Owing to winter road and campground closures, almost all records for the northern San Mateo Mountains are during the 5 months of May through September. Species frequently found here include Common Nighthawk, Common Poorwill, Mexican Whip-poor-will, Broad-tailed Hummingbird, Flammulated Owl, Northern Pygmy Owl, Plumbeous Vireo, Clark’s Nutcracker, Mountain Chickadee, both Ruby-crowned and Golden-crowned Kinglet, Grace’s Warbler, and Red-faced Warbler. American Goshawk has been listed on multiple occasions for the San Mateos.

Limestone Canyon, located just north of Bear Trap Canyon on the western edge of the San Mateo Mountains in Cibola National Forest’s Magdalena Ranger District, is a small, steep canyon with ponderosa pine slopes. Historic logging and cattle grazing in the area caused the canyon’s stream to dry and the cottonwood forest that grew along its banks to die off. For many years during the first decade of this century, Albuquerque Wildlife Federation built an impressive number of one-rock dams in the streambed to get the water to slow down and seep into the ground, with some success in restoring the deciduous riparian habitat. The hotspot stands at about 7850 feet above sea level.

You can use FR-476 and old NM-52 to approach the hotspot.  From the south, take the current NM-52 to old NM-52, then head northwest on FR-476.  Farther north, that forest road also heads south from the current NM-52, but this is a longer journey on rugged road.  Another long way in from the north would be to take old NM-52 south from US-60, then take FR-476 northwest. 

Cibola National Forest covers more than 1.6 million acres and includes mountains, grasslands, wilderness, and forests. The name Cibola comes from the Zuni word for their tribal lands, which the Spanish later translated as "buffalo". The forest is home black bears, cougars, elk, and pronghorn. Cibola National Forest offers many recreational opportunities including hiking, camping, fishing, hunting, and skiing. It also has cultural and historical significance, as it contains ancient Native American sites and historic trails.

The National Forest has four ranger districts: Sandia, Mountainair, Magdalena, and Mount Taylor. In addition, the Cibola has four wilderness areas: Sandia Mountain, Manzano Mountain, Withington, and Apache Kid.