New Mexico Road Trip

Meow Wolf

I wish I knew how best to describe Meow Wolf; it’s a mishmash of childhood imagination and adult sized playground/treehouse. Its quirky, fun, creative, and you’ll never see the unique things Meow Wolf offers anywhere else. We spent about an hour exploring the warehouse/museum.

Tip: skip the $1 3D glasses, amplification is NOT needed.

Los Alamos National Laboratory

After Meow Wolf, we headed to Los Alamos; we stopped in at the free Bradbury Science Museum and learned a little about the nuclear testing and development of atomic bombs.

Tip: Grab a bite to eat at the dumpling restaurant right next door! Be mindful of the time, as many laboratory workers stop in during their lunch hour. 

Los Alamos National Laboratory is still a fully functioning facility, so we passed a couple armed checkpoints on the road to Bandelier National Park.

Bandelier National Park

We made it to Bandelier National Park shortly before 3pm (shuttle service is mandatory between 9am-3pm during May-October); we decided to wait until 3pm, so we could drive down to the visitors center and not rely on the shuttle service. We had enough time to hike the Main Loop Trail, all the way to the Alcove House and back, about 3 miles round-trip. There were cliff dwellings and kivas lining the entire trail, we strolled over a couple bridges; and at the Alcove House, we climbed a few sets of steep narrow stairs and ladders.

Tip: Alcove House and other dwellings are great for adventure seekers but NOT recommended for those afraid of heights.

We made our way to our bed and breakfast for the night, Elk Mountain Lodge near Jemez Springs. We stayed in the Santa Fe room, which was located right next door to the lobby; the Santa Fe room is a perfectly sized studio apartment with an attached kitchenette and attached full bathroom with a tub.

Day 2

Bisti/De-Na-Zin Wilderness

The next morning, we had delicious homemade breakfast burritos and headed onwards to our next destination, Bisti/De-Na-Zin Wilderness. We tried to drive to the lot on gravel country roads from highway 550 and it was beyond rough, we ended up turning around and driving North through Farmington and then back south on highway 371 to the Bisti Badlands Parking Access. There were still some short gravel roads we drove on to get to the parking lot, however, it was nowhere near as long or dimpled as the original country road we were on.

Tip: Be prepared, Bisti is a large wilderness area without any amenities or resources; water, snacks, proper attire is required AT MINIMUM. I also recommend downloading Google Earth and this map to navigate the area/direction of your hike and notable things to see. 

Bisti was out of this world; the hoodoos and petrified trees were unreal! 

 SCROLL THROUGH PHOTOS BELOW:

Ship Rock

Post-Bisti, we drove to Shiprock and snapped some quick photos. Shiprock was another place that had pretty intense gravel roads so we weren’t able to get up close and personal but it was certainly a sight to see. We drove back towards Farmington, to Aztec, where we stayed at a great little casita.

Day 3

Mesa Verde National Park

We started the next day early and drove to Mesa Verde National Park, just in time to schedule a couple tours.

Tip: If you want to take a cliff dwelling tour, scheduling a tour at the Mesa Verde National Park visitors center or the Durango welcome center should be your first priority, as tours sell out quickly! All tours begin deep within the park, at least an hour drive from the visitors center.

Mesa Verde – Balcony House

We drove back to Mesa Verde; drove the Spruce Tree Terrace Loop and the Mesa Top Loop; where we stopped at some of the lookouts. We took the last tour time slot for the adventurous Balcony House tour; it was a blast, however, there was a lot of standing around while learning about the pueblo people. After our tour, we drove back to the Montezuma Valley Overlook to catch a beautiful sunset. We stayed the night in Durango, which was a little too far of a drive for having another tour scheduled for the first thing the next morning.

SCROLL THROUGH PHOTOS BELOW:

Day 4

Mesa Verde – Cliff Palace

The next morning, we drove back out to Mesa Verde to take the Cliff Palace tour; the largest and best restored cliff dwelling in Mesa Verde. We hiked the Soda Canyon Overlook Trail really quick before winding down our Mesa Verde adventures and heading back to Albuquerque.

Tip: Hike the Soda Canyon Overlook Trail; it’s a 1.2 mile hike with a viewpoint (complete with binoculars) that overlooks balcony house.

Back to ABQ

I worked up quite an appetite during the windy 4 hour drive; so we stopped at Cocina Azul, such fantastic Tex-Mex! Unfortunately, Sandia Crest was under a wind advisory so we were unable to enjoy a sunset tram ride.

Day 5

Old Town ABQ

The next day, we had just enough time to ride electric scooters around Old Town Albuquerque. We definitely made a point to stop at The Candy Lady and load up on “the blue stuff”, there was even a Walter White look alike!

New Mexico was great; I wish we had more time to drive out to the Taos motherships or experience the hot air balloon festival. On a related note, we are looking forward to making it out to White Sands.