How We Found It

How we ended up here was kind of a fluke. We knew we wanted to visit the White Sands, however we had no reservations or firm idea of where we wanted to stay. As we got off the I40 and headed south on Highway 54 I started searching on the AllStays App for the nearest RV Park. This wasn’t on our list of things to see or do, but we sure are glad we ended up here. Below is a screen shot of what AllStays looks like on our Ipad. You can search by city, state and it will show you all the nearby campgrounds. If you tap the info button it brings up more details in the lower right corner. Once we decided we would take a chance (and we were getting tired) all I had to do was tap the G Map button. It pulls the GPS coordinates into Google Maps and that’s where we headed.

The Campground

The Bureau of Land Management maintains and manages this area. It’s located just 4 miles west of the town of Carrizozo, NM, on Highway 380. Most of the sites here have drinking water, 30 amp electric, sun shelters, tables, trash cans & grills. There is also a dedicated tent area and believe it or not there were a few “tenters” here. The nightly rate is $18.00/night if you want hookups. The day use fees and the dump station are included in the camping fees. However, if you are 62 or over that rate is cut in half. There is a golden age pass you can purchase which gets you half price at the national parks. Unfortunately we don’t qualify for that (yet!!) You pay on the honor system and drop a check in the provided box.

The sites are pretty spacious and everything is paved. There is a very friendly attendant at the Visitor Center and Bookstore. There are restrooms and shower facilities on site. We don’t need to use them, but I did have to step inside and check them out. They are some of the cleanest public restrooms I’ve ever seen and huge. The showers were large and also immaculate. Kudos to the caretakers here!!

The only issue with the camp sites here is it’s very tough to get level. Yes everything is nicely paved, but we had to get out every leveling device we have on board!! The first night we were here we were too tired to care. However, we were NOT level and my office chair kept rolling toward the front of the RV. Also, it’s not good for the refrigerator. The next day we re-positioned  and re-leveled. It took our entire pack of Lynx levelers on the right front tire and under the front jacks. Also had to break out the drive on levelers for the rear duals. Finally, we were level!!!

The Nature Trail

The big attraction here is to walk to nature trail. It is completely paved and even handicapped accessible for wheelchairs. Rather than me type a thousand words about the history behind this area here is a link to a full color pdf that explains it all if you’re interested. It was rather amazing to us that all the lava here didn’t come from a volcano, rather it bubbled out of the ground through vents. Quite amazing and beautiful. Rod was glad he actually read the brochure AFTER our walk as you can encounter snakes and spiders. Those of us who know Rod well, know he HATES spiders!! Here a just a couple shots from our walk. We took a bunch of video footage also of both the park and the Nature Trail we will be compiling.

Where To Next?

We actually didn’t plan to be here for four nights. However, the weather had different plans. The winds were just to high to travel so we stayed put. Tonight the temps are expected to dip down to 26 degrees. We carry 2 electric heaters and put one in the wet bay to keep the water lines from freezing. However, we are nice and toasty and actually enjoying a little down time. Sorry I drifted there, back to where we are headed. Tomorrow we have a fairly short drive towards Alamogordo, NM. We will be staying just north of there and using it as a base to visit the White Sands National Monument and the New Mexico Air & Space Museum. We’ll keep you posted!!

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