Amaris Feland Ketcham - New Mexico: Your Car-Camping Guide to Scenic Beauty, the Sounds of Nature, and an Escape from Civilization

For Andy, my companion in adventure

Best Tent Camping: New Mexico

Copyright 2008 and 2014 by Monte R. Parr

Copyright 2021 by Amaris Feland Ketcham

All rights reserved

Printed in the United States of America

Published by Menasha Ridge Press

Distributed by Publishers Group West

Third edition, first printing

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Ketcham, Amaris Feland, author.

Title: Best tent camping: New Mexico : your car-camping guide to scenic beauty, the sounds of nature, and an escape from civilization / Amaris Feland Ketcham.

Description: 3rd edition. | Birmingham, AL : Menasha Ridge Press, an imprint of AdventureKEEN, [2021]

Identifiers: LCCN 2020042790 (print) | LCCN 2020042791 (ebook) | ISBN 9781634042796 (pbk.) |ISBN 9781634042802 (ebook)

Subjects: LCSH: CampingNew MexicoGuidebooks. | Camp sites, facilities, etc.New MexicoGuidebooks. | New MexicoGuidebooks.

Classification: LCC GV191.42.N6 K48 2021 (print) | LCC GV191.42.N6 (ebook) | DDC 647.94209789dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020042790

LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020042791

Project editor: Holly Cross

Cover and book design: Jonathan Norberg

Maps: Steve Jones and Amaris Feland Ketcham

Photos: Amaris Feland Ketcham, except as noted

Copy editor: Ritchey Halphen

Proofreader: Emily Beaumont

Indexer: Rich Carlson

MENASHA RIDGE PRESS

An imprint of AdventureKEEN

2204 First Ave. S., Ste. 102

Birmingham, AL 35233

800-443-7227, fax 205-326-1012

Visit menasharidge.com for a complete listing of our books and for ordering information. Contact us at our website, at facebook.com/menasharidge, or at twitter.com/menasharidge with questions or comments. To find out more about who we are and what were doing, visit blog.menasharidge.com.

Cover photo: On the road to Rio Chama Campground (see ); Amaris Feland Ketcham
Inset: Paliza Family Campground (see ); Amaris Feland Ketcham

For the latest coronavirus news and updates pertaining to the campgrounds in this book, please check the Contact listings in the campground profiles. For general information about the coronavirus in New Mexico, see cv.nmhealth.org.

CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

My deepest gratitude to Andy Carey, who had never camped in a campground before I invited him to City of Rocks State Park. He quickly adapted from archaeology dig sites and public-land primitive camping, and he was outstanding company for many of the explorations written about here. Thank you, too, to the many others who joined me for short journeys all across the stateincluding my mother, who fell in love with the Zuni sandstone at El Morro. I am grateful for my little snowshoe cat, Yuki, who always reminded me to take frequent writing breaks to play.

Thank you to the many befuddled campground hosts who answered my questions and let me walk around photographing various sites. Many thanks to the rangers and administrators of our public lands, who uphold their mission to introduce so many to the joys and wonders of nature. Everyone at Menasha Ridge Press and AdventureKEEN has been great to work with. Id also like to thank the friendly folks in the town of Reserve, New Mexico, who stopped to help when I had both a flat tire and a busted spare.

I would like to acknowledge that these campgrounds and public lands sit on the traditional homelands of the original peoples of New MexicoPueblo, Navajo, and Apachewho have deep connections to the land and have remained stewards throughout the generations.

Unfortunately, I cannot say that no animals were harmed in the making of this book. Just outside of Canjilon Lakes, a buck in velvet bounded out of the sagebrush into the side of my car and died quickly by the side of the road. I dreamed about his spirit many nights since, and so I would like to acknowledge him and wish him peace.

Amaris Feland Ketcham

PREFACE

The first time I camped in New Mexico, I pitched a borrowed tent near Chama between a small, man-made lake and the Colorado border. I spent my days wandering through ferns and aspen; my nights, stargazing while coyotes sang. At the lake, a boy proudly showed me the large rainbow trout hed just caught, and I hiked on, admiring wildflowers while monsoon clouds gathered in the afternoon sky. The forest held many surprises: I chanced upon a rafter of turkeys one day and an old hunting blind the next. Toasting marshmallows over the campfire to make smores, I decided to add a roasted green chile and found an instant favorite, decadent dessert. I was a teenager, new to camping, but Chama had me hooked.

I couldnt wait until my next adventure sleeping under the Milky Way. New Mexico has so many places to explorebadlands, canyons, mesas, mountains, prairies, sand dunes, salt flats, valleys, and volcanic escarpmentsyou could plan a lifetime of weekend trips. In addition to situating yourself within a landscape of geologic masterpieces, camping here also places you in touch with history and the many cultures that live throughout the state.

Ive stumbled upon fossils, ancient pottery sherds, and secret, hidden petroglyphs. Once, camping in the Gila, it was so cold that I shivered most of the night instead of sleeping. In the morning, I watched as my breath rose up in a little cloud, condensed, froze, and snowed back down on my faceI had created my own miniature weather system in my tent. This was such a beautiful moment, and Id never seen or even imagined anything like it.

Another time, I was hiking out from my campsite at White Sands National Park when a storm started to blow in. The sky turned light gray, and wind lifted the sand. The sky grew indistinguishable from the dunes in these whiteout conditions; the world was white. But our long morning shadows persisted to show us the direction of the sun, and luckily the guideposts also remained visible. Again, Id never seen anything like it. Thats part of what draws me out time and time again: the New Mexican wilderness is full of secrets, surprises, and experiences like nothing youve ever seen. Wanting to share these kinds of experiences with others has fueled much of the research and writing of this book.

Perhaps thats why Ive had such a difficult time answering the one question everyone asks after learning that Im researching campgrounds: Whats your favorite campground? I have many favorite campgrounds for different kinds of camping experiencessome to admire the stars, to sleep under tall pines, to investigate archaeology sites, or wander trails. People camp for many reasons; others might have their own campgrounds for preferred activities and settings. If you like trout fishing in a rushing river with your tent hidden behind low growth, a bustling campground where kids can make friends at the playground, or pitching a tent among eroded boulders of volcanic tuff that look like a setting from The Flintstones, youll find a great campground in this guide. Youll also find lakeside campgrounds, secluded mountain campgrounds, and campgrounds close to hot springs and climbing routes. Ive visited scores of campgrounds in New Mexico and tried to include a variety of the best in this guide.