For a successful off-roading day, you’ll need a few things: An excellent space to take your off-highway vehicle, a great restaurant to fuel up before and after, and a comfortable place to sleep after a long day. Here’s how to have an excellent ATV off-roading adventure in New Mexico!
If you try nothing else, get the big-as-a-dinner plate homemade cinnamon roll, filled with nuts and raisins and slathered in icing. It’s the way to kick-start a day of off-roading. Comfort food is what the menu is all about: biscuits and gravy, country scrambles, pancakes and fried egg sandwiches. A cozy place that’s just like home. Only open 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. for breakfast and lunch.
There are some iconic oddities in this country that shouldn’t be missed. This is one of them. Ham, short for Holloman Aeromedical which was the lab where he was trained, was the first chimpanzee in space. He was trained to do a few simple tasks as a test to determine if humans would be able to perform the same tasks. He came through with flying colors in his 16-minute flight aboard a Mercury Redstone rocket. His reward? An apple. After that, they retired his space suit and he lived out his life in a zoo. He’s buried here, memorialized by a bronze plaque.
Flying across desert terrain, racing up-and-over sandy dunes across more than 100 miles of trails is just plain fun. This large open-ride area, which covers more than 12,000 acres, is a playground of hard-packed trails and sandy play sections. There are no fees, but a Mexico OHV permit is required. There are no facilities on-site, but the area accommodates primitive camping.
This park was named in honor of a local rancher who settled here in the 19th century. His homestead near Dog Canyon consisted of a ranch house, barns, corrals, reservoir and irrigation system. The ranch house is well-preserved and offers a glimpse of what life was like in the hot, arid desert more than 100 years ago. There are bits and pieces of the irrigation system still visible.
Get out of the desert and into the cool mountain air of for some dinner. Cowboy heritage and good grub greet you at this family-owned restaurant. Getting here on Highway 82 takes you along a scenic highway through the Sacramento Mountains and through the only road tunnel in the state. The menu highlight is the famous mesquite wood cooked barbecue, but there are plenty of other mouthwatering choices. Depending on the day, there are some all-you-can-eat specials…catfish seems to be the local favorite.
Located right smack dab in the center of town, this historic building has only eight rooms available, just enough for the ghost who hangs out here to greet every guest. It was built in the 1930s and still has much of that era’s distinctive flair. Rooms are large with rustic furniture, claw foot tubs and a few have kitchenettes and a balcony overlooking the town’s main street. The cozy beds are welcome comfort at the end of a long day.
