Lakes / New Mexico / McKinley County / Papers Lake
Papers Lake, New Mexico
77.84 acres
Surface Area
Where It Sits, and How Deep It Goes
Locator - New Mexico
35.88 degrees N, 107.40 degrees W - McKinley County. State and county outlines drawn from Census boundary data; the lake marker is placed by its USGS National Hydrography Dataset coordinates, not by eye. Schematic - not a survey map.
How Papers Lake Stacks Up
- Larger than 57% of the 309 lakes counted in New Mexico.
- About 70 miles from Albuquerque, as the crow flies.
Lakes Nearby
| Lake | County | Distance | Surface Area |
|---|---|---|---|
| Franciscan Lake | McKinley | 6.4 mi | 58.56 acres |
| Tanner Lake | McKinley | 10 mi | 69.44 acres |
| Castillo Lake | McKinley | 12 mi | 67.95 acres |
| Big Cornfield Tank | Sandoval | 14 mi | 30.64 acres |
| Seco Tank | McKinley | 24 mi | 36.32 acres |
| Ned Tank | Sandoval | 24 mi | 26.72 acres |
Straight-line distance between lake centers.
Facts and Figures
Questions About Papers Lake
How Big Is Papers Lake?
Papers Lake covers 77.84 acres in McKinley County, New Mexico.
What Is the Largest Lake in McKinley County?
Red Lake is the largest lake in McKinley County, at 462.15 acres.
Largest Lakes in New Mexico
| # | Lake | County | Surface Area | Max Depth |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Navajo Reservoir | San Juan | 15,363.3 acres | - |
| 2 | Elephant Butte Reservoir | Sierra | 10,908.51 acres | - |
| 3 | Ute Reservoir | Quay | 5,446.35 acres | - |
| 4 | Caballo Reservoir | Sierra | 4,617.43 acres | - |
| 5 | Heron Reservoir | Rio Arriba | 4,497.07 acres | - |
All 309 New Mexico lakes ranked by surface area
Sources: USGS National Hydrography Dataset (The National Map) lake data (ID 56094814). Verified October 30, 2026.