Snowmobile Tours
Once upon a time.... in a land close by, a stone house was built.
Stone House Lodge is named for our 2500 square foot Stone House that sits on the north rim of El Vado lake. In 1933, when President Roosevelt took office, he feverishly created program after program to give relief, create jobs, and stimulate economic recovery for the U.S. These programs were called "alphabet soup" as well as the "New Deal."

One program created was The Civilian Conservation Corps. This environmental program put 2.5 million unmarried men to work maintaining and restoring forests, beaches, and parks. Workers earned only $1 a day but received free board and training. From 1934 to 1937, this program funded similar programs for 8,500 women. The CCC built the Stone House sometime in the early 1930's as an Elks Lodge. Since that time the Stone House has seen several different owners. Marilyn and Del Morrison bought the property in 1983 and have made it what it is today.

Where El Vado Lake is today, there was once a township of El Vado. In the early 1900's, this historic town was the largest in Rio Arriba County. The vast forests in this region attracted loggers, and with the construction of a railroad spur to El Vado, the town grew extensively as a lumber center from 1904-1908 and again from 1914-1923. El Vado had a sawmill, a mill pond, a box factory, kilns, switching yards, a round house, a company store, saloons, bordellos, a school, churches, an opera house, a boxing arena, a post office, and residences. Workers were primarily Mexican-American and Jicarilla Apache.

In 1920, the population at El Vado was 882. As the logging industry died in the area, the impetus for the creation of El Vado Dam grew. Between 1933 and 1935, the Civilian Conservation Corps constructed El Vado Dam and the area was flooded. The remnants of the old town of El Vado slipped underwater, with only a few reminders of the era left on shore. Today you can see what is left of the old cemetery on the northern peninsula.

The dam was completed in 1955. At capacity, El Vado holds 179,849 acre feet of water. We have an abundance of wildlife that visits frequently. Visitors include Deer, Elk, Wild Turkeys, Bobcats and Black Bears. You can also catch a glimpse of the majestic Bald Eagle as it vacations here during the winter.

Sit back, relax and enjoy the unspoiled beauty of northern New Mexico's most popular recreation area. Welcome!

