Camp May Road construction paused for Memorial Day

Published on May 21, 2025

Photo of Camp May Road lined with Aspens and other fall foliage

Road construction occurring on Camp May Road under the regional Jemez Mountain Fire Protection Project (JMFPP) will be on hold on Monday, May 26, in observance of the federal Memorial Day holiday. For the public, this means Camp May and Pajarito Mountain will be accessible for a day longer than usual this weekend.

Camping at Camp May is limited to Friday and Saturday nights on a first-come, first-served basis this year to allow for full work capacity on the project. On most weekends, the entrance/exit to Camp May is closed and locked from midday Sundays through Thursdays. This weekend the Camp May gates will be open through Sunday night allowing access for the public until Monday at noon.

Reservations are not necessary for camping this year while the JMFPP work is in progress. Campers must extinguish campfires, pack up belongings and leave the area no later than noon Monday.

Managed by the Los Alamos Department of Public Utilities (DPU), the project has four primary objectives:

Provide a connection between Los Alamos County’s water supply system and the water storage tank at Pajarito Mountain. This connection is necessary for fire suppression capabilities at Pajarito and surrounding National Forest Service (NFS) and non-NFS lands.
Provide the means for a reliable, supplemental snowmaking water supply for consistent snow coverage at Pajarito Mountain, especially during the early and late parts of the season and years of below-average snowfall. Winter snowpack can potentially reduce wildfire risk later in the year as it keeps vegetation damp and can delay the onset of dry conditions that fuel wildfires.
Provide Pajarito Mountain and Camp May Park facilities with an improved domestic water supply.
Provide both areas with improvements to electric utilities.

A project web page can be found at ladpu.com/JMFPP. Questions about this project may be directed to DPU Project Manager Ernesto Gallegos, 505-662-8147, er.gallegos@lacnm.us.