Withington Wilderness
In the northern extreme of the San Mateo Mountains and almost entirely on their eastern slopes lies the little-known Withington Wilderness, a land of precious and often parched solitude. Elevations range from 6,800 feet to 10,100 feet atop Mount Withington, which marks the center of the western boundary. Mixed conifers (pine, spruce, fir) grow in the shady bottoms of the area's steep-walled canyons, giving way to a woodland of pinion and juniper as the ground becomes more open and drier and the vistas stretch eastward toward the Rio Grande. In the lowest land, near the eastern boundary, you'll find small stands of ocotillo. Many of the Withington trails are seldom used, promising solitude for the adventurous.
Description from Wilderness Connect (wilderness.net).
| Designation | Wilderness |
| Managed by | U.S. Forest Service |
| State | New Mexico |
| Size | 18,827 acres |
| Designated | 1980, by Congress |
| Center point | 33.89° N, 107.45° W |
| Night sky | About as dark as the ground gets (Black Marble reading 17) |
Boundary map
Boundary, simplified to about 0.005 degrees
The outline is the agency boundary simplified for display, so small parcels and inholdings may not show. The agency page has the authoritative map.
Weather by month
Large units span more than one climate. The station stands in for the center point, and the outer parts of the boundary can be warmer or colder.
Where to camp
No federal campground is within ten miles of the boundary in the Campsite Atlas index. Camping inside a wilderness is usually allowed away from trails and water, with no facilities; the managing agency page has the permit and group-size rules.
Trails
4 named Forest Service trails enter this wilderness, 19 miles in all.
| Trail | Miles | Allowed uses |
|---|---|---|
| Water Canyon ↗ | 6.9 | |
| Potato Canyon ↗ | 5.7 | |
| Big Rosa ↗ | 4.9 | |
| Monica | 1.8 |
Lengths and allowed uses come from the Forest Service trail layer by way of Trailhead Atlas. This trail list was copied from Trailhead Atlas on November 1, 2026 and is copied again on each weekly run. Trails in plain text have no page there yet.
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Reference
Questions people ask
How big is Withington Wilderness?
18,827 acres.
Source: Wilderness Connect
Who manages Withington Wilderness?
The U.S. Forest Service.
Source: Wilderness Connect
What state is Withington Wilderness in?
New Mexico.
Source: Wilderness Connect
When was Withington Wilderness designated?
Congress designated it in 1980.
Source: Wilderness Connect
How do I get to Withington Wilderness?
A point inside the boundary is at 33.887° N, 107.453° W. The official page carries directions and the office address.
Source: Wilderness Connect
Sources
- Boundary, name, acreage, designation year, states and description: Wilderness Connect.
- Campgrounds: the Campsite Atlas index of federal campgrounds, matched to this boundary at build time.
- Trailheads and sites: the Forest Service Recreation Opportunities layer, points inside the boundary.
- Trails: the Trailhead Atlas open-data file of Forest Service trails, matched on the wilderness each trail enters.
- Night sky: NASA Black Marble (VIIRS, 2016 composite) sampled at zoom 6 around the center point.
- Weather, alerts, air quality, river flow and earthquakes load live in your browser from NWS, AirNow, USGS and iNaturalist when you open the page.