Bear Mountains, Cibola National Forest

The Bear Mountains lie just north of the village of Magdalena and north of the Magdalena Mountains in New Mexico. The Bear Mountains are located within the Magdalena Ranger District of the Cibola National Forest. There are two Inventoried Roadless Areas within the Bear Mountains: the Scott Mesa IRA and the Goat Spring IRA. The Bureau of Land Management’s Sierra Ladrones Wilderness Study Area stretches to the northeast of the Bear Mountains and connects the Bear Mountains with the 230,000-acre Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge to the east. The world-renowned Very Large Array lies to the southwest of the Bear Mountains. ()