Las Cruces, NM

#southwest #roadtrip

Officially in the southwest! We left South Llano Campground for Las Cruces on Saturday.

Upon our arrival into Las Cruces, we headed to Aguirre Springs Campground in the Organ Mountains- Desert Peaks National Monument, managed by the Bureau of Land Management. Camping was cheap, only $7, and the view was incredible.

The campsite was 5800 feet up! We gained an hour heading into Mountain Standard Time so we had enough daylight left for a short hike. The Pine Loop Trail took you another 1,000 feet up in 4 miles, and we saw great views of Las Cruces below. This campsite is located on the backside of the Organ Mountains so you have a really great view of the needles....but they block all the sun pretty early in the day. It was also WINDY! 20MPH winds overnight that rocked the van, but we had our parking brake on!

Views from camp and the hike made this site worth the windy and chilly weather.

On Sunday, we ventured about 30 miles east of town to White Sands National Park. The last time I was there in 2017 it was a National Monument- they newly designated it a NP in 2019! They also recently found fossilized human footprints in the sand- too far out for visitors to find though. We climbed the gypsum dunes a few times, only to speed down them on our rented sled.

For dinner we headed into town to see the Historic Mesilla plaza. Here you can find many small shops, which we skipped for now. We did try a NM staple- green chile. I had it in my enchiladas from La Posta, and Court had it in her chicken quesadillas.

Last night, we camped on BLM land at the Sierra Vista Trail by Baylor Canyon. Free, dispersed camping with great views of the frontside of the Organ Mountains. Super close to town too, only about 20 mins away.

I also got to take some more photos of the higher sky during the Geminids meteor shower- we saw about 10 meteors!

Before leaving Las Cruces, we did venture out to Pena Blanca for a hike. The floral & fauna of the Chihuahuan Desert is awesome. I’m digging cacti right now. We also stopped by Spirit Winds Coffee & Gift Shop and tried their signature lavender lattes and green chili scones. Delicious!

---