Spring trip to New Mexico?

[ILBill]

Hi all!

My wife an I bought a 29 foot Durango 5'er this past summer (woo hoo!)and are thinking about a trip to New Mexico this coming spring.
Neither of us have been to New Mexico before so we are starting from scratch.
We are thinking of 7 to 10 days in the Santa Fe/Taos area but really know nothing about the area other than pics on the interweb.
We prefer COE/National Forest/State Park campgrounds rather than commercial KOA types and also prefer forests to desert but do want to keep an open mind.

For those of you with experience in New Mexico is this the area you would choose as first timers?

How is the weather in April or May? Are those crowded times?

Which national forest/state park campgrounds did you enjoy most?

What do you think are the must see and must do things in the area?

We really appreciate your thoughts and time! Thank you.

Bill and Leslie

[ILBill]

eubank wrote:
That's doable, but keep in mind that both of those cities are at fairly high elevation. You can expect snow from time to time during that period. The mountains nearby have national forest campgrounds, but some/many will still be closed. You might consider staying at private campgrounds instead.

Or choosing to visit lower elevation areas of the state.

🙂
Lynn

So, we should do Santa Fe and Taos a bit later such as June?

Not being familiar at all with New Mexico, what are our options for lower elevation locations? We are trying to start getting a flavor of New Mexico in general so that's certainly not out of the question.
Thanks.

Bill

[sayoung]

Ride the train in Chama plus visit the Ghost Ranch where Georgia Okeefe painted.

[agesilaus]

Well New Mexico isn't prime territory for woods and streams. You'll mainly find those in the far northeast, north of Los Alamos, and in the southwest parts of the state around the mountains. That would be north of Silver City. Colorado would be better for that landscape but you'll find some in NM. Gila Cliffs is about the only Federal Park that I can think of in the area but there are lots of FS and BLM lands. Lots of Indian reservations too which won't be camping friendly probably unless they have a commercial CG.

Lots of parks in NM but mainly they are Indian Ruin parks in the desert or wildlife refuges also in the desert. There are some astronomical observatories too. You'll find some wooded park land in the two areas I mention and the top of some mountains.

How long do you plan to stay. My favorite wooded park was obliterated by a flash flood and since it was a historical structure cannot be rebuilt (the Catwalk)

[eubank]

That's doable, but keep in mind that both of those cities are at fairly high elevation. You can expect snow from time to time during that period. The mountains nearby have national forest campgrounds, but some/many will still be closed. You might consider staying at private campgrounds instead.

Or choosing to visit lower elevation areas of the state.

🙂
Lynn