Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
and the
Links at Sierra Blanca,
105 Sierra Blanca Dr. (
&
575/258-5330; www.the
lodgeatsierrablanca.com). In Cloudcroft, the 9-hole
Lodge at Cloudcroft Golf Course
(
&
800/395-6343 or 575/682-2566; www.thelodgeresort.com) boasts an elevation of
9,200 feet; it's one of the highest courses in the world and one of the oldest in the United
States. Alamogordo's
Desert Lakes Golf Course
(
&
575/437-0290; www.desertlakes
golf.com) has views of Sierra Blanca and the Sacramento Mountains. In Socorro, the
18-hole
New Mexico Tech Golf Course
(
&
575/835-5335; www.nmt.edu) offers tree-
lined fairways and water on more than half of its holes. The
Truth or Consequences
Golf Course
(
&
575/894-2603) offers 9 fairly traditional holes in a desert setting. The
new
Sierra del Rio Golf Course
at Turtleback Mountain Resort (
&
575/744-4653;
www.sierradelrio.com), opened in 2007, offers 18 holes that area golfers are talking
about. Another contemporary course is in Las Cruces, at the 18-hole
Sonoma Ranch
Golf Course
(
&
575/521-1818; www.sonomaranchgolf.com), which opened in 2000.
Las Cruces also has the
New Mexico State University Golf Course
(
&
575/646-3219;
www.nmsu.edu/golf ), built with collegiate golf in mind. With wide-spanning views and
undulating terrain, this Cal Olsen-designed course has much to offer. Deming has the
18-hole
Rio Mimbres Country Club
(
&
575/546-9481), while Silver City golfers go to
the 18-hole
Silver City Golf Course
(
&
575/538-5041; www.silvercity.org), home to
the annual Billy Casper Golf Tournament.
HIKING
More than 225 miles of trails weave a web through the Smokey Bear Ranger
District of the
Lincoln National Forest.
From Ruidoso, a favorite destination of hikers
is the White Mountain Wilderness, with nine trails, and the Capitan Mountains Wilder-
ness, with 11 trails.
Smokey Bear Ranger District
office,
901 Mechem Dr., Ruidoso
(
&
575/257-4095
), has excellent and inexpensive maps of each wilderness area. Mon-
jeau Lookout is a popular destination off Ski Run Road (NM 532).
Carlsbad Caverns
National Park
has an extensive trail system as well (outside the caves, of course). There's
great hiking in the
Gila National Forest
(
&
575/388-8201
), which has approximately
1,500 miles of trails, ranging in length and difficulty. Your best bet for hiking in the area
is to purchase a guidebook devoted entirely to hiking the Gila National Forest; popular
areas include the Crest Trail, the West Fork Trail, and the Aldo Leopold Wilderness. One
favorite day hike in the forest is the Catwalk, a moderately strenuous hike along a series
of steel bridges and walkways suspended over Whitewater Canyon. See “Other Adven-
tures in Gila National Forest,” later in this chapter, for more hiking suggestions. When-
ever and wherever you go hiking, be sure to carry plenty of water.
HORSEBACK RIDING
Horseback riding is popular in Ruidoso. Try the
Inn of the
Mountain Gods Resort & Casino
(
&
800/545-6040
or 575/464-4100; www.inn
ofthemountaingods.com) or
Cowboys Riding Stables
(
&
575/378-8217;
www.
cowboysridingstables.com). The
Double E Guest Ranch
(
&
575/535-2048;
www.
doubleeranch.com) offers authentic ranch riding in the southwestern New Mexico desert
and forest lands. The ranch does not have a separate children's program but does accept
kids.
SKIING
Southern New Mexico's premier ski resort is
Ski Apache
(
&
575/257-9001
for snow reports, 575/336-4356 for information; www.skiapache.com), only 20 miles
northwest of Ruidoso in the Mescalero Apache Indian Reservation. Situated on an
11,500-foot ridge of the 12,003-foot Sierra Blanca, the resort boasts a gondola, two quad
chairs, five triple chairs, one double chair, a day lodge, a sport shop, a rental shop, a ski
school, a first-aid center, four snack bars, and a lounge. Ski Apache has 55 trails and
slopes (20% beginner, 35% intermediate, and 45% advanced), with a vertical drop of
300
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