Tag Archives: New Mexico

Camping, Hiking

Camping on the Rio Grande

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I was pretty disappointed after visiting the Upper Rio Grande Del Norte National Monument that we were not camping up there.

I just could not figure out how to fit it in this trip.I had planned on us heading south to a campground that I only knew about from some references on google maps.

After looking into it more I realized it was also a part of Rio Grande Del Norte, it was just the lower part!

It was called Pillar campground and had water and electric hookups!

We had not had either of those for 3 nights so it was a nice change.

It was not as pretty as the ones in the upper part but it was still a nice surprise.

While staying there we drove on a crazy “road” up to the Gorge Bridge.

It was pretty but there were a lot of people and not really my cup of tea.

My friend actually stayed the night at the rest stop there and talks more about it in her post!

We also went for this hike on the La Vista Verde trail on our way back to our campsite and it was so pretty. I was not ready to leave this area at all and wanted to stay longer but we only had two weeks so we started heading further south the next day and got to see one of the main things I went to see.

Animals, Hiking, My Family

Staying in a Pine Forest, Surrounded by Mountains

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After leaving the wildlife refuge, we went just an hour or so west to Cimarron Canyon State Park.

This was a stop I was not sure about, I thought we would stay at Eagle Nest State Park which was 15 mins or so away but after seeing the spots decided to stay at Cimarron instead.

The Maverick Campground at Cimarron Canyon smelled amazing from all the pine trees and and was nestled in the mountains.

Because of how early in the year it was there was no water at the campground and the bathrooms were closed.

They did have porta potties set up though.

There was also no electric.

We did need to find a store for water pretty quick though since we were running low.

 

I loved the area but after driving around I found a spot I would have loved to stay at.

Next time I want to stay at Rio Grande Del Norte National Monument!

The campgrounds are beautiful!

And the views are breathtaking.

I am so glad that we got a National Park Pass for the trip!

We got into all the National Monuments we visited on it, got half off one of our campsites(Army Corps Site), and into a National Wildlife Refuge including camping at no extra cost.

I could have stayed in this area for weeks if not months but we needed to start heading south so we only stayed for two days.

We had also planned on driving up into the Wheeler Peak while there but the road was still snowed in we were told.

Still it was a breaktaking, beautiful area.

So glad we got to stay in this amazing area!

I want to go back and stay longer next time!

My Family, Parks, Wildlife Preserve/Reserve

A Volcano and Camping in a Wildlife Refuge ~NE New Mexico

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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!