Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Campground Review: Coronado Campground, Bernalillo, NM

Coronado Campground is a county park in the city of Bernalillo, NM, just 15 miles North of Albuquerque. The campground sits a little over a mile off Interstate 25, but less than a quarter mile from busy secondary highway 550, and mere feet from the banks of the Rio Grande river.

Roads and sites are paved (quite old pavement). There are RV 24 sites, most with water and electric, some electric only. All sites have an adobe ramada with picnic table and a BBQ site. Good separation between sites and most have mature shade trees. Most sites are long and large enough for any size rig, some are a bit unlevel, but not so bad you can't work around it. Electric and water connections are on opposite sides of the site. You'll need a long water hose. Each site had some astroturf anchored to the ground between the pavement and the ramada which was really helpful in keeping the dust down since we had some wind during our stay.

There is no limit on how long you can stay here so there are some long term occupants. Those staying longer than a month are in sites further from the busy, noisy road.

The park does not have wifi but since we were next to a major metropolitan area (Albuquerque) we had excellent 4G Verizon signal on our own system. There is an onsite dump station, play ground and restroom/shower facility.

The park itself it quiet but the busy Hwy 550 nearby is a source of constant noise. Since the park is right on the Rio Grande we assumed there would be nice walking right in the riverbed. Not so. The banks are thick with brush that has thrived during the years of drought making it difficult to access the river. Once at the river, you cannot walk very far due to the brush or the water.

At $22 per night we thought it was rather expensive for partial hookups. It is convenient to any services you need in Bernalillo (which is really an extension of ABQ). Overall, it was an okay place to stay but not interesting enough or quiet enough for us to want to return.

Site 4. Electric on the right, water on the left.
Very nice ramada and shade tree.
Even appreciated the astroturf outside the ramada which kept down the dust.



Our view out the ramada window.

We accessed the Rio Grande by walking to the group area of the campground
and found a wide swatch of brush had been cleared allowing access to the river.
Looking North.

Looking South, down the Rio Grande.

View of the Sandias from the campground.


1 comment:

  1. We always like stopping there when we go to ABQ. Yes, the highway noise is an irritant, though. For a longer walk you can sneak through the gate after hours at the adjacent Coronado State Monument and hike along the river there.

    ReplyDelete