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| no partners | | A quick road trip to the Ruidoso area of New Mexico. This is a part of the state that I don't visit very often, but certainly it is pretty easy to get to from Tucson.
Day One Wed 9-12: Easy 220 mile drive to spend the night at the Quality Inn in Deming. This is one of the best bargains in lodging out there in my opinion. Very reasonable rates, a bar and restaurant on site (hours generally 4-9 PM), and a good complimentary breakfast. This is a beautiful old hotel constructed in the 1960s as a Holiday Inn. Very large and well cared for property. The staff are friendly and professional. It is my go to place for Deming.
Day Two Thu 9-13: Next was the approximate 180 mile drive from Deming to Ruidoso. I booked a room at the Sitzmark Chalet Inn based on good reviews. First time there and it lived up to my expectations. It is right in the heart of town and convenient to everything. Heidi was an excellent host. One of the things that made me want to stay there was the locally roasted pinon coffee and complimentary muffins (various varieties) provided in the morning. The coffee was even better than the ubiquitous New Mexico Pinon coffee in the red bags that you can find just about anywhere. And Heidi brewed it nice and strong, not weak like at most places!  For dinner I had hoped to get a burger at Hall of Flame Burgers, but it closed at 6 PM, which is about when I headed out, so I opted for Anaheim Jacks instead. That worked fine.
Day Three Fri 9-14: The plan for this trip was 2 nights in motels and 2 nights camping. The only place around here I have camped is Oak Grove Campground along the road to Ski Apache (SR 532). This trip I wanted to drive up the road to Monjeau Peak/Lookout (FR 117) for the first time. There are two camping areas on this road, Skyline and Monjeau, both compromised a bit by the Little Bear Fire of 2012, but open and usable. Skyline is the better of the two and both feature great views. I thought about camping up there at over 9000 feet, but ultimately decided against it. Weather was not a factor. After an enjoyable visit to the historic lookout at Monjeau, I drove back down the mountain and continued up SR 48 to Angus and headed in toward Bonito Lake and Argentina Canyon on FR 107. I had been there before and it is the most popular area for camping and hiking by the White Mountain Wilderness. Since this was a Friday, folks were heading in to claim their spots, both bow hunters and hikers. The drive in is really nice. It was crowded enough that I decided against staying there. Plus, there was a green chile cheeseburger I wanted to try up the highway at Capitan. I decided against backtracking to camp and set my sights on another place I had never been, Three Rivers on the west (highway 54) side of the mountains. I skipped the BLM petroglyph site and drove to the end of the road to the Three Rivers FS campground. I was pleasantly surprised to find it pretty well shaded by mostly juniper, with decent sites and water provided ($6/night). Three Rivers is a perennial stream through the campground as well. I set up in a spot with a view and went into relax mode. 
Day Four Sat 9-15: Woke to a fine clear morning. Low temperature was 53 degrees. Enjoyed morning coffee and some chips and salsa, then packed everything up to continue the journey back to Arizona. My knee was really giving me grief, so I was not able to do any real hiking, and it made me decide to cut the trip one day short. I was just in too much pain to set the tent up again at my next planned stop: City of Rocks State Park, so I just drove the 380 miles home instead. It was a successful trip in spite of this, and I got to check out some new things.
Ruidoso Lookout: [ youtube video ] |
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