Anything worth visiting in Northwestern New Mexico?

So after reading all the talk about rough roads I wonder if taking a truck camper down these roads is a bad idea?

Yet I will be towing our dinghy.

For the 1st time, this should open our options.

& yes I plan on monument valley & Mesa verde & Durango & Bryce & Zion & all that.

It's just New Mexico that I'm not finding too many options?

Anything nice about ABQ?
I'll go in as far as that?
& then cut north if I don't go through Farmington.

An Indian friend told me all the unemployed drunk Indians gravitate towards Farmington.

I suppose he is talking about the city not so much the surroundings?

Being a car nut, Espanolia sorta interest me being it's known as the "Low Rider" Capitol of the world.

Even though, I'm in no way a low rider, actually for the most part the opposite, I like lifting my trucks & putting big off road tires & etc.

Yet can appreciate all the work put into low rider cars.

Roy&Lynne wrote:
Chaco Canyon, Its a tough drive, but worth it.

X2 An awesome place.

Jim Shoe wrote:

One thing you could do if you pass through. Where the borders of the 4 states meet, there's a metal disk marking the point where the four states meet. You can get your picture taken standing in four states at the same time. Big Whoop.

That's actually the whole point of this trip is to visit the disk & take some silly pictures of each different limb in another state all at the same time. LOL!

& so I'm actually planning yo visit sites in all for surrounding states.

These ruins at Aztec are worth seeing, IMO.

Chaco Culture National Historical Park is well worth the trip over rough roads, and they now offer reservations for the campground.

It's a UNESCO World Heritage site (other such sites are the Pyramids in Egypt, Taj Mahal in India, etc.) and has some of America's most important pre-Columbian structures.

The rangers offer free walking tours by day and Night Sky programs at the Observatory. If you like stars, Chaco is far away from lighted population centers.

Aztec Ruins National Monument or Salmon Ruins were outliers, part of the Chacoan world linked by roads, and can give you a taste of what Chaco offers if you are short on time or don't want to take the RV on the road to Chaco.

Chaco Canyon, Its a tough drive, but worth it.

the Chaco Canyon anasazi ruins are up there, off 491, but bear in mind that the access road is about 15 miles of washboard road...it will jar your teeth. Mesa Verde Park is well worth your time and effort.

Much of it is reservation, terrain is high desert and mountains. What is there is worth visiting if Native American culture or high desert landscape interest you.

Next time through I may visit the reservation:

Jicarilla Nation

What is there depends on your route going through. From Farmington you can go east-west, north-south, or diagonally toward ABQ. Each route goes through different terrain, past different places you might stop to visit.

One of my colleagues started his career working the geology around Farmington, he thought the area was heaven on earth. Maybe he thought so because the next work location turned out to be Tyler, Texas, or maybe because he grew up in Wyoming.

But no fabricated attractions, few big draw parks, not because the area is not attractive, it just is not managed as a tourist attraction. I can take four days to cross 200 miles of "vacant" or "uninteresting" areas like western high desert, the plains, or even the Corn Belt. Or I can drive across in 3 1/2 to 4 hours without stopping even for gas. Depends on whether in a hurry or in an exploring mood.

Monument Valley is in Arizona. Chaco Culture is the major National Park in NW NM. It's a fair drive over dirt roads to get to it. The road condition reportedly varies quite a bit. It was in good condition when we visited the park, but some times it can be a problem for passenger vehicles.

I was underwhelmed by the park itself, the Rangers we ran into were all in bad moods which probably affected my enjoyment of the park. It was just another Indian ruin and if you have stopped at a number of the same in Arizona, Utah and Colorado you won't see anything new.

There is another site that we didn't get to, Aztec Ruins. Just north of Bloomington. We stayed at a nice park in Bloomington but it was a bit hard to find. Desert Rose Resort.

The Cortez area has a lot more to do just over the border in Colorado: Mesa Verde, Canyon of the Ancients, Hovenweep, and of course the cannot be missed Moki Dugway. Lots of smaller sites like Goosenecks State Park and Canyon of the Gods and you can drive to Monument Valley from there.