The park itself consists of 21,000 acres and sits at an elevation of 6,000 feet. Navajo Dam was constructed in the late 1950s as a way to control erosion, floods, irrigate farms, and provide recreational opportunities. The dam is over 3,600 feet long and 400 feet high. Five cemeteries and several roads were relocated in the process.

The reservoir is in northern New Mexico, just 100 miles east of the Four Corners area and three hours north of Albuquerque. Farmington, the closest town, was once the home of the Anasazi, Navajo, and Ute peoples. Reminders of their culture are visible throughout the area. Spanish explorers spent some time here, but it wasn’t until the turn of the 20th century when large-scale settlement occurred. Farmington became a large apple farming community, followed by oil and gas, which is the primary industry today.