish arrived in New Mexico. T ...

; the Pecos/Las Vegas district is located in the

Sangre de Cristo Mountains ) , country= United States , subdivision1_type= States , subdivision1= , parent= Rocky Mountains , geology= , orogeny= , area_mi2= 17193 , range_coordinates= , length_mi= 242 , length_orientation= north-south , width_mi= 120 , w ...

; and the Española district is located in both mountain ranges. In descending order of land area the forest lies in parts of

Rio Arriba Rio Arriba County is a List of counties in New Mexico, county in the U.S. state of New Mexico. As of the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census, the population was 40,246. Its county seat is Tierra Amarilla, New Mexico, Tierra Amarilla. Its nort ...

, San Miguel,

Sandoval Sandoval is a habitational surname of Spanish origin. It primarily originates from Sandoval de la Reina, Spain, earlier called ''Sannoval'', which is a blend word of Latin ''saltus'' (meaning 'grove' or 'wood') and Latin ''novalis'' (meaning 'newl ...

, Santa Fe,

Mora Mora may refer to: People * Mora (surname) Places Sweden * Mora, Säter, Sweden * Mora, Sweden, the seat of Mora Municipality * Mora Municipality, Sweden United States * Mora, Louisiana, an unincorporated community * Mora, Minnesota, a city * M ...

, and Los Alamos counties. Forest headquarters are located in the city of Santa Fe. Santa Fe National Forest was established on July 1, 1915 by the

U.S. Forest Service The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands. The Forest Service manages of land. Major divisions of the agency in ...

with the amalgamation of

Jemez National Forest Jemez National Forest in New Mexico was established as the Jemez Forest Reserve by the U.S. Forest Service on October 12, 1905 with . It became a National Forest on March 4, 1907. On July 1, 1915 most of the forest was combined with Pecos Natio ...

to the west of Santa Fe and Pecos National Forest to the east. The former division is remembered in the ranger districts, with the Jemez Ranger District to the west and the Pecos/Las Vegas district to the east. The western district is adjacent to the

Valles Caldera National Preserve Valles Caldera (or Jemez Caldera) is a wide volcanic caldera in the Jemez Mountains of northern New Mexico. Hot springs, streams, fumaroles, natural gas seeps and volcanic domes dot the caldera floor landscape. The highest point in the caldera i ...

, which is administered by the National Park Service.

Bandelier National Monument Bandelier National Monument is a United States National Monument near Los Alamos in Sandoval and Los Alamos counties, New Mexico. The monument preserves the homes and territory of the Ancestral Puebloans of a later era in the Southwest. Most ...

was created from a portion of Santa Fe in 1916, but additional land was added to Bandelier from land that was formerly part of Los Alamos National Laboratory and from land that was owned by the Dunnigans when they owned the Baca Ranch.

Districts

Coyote Ranger District

The Coyote Ranger District is the northernmost district of the Santa Fe National Forest and covers 265,100 acres (1073 km²). It includes the

Rio Chama The Rio Chama, a major tributary river of the Rio Grande, is located in the U.S. states of Colorado and New Mexico. The river is about long altogether. From its source to El Vado Dam its length is about , from El Vado Dam to Abiquiu Dam is about ...

and most of the

Chama River Canyon Wilderness Congress created the Chama River Canyon Wilderness in New Mexico in February 1978.Public Law 95-237 The wilderness area covers approximately on the Coyote Ranger District of the Santa Fe National Forest and the Carson National Forest. The water ...

(with a small part extending into neighboring

Carson National Forest Carson National Forest is a national forest in northern New Mexico, United States. It encompasses 6,070 square kilometers (1.5 million acres) and is administered by the United States Forest Service. The Forest Service's "mixed use" policy allows ...

), as well as the northern portion of the

San Pedro Parks Wilderness The San Pedro Parks Wilderness is located in southern Rio Arriba County in northern New Mexico and part of the Santa Fe National Forest. It is (64 sq miles) in size. Elevations range from in the southwestern corner to at San Pedro Peaks near t ...

. The district office is in the town of

Coyote The coyote (''Canis latrans'') is a species of canis, canine native to North America. It is smaller than its close relative, the wolf, and slightly smaller than the closely related eastern wolf and red wolf. It fills much of the same ecologica ...

Cuba Ranger District

The Cuba Ranger District is in the westernmost district of the Santa Fe National Forest and is home to the San Pedro Parks Wilderness. The district includes the southern portion of the San Pedro Parks Wilderness. Its district office is in

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

Española Ranger District

The Española Ranger District extends from the foothills of

Santa Fe, New Mexico Santa Fe ( ; , Spanish for 'Holy Faith'; tew, Oghá P'o'oge, Tewa for 'white shell water place'; tiw, Hulp'ó'ona, label=Tiwa language, Northern Tiwa; nv, Yootó, Navajo for 'bead + water place') is the capital of the U.S. state of New Mexico. ...

to the Pecos Wilderness and borders the towns of

Española, New Mexico Española is a city primarily in Rio Arriba County, New Mexico, United States. A portion of the central and eastern section of the city is in Santa Fe County. Founded as a railroad village some distance from the old Indian town of San Juan de lo ...

and

Los Alamos, New Mexico Los Alamos is an census-designated place in Los Alamos County, New Mexico, United States, that is recognized as the development and creation place of the atomic bomb—the primary objective of the Manhattan Project by Los Alamos National Labora ...

. Santa Fe National Forest near Los Alamos is the location of an

orienteering Orienteering is a group of sports that require navigational skills using a map and compass to navigate from point to point in diverse and usually unfamiliar terrain whilst moving at speed. Participants are given a topographical map, usually a s ...

map.

Jemez Ranger District

The Jemez Ranger District was established in 1905 as the ''Jemez Forest Reserve''. A number of hot springs and the

Jemez Soda Dam Jemez or Jémez may refer to *Jemez Pueblo, New Mexico, a census-designated place in the United States **Jemez Springs, New Mexico, a village **Jemez Mountains **Jemez Mountains salamander (''Plethodon neomexicanus'') **Jemez Mountains Electric C ...

on the

Jemez River The Jemez River is a tributary of the Rio Grande in eastern Sandoval County, New Mexico, United States. Description The river is formed by the confluence of the East Fork Jemez River and San Antonio Creek, which drain a number of tributaries in ...

are among the attractions, along with the Dome Wilderness, which lies just west of

. The district office is in

Jemez Springs Jemez Springs (pronounced HEH-mes) is a village in Sandoval County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 250 at the 2010 census. Named for the nearby Pueblo of Jemez, the village is the site of Jemez State Monument and the headqua ...

Pecos/Las Vegas Ranger District

The Pecos/Las Vegas Ranger District was established in 1892 as the ''Pecos River Forest Reserve''. The easternmost element of Santa Fe National Forest includes the

Pecos River The Pecos River ( es, Río Pecos) originates in north-central New Mexico and flows into Texas, emptying into the Rio Grande. Its headwaters are on the eastern slope of the Sangre de Cristo mountain range in Mora County north of Pecos, New Mexico ...

lying within the

, which also extends into neighboring

. Its offices are in Pecos and

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

References

External links

*
Santa Fe National Forest
{{Authority control National Forests of New Mexico Protected areas of Rio Arriba County, New Mexico Protected areas of Sandoval County, New Mexico Protected areas of Santa Fe County, New Mexico Protected areas of Mora County, New Mexico Protected areas of Los Alamos County, New Mexico Protected areas of San Miguel County, New Mexico Jemez Mountains Sangre de Cristo Mountains Protected areas established in 1915 1915 establishments in New Mexico