Our first stop in New Mexico was the Capulin Volcano National Monument.
We had taken the boys there when they were little but it had been a 9 or 10yrs since we had been.
You can’t take trailers to the top so we left it at the visitors center which worked out great.
The view from the top is beautiful and you can hike around the rim and into the crater.
I did not hike the rim because someone needed to stay in the car with the dog.
Pets are not usually allowed out at national monuments.
We did not plan our next stop until last minute.
I saw the Maxwell National Wildlife Refuge on the map on the way to a state park we planned on camping at and decided to make a quick detour.
When we got there we found out they offered free camping!
I was sold with this view!
We also got to drive around that evening which is a great time to see animals.
And we got to mark off another state on our map!
It was rustic camping so no hookups but it was so beautiful!
And the next morning I got to wake up to birds singing and beautiful views.
This is my new favorite way to camp!
I went during the middle of the day the last time and had a hard time seeing the beauty of the place so I wanted to spend a couple of nights there this time.
I was right, I fell in love the with the open spaces and desert landscape.
Some of my kids learned the hard way that you need to be gentle with the plants.
I am just not at the point I can hike that far yet.
I loved heading west!
