| Why
Travel to New Mexico?
One of the most arty places in the
country in a uniquely colourful, bohemian, Indio-Mexican kind
of style.
There are some very scenic areas and plenty of activities available,
in addition to relaxing health resorts/spa type places.
The state also hosts a wide variety of mountain types and is one
of the best places in the world to see well preserved dormant volcanoes.
Downside:
- It can be ridiculously expensive in places, particularly Santa
Fe.
- The desert heat, as with all the states of the south west, may
get to you.
When
to Travel
Best:
Oct-April for deserts;
try spring for desert flowers but high ground is always 'wintery'.
Worst: July-Sept, [heat plus rains],
though better for mountains.
Main
Festivals and Events
August,
Indian Market, Santa Fe,
artifacts made by Native American people.
Sept-Oct, Navajo Fair, Shiprock
October, International Balloon Festival,
Albuquerque, it's a lot of hot air.
Recreational
Activities
Hiking:
all the mountain ranges. Sandia and Manzano mountains, though
unimpressive at a distance are better close up.
Mountainbiking:
Sandia and Manzano Mountains.
Caving: Carlsbad Caverns National Park.
Rafting: Santa
Fe; Taos.
Skiing and Snowboarding:
Santa Fe; Sandia and Manzano Mountains; Los Alamos.
Birdwatching: Dripping
Springs National Recreation Area.
Where
to Go:
Jemez
Mountains*
The southwestern most range of the Rockies leading up to the San
Juan Range, north state.
Los
Alamos*
this is the place that gave the world the nuclear bomb, so if mushroom
clouds are your thing, try the Bradbury Science Museum for the grim
details, or for less destructive interests, the Los Alamos Historical
Museum.
Sandia
and Manzano Mountains*
Rise east from the Rio grande Valley, running north south near Albuqurque.
Albuquerque*
head to Downtown for some history, esp. the Indian Pueblo Cultural
Centre and the Albuquerque Museum, or for human biological history,
the Maxwell Museum of Anthropology near the University.
Try also the Petroglyph National Monument for ancient writings,
and the Sandia Peak Tramway for lazy appreciation of the mountain.
Hike and ski in the nearby mountains.
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USA
Tours
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Sangre
de Cristo Mountains**
Rising east of the Rio Grande in
the north of the state, part of the immense Rocky Mountain System
which continues north all the way into Canada.
Santa
Fe***
the capital of the state is very trendy and
expensive
yet extremely Bohemian, multiracial and arty, as well as being the
highest altitude capital in the USA.
Good museums: for regional interest try the Museum of New Mexico,
American Indian Arts Museum, Wheelwright Museum of the American
Indian, School of American Research, and Rancho de Las Golondrinas,
plus an ancient Santa Fe Railway.
Cuisine of many kinds, but ranging
from absurdly expensive to cheap [ish!]; accommodation prices are
silly during the summer.
Taos* ideally
positioned for hiking excursions into the Sangre de Cristo and San
Juan Rocky Mountains, including skiing at the Taos Valley, Red River
and Wild Rivers National Recreation Area and also rafting in the
Rio Grande.
There are also several arty museums including the excellent Millicent
Rogers Museum of Native - American and Mexican art and the Taos
Pueblo, a large Native American building.
San
Juan Mountains*
Rise west of the Rio grande and
the parallel range, the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, all part of
the Rockies.
Farmington*
lying at the foot of the range this is a good gateway town
for further exploration into the San Juan Mountains.
Chama* a narrow gauge steam
railway, the Cumbres and Scenic Railroad, runs up into the mountains
of Colorado from here.
Chaco Culture National Historic Park**
Pueblo Indian buildings of varying degrees of size and accessibility;
hike to lose the tourists. Also consider the Aztec Ruins Monument
for a reconstructed Aztec building.
Shiprock* for the annual autumn Navajo
Fair plus a distinct and well plugged volcano.
Roswell*
[for 'the truth'***]
either a weather balloon or a UFO landed
here in 1947, better check it out yourself at the UFO Museum and
Research Centre.
If unimpressed, the Roswell Museum and Planetarium exhibits items
from within the Milky Way.
Lincoln* [for cowboys***] historic
western buildings on Main St, Lincoln
State Monument, once playground to Billy the Kid.
Chihuahan
Desert
The
biggest desert in North America though mostly in Mexico; some bits
in Texas and Arizona, but a few attractions in this part.
Consider:
Very Large Array, the huge radio telescope near Socorro; New Mexico
Ranch and Farm Museum, near the Orgon Mountains.
Pictures:
New Mexico's Deep Dishes by Susi Bikle
El Santuario de Chimayo by Stefan Siems |
