
Our campsite looked out onto miles and miles of open land and mountains. New Mexico seemed to have chosen amazing locations for some of their state parks.Ĭity of Rocks was in a very isolated location that had very private camp sites divided by massive boulders. We may earn small commission from any purchases you make from links on this site.Last year in our travels around the country two of my favorite state parks were in New Mexico. On another trip to New Mexico, we went for a nice hike near Ojo Caliente New Mexico, which you can read about here.įor more information on dog friendly places for dispersed camping, see All in all, I would give Elephant Butte an enthusiastic four paws up as a place to stay and play – Woof the Beaten Path. Keeping clean while dispersed/dry camping can be a challenge for all of us, so this was a great perk. The humans also really appreciated the free, hot showers (Mom says to tell you to wait a moment after starting the shower as it takes a moment for the water to heat up). The park hosts were friendly and knowledgeable when approached, and the cute little town of Truth or Consequences is just a short trip away, for those who need to provision or grab something to eat other than their own cooking. There were tons of awesome waterfront places to camp, and people seem to keep the park pretty clean. I was glad mom noticed I was limping and pulled them out because they got stuck fast! Fortunately, we felt like the pluses of camping at Elephant Butte vastly outweigh any negatives. Also, there were a lot of pesky little gnats that kept circling my head and quite a few sticky cockleburs that got lodged between my toes.
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There were a few off-leash dogs, which isn’t my favorite as I’m not sure how to act when they run toward me and I’m following the rules and staying on my leash. It did get a little noisy at times, and probably would be more so during the week and as summer wore on – during peak times. So… what did I think of Elephant Butte? First, the negatives. All In All, Not A Bad Place To Camp – Just Watch Out For Stickers Lulu Belle checking out the view at Elephant Butte State Park.
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Later, we all hiked up to the dunes and found some pretty, purple wildflowers that were full of buzzing bees. I enjoyed seeing the ducks bobbing in the waves and calling to each other across the water. In the morning, the humans got up early to watch the sunrise which was pretty spectacular.īecause most of the campers seemed to have stayed up late, we were the first up and it felt like we had the beach pretty much to ourselves. Later, we fell asleep to the sound of lapping waves and wind whistling across the water. I had a lazy walk along the shore (where there were some funky fish smells) and settled in on my camping bed while the humans cooked supper on the camp stove and fixed me a bowl of my special food. Because it was drizzly and windy when we arrived, we chose to set up our shelter in the lee of the truck to avoid blowing sand drifting off the dunes behind us.įor the most part, campers in our vicinity were quiet and respectful and we felt like we had a nice area pretty much to ourselves. In our 4×4, we were able to follow the established trail and find a spot right along a little spit of land that nosed out into the lake. Ultimately, we chose a spot along Rock Canyon, which had the fewest people but some of the deeper/looser sand.

When we were there, it also seemed to be the noisiest of the three designated areas, with music and revelry carrying on well after midnight.

Main Campground likewise was busy, but easy to pull into, and with well-packed sand. Long Point had quite a few visitors the day we arrived, and a number of RV’s lined up along the shore. Our family took the time to investigate each of the three options, trying to find a place where the sand was fairly well packed for easy access (and exit) and where we’d have a little privacy from other campers. Primitive camping here means that you are able to choose your own spot in one of three general locations. After a leisurely drive from Brownwood, Texas, we arrived at Elephant Butte Reservoir in the late afternoon.
