Albuquerque and Santa Fe?

[Kentucky__Jo]

We would like to visit both. Better to stay in one area, then move to other area? I saw a cg on Turquoise Trail that said only 15 miles to Albuquerque and wondered if we could base camp here to both places instead of relocating. Also, read lots of reviews stating safety concerns in cgs near Albuquerque. Is it safer east or west of Albuquerque? 0

[mr__ed]

dedmiston wrote:

kedanie wrote:
Need to get this off my chest! Probably won’t last long.

You might be surprised.

The above post is a racially and culturally insensitive post. It is not as bad as the poster paints it here in New Mexico.

There are problems everywhere if you look hard enough for them!

Keith

I completely agree.

New Mexico is a beautiful place to visit and it's on our short list of places to retire some day.

I like New Mexico. For a number of years I visited there in my RV during the summers to escape heat in Yuma. Never had a problem with anyone there. I seriously considered a move but wound up in Tucson instead. I still think of it often.

[bucky]

Rt 66 RV Park is a gem. Brand new, large sites, casino on the property with a hotel attached, a fair price and cheap diesel. Stayed May 2018.
It's a bit west of town but not that bad.

[kedanie]

ppine wrote:
I am going to make one last post on this topic. People seem to miss my points completely. I have worked with 3 Native tribes, including 6 years on the Navajo Reservation. I have travelled plenty in Mexico and NM. Dealing with different kinds of people is what makes traveling interesting and worthwhile. NM has all kinds of interesting people, but they are hard to read sometimes. Compared to other western states, they have more racial tension.

Newbie travelers to the state, especially those from the East Coast or the Midwest need to learn the ways of Native peoples and respect them. Maintain your situational awareness and you will be fine.

You couldn’t be more wrong with your thinking than this! You continue to dig your hole even deeper.

Those planning to visit our culturally diverse state should completely disregard these type of comments. Come and enjoy all that New Mexico has to offer. Oh, and don’t forget to eat the very best green chili one can find.

Keith

[ppine]

I am going to make one last post on this topic. People seem to miss my points completely. I have worked with 3 Native tribes, including 6 years on the Navajo Reservation. I have travelled plenty in Mexico and NM. Dealing with different kinds of people is what makes traveling interesting and worthwhile. NM has all kinds of interesting people, but they are hard to read sometimes. Compared to other western states, they have more racial tension.

Newbie travelers to the state, especially those from the East Coast or the Midwest need to learn the ways of Native peoples and respect them. Maintain your situational awareness and you will be fine.

[ALBQ]

I'm a native New Mexican( Gringo ) and have camped at virtually every campground mentioned here. I have become a lot more aware of security as I have aged but I do not get paranoid about it.. Times have changed not only in our state but all accross the U.S. and due dillagence is a good thing.
I do find it disturbing that people from other places have so much advice about our state of which most of it is trivial...

[2gypsies1]

ppine wrote:
People that are racially and culturally insensitive won't notice much in NM. This is especially true if they stay in RV parks with security and do not interact with local people, don't boondock camp and don't get off the tourist trail around SF/Alb.

Completely wrong way of thinking. We loved traveling and boondocking in New Mexico! We're not paranoid wherever we go.

[dedmiston]

ppine wrote:
People that are racially and culturally insensitive won't notice much in NM. This is especially true if they stay in RV parks with security and do not interact with local people, don't boondock camp and don't get off the tourist trail around SF/Alb.

Isn't that a big part of what travel is all about, meeting people who are different than us?

I studied a foreign language for nine years, traveled extensively abroad, and was an exchange student to Switzerland in college. I learned so much more about what it means to be an American by studying and seeing foreign cultures. I loved the people I met and the places I saw. And I learned to love our country even more by seeing all these nuances.

Traveling through our Southwest should be a cultural eye-opener for anyone. If your take-away lesson from seeing the Southwest is aspersions about "those people", then you're pretty broken.

When I was a kid, I used to love looking at the AAA "Indian Country" map. I loved how it focused on the tribal national boundaries instead of the US state boundaries. It's such a different perspective.

[ppine]

People that are racially and culturally insensitive won't notice much in NM. This is especially true if they stay in RV parks with security and do not interact with local people, don't boondock camp and don't get off the tourist trail around SF/Alb.

[dedmiston]

kedanie wrote:
Need to get this off my chest! Probably won’t last long.

You might be surprised.

The above post is a racially and culturally insensitive post. It is not as bad as the poster paints it here in New Mexico.

There are problems everywhere if you look hard enough for them!

Keith

I completely agree.

New Mexico is a beautiful place to visit and it's on our short list of places to retire some day.

[trailertraveler]

avan wrote:
...Also convenient for day trips to Santa Fe is Rianna Lake COE...

I think they mean Riana Campground at Abiquiu Lake. It is a very nice campground, but like Cochiti often very busy. Half the electric sites are on the reservation system half first come first serve. There have always been dry campsites available when we have been there.

[kedanie]

ppine wrote:
New Mexico is a very interesting place to visit. I worked for a company with an office there and visited frequently. I once tried to move there.

Alb is a big town now and has some racial issues. Santa Fe is the tourist and art mecca with a lot to see, but it has become an odd town.

NM struggles with clashes between Native Americans, people of Mexican ancestry and people with Spanish ancestry. Then you have the rich urbanites from far away that come for the art. There is the heroin connection up in Espanola. We did not move there because of the racial tension. It is hard to read people when you are out in the boonies.

I mean no offense to native NM people. I love the state and plan on visiting again. It is a place that requires vigilance and high levels of situational awareness. Do not boondock camp up in the NW corner for instance if you are Anglo.

My next trip I will be visiting places like Las Vegas, NM and other historic towns off the tourist trail of SF/Alb.

Need to get this off my chest! Probably won’t last long.

The above post is a racially and culturally insensitive post. It is not as bad as the poster paints it here in New Mexico.

There are problems everywhere if you look hard enough for them!

Keith

[Trekkar]

ppine wrote:
New Mexico is a very interesting place to visit. I worked for a company with an office there and visited frequently. I once tried to move there.

Alb is a big town now and has some racial issues. Santa Fe is the tourist and art mecca with a lot to see, but it has become an odd town.

NM struggles with clashes between Native Americans, people of Mexican ancestry and people with Spanish ancestry. Then you have the rich urbanites from far away that come for the art. There is the heroin connection up in Espanola. We did not move there because of the racial tension. It is hard to read people when you are out in the boonies.

I mean no offense to native NM people. I love the state and plan on visiting again. It is a place that requires vigilance and high levels of situational awareness. Do not boondock camp up in the NW corner for instance if you are Anglo.

My next trip I will be visiting places like Las Vegas, NM and other historic towns off the tourist trail of SF/Alb.

I went to school at Highlands in the '70's, and I don't believe the ethnic mix has changed all that much since then. Wonderful folks. There are issues, just as there are anywhere else. I think we need good SA wherever we camp.

[avan]

I think Cochiti Lake is a great COE campground and reasonably located for day trips to either city. Also convenient for day trips to Santa Fe is Rianna Lake COE.

[trailertraveler]

If you really want to stay in the Cochiti area, take a look at the Tetilla Peak COE campground. It has 35 electric sites. At this time of year it is first come first serve. It closes October 16. It is an older park.