Near the community of Riverside the river passes through a deep canyon before entering the rolling hills west of Roswell.

The reservoir also contains the runoff of Rocky Arroyo, an intermittent stream that parallels the Rio Hondo a few miles to the south.

Two earth fill dams totaling 7,825 feet (2,385 m) in length have the capacity to impound 168,000 acre-feet (207,000,000 m3) of water.

The two dams act as two separate reservoirs, one for the Rio Hondo and one for Rocky Arroyo unless the water level is very high.

[3] After passing through the reservoir, the Rio Hondo begins to meander through the flat land of the Pecos River valley.