Navajo Lake
Navajo Lake is a reservoir located in San Juan County and Rio Arriba County[1] in northwestern New Mexico, in the southwestern United States. Portions of the reservoir extend into Archuleta County in southern Colorado. The lake is part of the Colorado River Storage Project, which here manages the upper reaches of the San Juan River, storing and releasing water that is used locally for irrigation, or ultimately reaching the Colorado River in Utah. Water is impounded in Navajo Lake by the earth- and rock-filled Navajo Dam, 3,800 feet (1,200 m) long and 400 feet (120 m) high, completed in 1962. The 15,600-acre (63 km2) lake is over 25 miles (40 km) long and lies at an elevation of up to 6,085 feet (1,855 m).
- For the lake in Utah see Navajo Lake (Utah)
| Navajo Lake | |
|---|---|
 Looking north. Navajo Dam is on the left side. | |
| Location | Rio Arriba / San Juan counties in New Mexico; Archuleta County in Colorado, United States |
| Coordinates | 36°40′18″N 107°03′06″W[1] |
| Type | reservoir |
| Primary inflows | San Juan River, Piedra River |
| Primary outflows | San Juan River |
| Catchment area | 3,190 sq mi (8,300 km2) |
| Basin countries | United States |
| Surface area | 15,600 acres (63 km2) |
| Water volume | 1,708,600 acre⋅ft (2.1075 km3) |
| Surface elevation | 7,228 ft (2,203 m)[1] |
The construction of the dam and the resulting lake flooded and destroyed one of the Navajos' most sacred sites.[2]
Two shoreline areas near the dam in New Mexico are part of the Navajo Lake State Park. The river shorelines below the dam are also part of the state park. The lake has smallmouth bass, black crappie, northern pike, channel catfish, and trout.
See also
- List of largest reservoirs of Colorado
References
- U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Navajo Lake
- Linford, Laurance. Navajo Places. History, Legend, Landscape. University of Utah Press. Salt Lake City: 2000.
