Top Camping Tips - New Mexico Camping Gems - New Mexico Tips Altitude and Climate The dry weather and high altitude of New Mexico may cause you to experience some side effects. High altitude can cause you to feel lightheaded, dizzy, thirsty, have headaches, breathing problems, sleeplessness, or heart palpitations. To make your high-altitude experience more pleasurable, make sure to drink plenty of water, plan your first couple of days to include lots of rest, and avoid alcohol. If you are under a doctor's care it is also a good idea to let him or her know you are planning a trip that will include higher elevations. Always carry water when traveling into remote areas, and watch for flash floods during thunder storms. Dust storms are common in the spring, so be sure not to leave your car windows open and unattended if you visit during those months. Since the mountain air cools quickly even during the summer months, plan on packing clothes you can layer, including sweaters and jackets.

Top 10 Camping Places to Eat in New Mexico Camping Gems - Places to Eat in New Mexico Albuquerque Artichoke Cafe Antiquity Restaurant Golden Crown Bakery Las Cruces Boba Cafe Nellie's Cafe Mesilla La Posta de Mesilla St. Clair Winery & Bistro Santa Fe Yummy Cafe La Boca Bobcat Bite Restaurant   Top 10 Camping Hidden Gems in New Mexico Camping Gems - New Mexico Taos Ski Valley Resort With more than 300 inches of snow each year, Taos is a phenomenal place to ski.  The resort offers everything you need for a full day on the slopes with 110 trails, 12 chair lifts, and more than a thousand acres of snowy slopes and forest.  You can take a lift as high as 11,819 feet, admiring views of stunning Kachina Peak.  A quarter of the trails are designed for beginners, a quarter for intermediate skiers, and 50% for expert skiers. Oliver Lee Memorial State Park Head to gorgeous Dog Canyon, where springs and seeps in the canyon walls support yellow columbines, maindenhair ferns, and orchids. Secreted in this harsh landscape is a green oasis, where water flows year-round and ferns cling to mossy rocks. This area, known as Dog Canyon, is one of many deep ravines that slice the west flank of the Sacramento Mountains in southern New Mexico. Taos Pueblo This World Heritage site and National Historic landmark commemorates an ancient community of adobe houses that were inhabited for over 1000 years.  This collection of striking adobe buildings includes churches, ancient homes, and the present-day homes of about 150 people. Visit the Pueblo for its beauty, its connection to the past, and to shop for locally made pottery, silver jewelry, moccasins, boots, and drums. Sandia Peak Tramway, Albuquerque To really get a view of the area, take a trip on the Sandia Peak Tramway. At 2.7 miles, it holds the distinction of being the longest tram in the world.  You'll have incredible views of the Rio Grande Valley and the Land of Enchantment down below. Don't forget your camera! (10 Tramway Loop, 505-856-6419) San Juan National Forest Explore the amazing San Juan and La Plata mountains of Northern New Mexico and discover a hot spot for hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding, and wildlife viewing.  You'll find great fishing on McPhee and House Creek, ATV paths, and miles of hiking trails. Old Mesilla (near Las Cruces) Besides being the regional headquarters for the Butterfield Overland Mail and Stage, Old Mesilla is also known as the town where Billy the Kid was tried and sentenced to hang in 1881. Today as you wander Mesilla's narrow streets, you'll find the desperados replaced with lots of neat stores like the Double Eagle, the William Bonney Gallery, Del Sol, and La Tienda. Bitter Lake National Wildlife Refuge Straddling the Pecos River, Bitter Lake NWR is truly a jewel, a wetland oasis inhabited by diverse wildlife species. The Refuge protects and provides habitat for some of New Mexico's most rare and unusual creatures such as the least shrew, Noel's amphipod, least tern and Roswell spring snail. Here you can enjoy the beauty of this 90 foot deep lake that was formed when the roof of a small cavern caved in. Randall Davey Audubon Center, Santa Fe Enjoy bird walks, nature talks, and plenty of wildlife at this 135-acre nature sanctuary in the foothills of the Sangre de Cristos.  Don't miss the historic buildings and the works of art by the late Santa Fe master. (1800 Upper Canyon Road, 505-983-4609) Enchanted Circle Scenic Byway One of the favorite drives from Taos is called the Enchanted Circle, an 84-mile drive around Wheeler Peak that's a designated National Forest Scenic Byway. To begin your journey, start at Highway 64 north from Taos Plaza to Questa, NM38 through the old mining town of Red River. Then head onto Eagle Nest Lake where you can stop and enjoy a boat ride or some great bank fishing. Then continue on US 64 to Angel Fire, home of the DAV Vietnam Veterans National Memorial, and back to Taos via the Taos Canyon. San Juan River    Considered one of the best rainbow trout rivers in the state, if not in the country, this is a terrific place to spend some quality fly fishing time.  The San Juan is also a terrific whitewater rafting river.    Top 10 Camping Places to Go in New Mexico Camping Gems - Places to Go in New Mexico Santa Fe The vibrant, colorful artists' community of Santa Fe has history and beauty to spare.  Begin your tour with the historic Plaza de Santa Fe that marks the end of the eight-hundred-mile Santa Fe Trail. Here you will see the La Fonda Hotel, which once served as headquarters for the Confederacy, and The Palace of the Governors, which was built in 1609-1610 by the Spanish and is the nation's oldest government building. Don't miss the St. Francis Cathedral, the San Miguel Mission, and the Santuario de Chimayo Church. Taos This city offers stunning views, historical sites, and an arts culture than rivals any in the U.S. Taos truly has something for everyone.  You can tour ancient adobe homes, wander through the world-class art galleries, ski the slopes, or enjoy a hot rock massage.  New Mexican cuisine is lively, spicy, and just the thing after a day of hiking or mountain biking. White Sands National Monument Rising from the heart of the Tularosa Basin is one of the world's great natural wonders - the glistening white sands of New Mexico. Here, great wave-like dunes of gypsum sand have engulfed 275 square miles of desert and created the world's largest gypsum dune field. Enjoy hiking, photography, picnics, ranger walks, and full-moon tours. Carlsbad Caverns National Park The park contains 113 spectacular caves, formed when sulfuric acid dissolved the surrounding limestone, creating some of the largest caves in North America. All visitors to the park should tour the main section of the cave, the Big Room self-guided tour. Guided tours of varying difficulties are also available for crawling through narrow passageways in the Hall of the White Giant or in Spider Cave. Albuquerque Biological Park This unique park includes the Albuquerque Aquarium, Rio Grande Botanic Garden, Rio Grande Zoo and Tingley Beach.  You'll see more than 1,000 animals including white tigers plus the animals of the African savanna and Amazon rain forest. (903 10th SW, 505-764-6209) Aztec Ruins National Monument At this phenomenal monument, you can follow ancient passageways to a distant time. Explore West Ruin, a center of ancestral Pueblo society that once housed over 500 masonry rooms. Look up and see original timbers holding up the roof. Search for the fingerprints of ancient workers in the stucco walls. The monument includes a self-guided trail and interpretive center. Red River A quiet town that flanks its namesake river, Red River is set on the edge of the Carson National Forest in breathtaking terrain.  The town is filled with trails, fishing and kayaking shops, and sits right beside the Red River Ski Area. In the summer you can enjoy hiking, mountain biking, fishing, golfing, and white-water rafting.  In winter, you can ski to your heart's content! Petroglyph National Monument Petroglyph National Monument protects a variety of cultural and natural resources including volcanos, archeological sites and an estimated 20,000 carved images. Many of the images are recognizable as animals, people, brands and crosses; others are more complex. Surveys have documented at least 15,000 pictures. Zuni Canyon Heading into Agua Fria Valley, beautiful Zuni Canyon gives you a sweeping view of the area near the historic town of Sawyer and Bluewater Lake. Always wanted to try ice fishing? Then you'll be glad to know that Bluewater holds the reputation of being the best ice fishing location in the Southwest. El Malpais National Monument El Malpais means "the badlands," but this volcanic area holds many surprises. Lava flows, cinder cones, pressure ridges and complex lava tubes dominate the landscape. A closer look reveals high desert environments where animals and plants thrive. Prehistoric ruins, ancient cairns, rock structures, and homesteads remind us of past times.   Top 10 Camping Activities in New Mexico Camping Gems - Things to Do in New Mexico Hike through the brilliant white sand dunes at White Sands National Monument. See the bats come streaming out of the caves at Carlsbad Caverns National Park. Explore the art galleries and restaurants of Santa Fe. Go fishing and kayaking on the Red River. See ancient rock artwork at the Indian Petroglyph National Monument. Ski, snowboard, and snowshoe in Taos. Hike through the stunning San Juan Mountains of Northern New Mexico. Learn about Billy the Kid's ties to historic towns like Old Mesilla. Watch for birds and wildlife at the Bitter Lake National Wildlife Refuge. Take the Enchanted Circle drive around Wheeler Peak and Taos Canyon.