We’ve crisscrossed the southwest several times, and like to stick to public land when we can. Sometimes, however, it’s nice to break up the boondocking with a paid campsite from time to time. While trekking from the Albuquerque Balloon Festival to overwinter a second time in Quartzite, we booked a few nights at the Bluewater Campground outside of Prewitt, New Mexico.
Amenities at Bluewater Campground
Bluewater Lake State Park is a full-service campground on the shores of Bluewater Lake. It was fairly empty when we arrived, so there were many sites to choose from. The sites are all either no hookups or electric-only, and really inexpensive! The campground has multiple water fill stations throughout and a multi-lane dump station just outside the main gate.
There is an abundance of day-use facilities as well, from picnic shelters to playgrounds, and of course, the lake itself. However, the most charming part, in our opinion, was the feral horses! Bluewater Lake is home to a herd of beautiful and fearless feral horses that came right up to our rig several times.
Note from Mom: ALWAYS observe the “rule of thumb” for observing wildlife. Make sure that when you stretch out your arm in front of you and hold your thumb up that your thumb can completely cover the animal you’re viewing. Even tame horses are unpredictable and can injure you; more so for feral horses! While we enjoyed watching them, we kept our distance. Also, never feed wild animals.
The only amenity that the park was lacking during our visit was working showers. There are shower facilities attached to the seasonally open visitors center, but they were closed for upgrades during our visit shortly after Balloon Fiesta.
There isn’t much around Bluewater Campground when it comes to greater exploration, but there’s enough going on at the park itself that one can easily make a trip of it!
