Santa Fe Trail
Places to Visit
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Sugarite Canyon State Park (NM)Sugarite Canyon State Park features heavily wooded mountains and meadows painted with wildflowers. The natural canyon is heavily wooded and filled with deer, turkey, and a wide variety of other wildlife. Visitors may fish in two lakes within the park, and electric, wind, and manual powered boats are allowed. The canyon was once home to a thriving mining community and now offers a self-guided tour through the old camps. Ample sites are provided for camping.
Directions: Sugarite Canyon is located just south the New Mexico/Colorado border along State Hwy 526. It is 5 miles north of State Hwy 72.
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Villanueva State Park sits in a canyon composed of sandstone cliffs. This riverside park shelters towering cottonwoods and other native trees and shrubs which add to the vibrance of the area.
Directions: From Las Vegas, take I-25 south for 23 miles to exit 323, and then go 15 miles south on NM 3.
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Wagon Mound National Historic Landmark (NM)The 6,930' high peak, shaped like an oxen-drawn wagon in profile, is a famous Santa Fe Trail landmark and campsite. The Wagon Mound, a National Historic Landmark, once served as a campsite and permanent source of water for westbound Santa Fe Trail travelers. The nearby village, settled in the 1870s, has several historic homes and buildings like the 18-room Santa Clara Hotel, built in 1894. Once a farming and ranching community, it is now home to just over 300 people.
