Latitude, Longitude: 35.81607664, -105.6794137; Elevation: ~8470ft (at trailhead)
Latitude, Longitude: 35.8313105, -105.724921; Elevation: ~10,200ft (Stewart Lake)
Weather Forecast: https://tinyurl.com/StewartLakeWeather
Fire Restrictions: https://nmfireinfo.com/fire-restrictions/This was the 2nd time I've been to Stewart Lake (July 2021), with the first time being July 2015. It was just as beautiful. It is a gorgeous hike, and a great destination.
We took three days, with a base camp at Stewart Lake that allowed us to day hike up to Lake Katherine. However, this could definitely be done in a single overnighter.
Keep in mind, we started at the Windsor Creek Trailhead and took 254 until it met up with 261, and then used 261 as a shortcut to meet up with the tail end of 254 to finish up the trip to Stewart. That's a little under 4 miles, but 261 is a closed trail. There is a sign indicating it is no longer maintained. However, the sign doesn't indicate the trail shouldn't be used. In fact, I emailed the Pecos Ranger District (they aren't much for answering the phone this year) with a few different questions at times. I got three different responses from what seemed to be different people about whether or not we could take the 261 trail. The first said it was not an issue; just to be aware it isn't maintained. The 2nd response said we could choose to take it at our own risk, but we might want to take other options, and they helpfully included information about other available trails. Only the third said we really ought to pursue other options, and then included the same list of alternative trails. We went with the average and decided it was fine! :-) The closest alternative trail is something like 6-6.5 miles one way. However, at ~2000ft elevation gain in under 4 miles, our route was a bit steep. So, it's possible taking 254 the whole route, or one of the other alternatives, may not take any more time as the going should be a bit easier.
That said, although the 261 trail is supposedly no longer maintained, and there were several downed logs, it was actually about the best condition trail we were on this entire trip. The others weren't bad - but they weren't any better than 261.
Grand Central Station in the Wilderness
Something else to keep in mind is that if you head into Stewart on a Friday in the summer, there may very well be quite a few people there. It is considered high traffic for a wilderness area. We showed up on a Thursday early afternoon and there was a large group of 15-20 people camping there. There are plenty of decent spots, although I'll admit that finding one that is at least 200 ft away from the water and still within decent proximity of a water source for filtering is a bit of a challenge. Lots of choices if you stay at least 100 ft from the water line, but the signs around the lake ask you to stay 200ft away.
When we got back from our day hike on Friday afternoon, there were another 2-3 groups of people there. So, if you are looking for quiet seclusion, you may want to go in the middle of the week or look elsewhere. It was never obnoxious, and people weren't camping all over each other, but you knew there were others around. I'd say it's worth the visit; it's a beautiful destination - just know what you are getting into.
The map below (as well as the GPS coordinates at the top of the page) show the location of the lake.
A great base for day hiking to other spots
I'll admit I thought the 4 mile trip had quite a bit of elevation to it, but I don't go hiking as often as I used to. It wasn't so bad that I was hurting the next day, but I didn't feel like I had enough energy to go around and do more hiking the afternoon we arrived at Stewart. However, there are plenty of nearby destinations.
There is Spirit lake nearby. I haven't been there, but the trail map makes it look fairly straightforward.
Lake Katherine is a pristine alpine lake (~12,000ft) approximately 3.5-4.0 miles from Stewart. It's another nearly 2000ft elevation gain, and so I would not consider it an easy hike. However, the scenery is spectacular. If you are really feeling high energy, you can continue on from Katherine to crest Santa Fe Baldy. I believe it's only another 600ft or so in elevation, but after hiking to Katherine I felt every foot of that elevation gain. But, what amazing views!
Photos
At our campsite at Stewart Lake, there was a chipmunk or two that were very brazen. There was also a deer who was willing to wander right through camp and didn't seem bothered by us at all.
There is a picture perfect little stream that feeds Stewart Lake and we used this to filter water. It was so peaceful and perfect. I loved sitting there and listening to the water!
Pictures of Stewart Lake:
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