8-28-2024 7:31pm

City of Alamogordo Owned Bonito Lake Reopens to Fishing August 30th, 2024

Chris Edwards Editor

Bonito Lake is an alpine reservoir located high in the Sierra Blanca mountains northwest of Ruidoso, New Mexico but owned by the City of Alamogordo, New Mexico and is reopening to the public. The City of Alamogordo will reopen Bonito Lake for fishing only, beginning at sunrise on Friday, August 30, 2024.

The lake area is owned by the city of Alamogordo New Mexico in an area that is now a part of the Lincoln National Forest, but in the late 19th century, the Southern Pacific Railroad owned most of the water rights in the area. In 1907 the railroad built a small dam in South Fork Canyon, upstream from the current dam. From that dam they extended a wooden pipeline 132 miles (212 km) to Pastura, New Mexico to provide water for the steam trains of the era. The remnants of the original dam and pieces of the wooden pipeline are still visible to hikers along the trail in South Fork Canyon.

By the 1920s, the railroad needed even more water, and they petitioned the Government of New Mexico to allow them to build another, larger dam along Bonito Creek. The engineers who surveyed the canyon determined that the best place to build a dam would be downstream from the town of Bonito, across a narrow spot in the canyon. This location would allow the dam to contain the water of two streams which merged just above the dam. This location, however, meant that the town of Bonito would be flooded by the dam's lake. The people living in Bonito were given land further down the canyon, and the entire town was moved downstream to a new location.

The dam was completed in 1931, and by 1933 the lake was completely filled. At full capacity, the lake contains 1,500 acre-feet of water

By the 1950s, steam locomotives had been replaced by diesel electric locomotives, and the railroad no longer needed the water from the lake. The railroad sold the lake to the city of Alamogordo, New Mexico, which needed a reliable water supply to provide the town's drinking water. A 90-mile (140 km) pipeline was built to Alamogordo's "La Luz" water treatment plant.

On September 26, 2017 the Alamogordo city commissioners approved an $8.6 million contract to drain, dredge, and restore the lake as a result of the damages from the Little Bear Fure. The city engineer estimated that it would take about 24 months for the work to be completed and the lake reopened. Many delays occured and the lake was scheduled to open earlier this summer but was closed the day before its reopening due to the Blue 2 fire.

After the fire was extinguished, the lake and surrounding area remained closed while crews worked to build sediment catchment basins to prevent a repeat of the tragic events that unfolded in 2012 after the Little Bear fire.

After over a decade, the lake and dam were restored, and the lake filled with water in 2023 and restocked with fish in 2024.

A release from the City of Alamogordo said they are "excited to begin restoring the recreational opportunities in the Bonito Lake area and thus fishing is the first step in that effort of restoring public access.

Please remember that only fishing activities are permitted at Bonito Lake. All City of Alamogordo properties along the Rio Bonito and around Bonito Lake remain closed for any recreational activities at this time."

Hear an interview with Mayor Susan Payne concerning Bonito Lake Opening...
https://youtu.be/TrzE_XDHlEQ?si=-iOslYl0yH7xJwb