Bird/Wildlife Watching

Coyote Keeth's RV Park

Just off Highway 87 at mile marker seven in Clayton, New Mexico—in Union County in the northeastern corner of New Mexico where the Raton-Clayton Volcanic Field's basalt flows, the Kiowa National Grassland's shortgrass prairie, and the Cimarron Cutoff of the Santa Fe Trail's historic wagon route create the specific high-plains volcanic landscape that Clayton Lake State Park's dinosaur trackway and Gold-certified International Dark Sky Park status have made one of the most geologically and astronomically distinguished rural campground destinations in the southwestern United States—Coyote Keeth's RV Park provides full hookup 30 and 50-amp sites with large pull-through capability, a shower house with handicap access, free WiFi, horse stalls, a dog park, and the Clayton, New Mexico gateway access that Clayton Lake State Park's 500-plus dinosaur tracks and the Rabbit Ear Mountain landmark make the northeastern New Mexico destination for the outdoor traveler crossing the Texas-Colorado-New Mexico tristate corner. The dinosaur trackway within minutes and the dark sky designation that the Union County high plains produces at this specific geographic remove from urban light pollution define why Clayton, New Mexico is a destination campground stop rather than a simple overnight highway position. Full hookup sites with 30 and 50-amp electric, sewer, and water in large pull-through configurations accommodate big rigs, fifth-wheel combinations, and the horse trailer setups that the equestrian guest population brings to a campground with on-property horse stalls. A shower house with handicap access provides the hygiene infrastructure. Free WiFi handles the connectivity need. Horse stalls on the property serve the equestrian traveler who needs overnight accommodation for horses at a Union County address that places the horse stalls within a reasonable drive of the Clayton area's hunting, trail riding, and rodeo circuit. A pet area and dog park accommodate the traveling canine. Clayton's Ranch Market—the local grocery store described by the park as "just around the corner"—provides the resupply convenience that the rural Union County location would otherwise make an inconvenient chore. Clayton Lake State Park—accessible from the campground within minutes—contains the most extensive accessible dinosaur trackway in New Mexico: over 500 individual tracks left approximately 100 million years ago during the Cretaceous period when northeastern New Mexico was the shoreline of the Western Interior Seaway, a shallow inland ocean that divided North America from north to south. The tracks—representing multiple species of theropod, ornithopod, and sauropod dinosaurs—are preserved in the Morrison Formation sandstone exposed at the lake's edge, with an interpretive trail and viewing platforms that make the trackway self-guiding for independent visitors. Clayton Lake State Park also holds New Mexico's first International Dark Sky Park designation, awarded in 2010 by the International Dark Sky Association with a Gold-level certification—the IDA's highest rating—earned by the absence of significant artificial light within Union County's sparsely populated high plains. The park's observatory, equipped with a 14-inch Mead telescope operated by volunteer astronomers on Thursday through Saturday evenings from March through November, provides the public stargazing program that the dark sky certification makes possible. Coyote Keeth's RV Park is open year-round in Union County's four-season high-plains climate. The dinosaur trackway and observatory are the year-round anchors; fall hunting season for mule deer and pronghorn antelope in the surrounding Kiowa National Grassland brings the November hunting camp population. Reserve the pull-through early for elk season, plan the evening at the Clayton Lake observatory on a new-moon weekend, and let the Cretaceous trackway and the Gold-certified dark sky earn the northeastern New Mexico experience that the high-plains volcanic landscape makes genuinely singular.

from $25/night

Red Deer Villa RV Ranch

28 RV Sites

Red Deer Villa RV Ranch in Pampa, Texas, offers 28 full-hookup pull-through RV sites with 30 and 50-amp service and rigs accepted to 47 feet on a big-rig-friendly layout. Every site is pull-through — the right configuration for a Panhandle overnight — with laundry, showers, and site WiFi at a family-owned and operated ranch. Twenty-eight pull-through sites carry water, sewer, and electric on 30 and 50-amp, sized to 47 feet, with site WiFi. Pulling through means no backing after a long High Plains drive and no unhitching for a single night. Laundry and showers handle the practical side. The family ownership shows in the day-to-day operation — guests deal with the people who run the place. Pets are welcome. On-site amenities stay practical, with biking, hiking, and birding from the surrounding shortgrass prairie and a golf course, lake, and water park nearby. Pampa sits in Gray County in the eastern Texas Panhandle, on US-60 and TX-70 in the open range country between Amarillo and the Oklahoma line, where the Caprock Escarpment defines the eastern edge of the Llano Estacado's mesa surface. A short drive to Amarillo opens up Old Route 66 and Cadillac Ranch, the Route 66 Motor Speedway, the Amarillo Zoo, the American Quarter Horse Association headquarters, and Palo Duro Canyon State Park — the second-largest canyon in the country. The ranch serves Panhandle travelers year-round, with spring and fall the most comfortable seasons and summer bringing the heaviest highway traffic. Reserve ahead for holiday weekends.

Bonito Hollow RV Park & Campground

42 RV Sites, 2 Cabins

Bonito Hollow RV Park & Campground in Alto, New Mexico, offers 41 RV sites and two cabins on 12 acres in the Lincoln National Forest at 6,900 feet, with 30 and 50-amp service and rigs accepted to 58 feet. Six site categories span 30-amp and 30/50-amp back-ins and pull-throughs in both full-hookup and water-and-electric configurations. Forty-one sites run in 30-amp and 30/50-amp back-ins, water-and-electric back-ins, 30/50-amp pull-throughs, and 50-amp water-and-electric pull-throughs, carrying water, sewer, and electric where noted, sized to 58 feet, with fire pits and picnic tables. Two cabins serve guests without a rig. A general store, laundry, dump station, restrooms, showers, and a library handle the practical side, with WiFi throughout. The forest setting is the draw. Walking trails run the 12 acres along the creek, with fishing, hiking, birding, volleyball, and horseshoes from camp. A community fire pit, pavilion, and dog park fill the grounds. The elevation delivers cool mountain summers that the New Mexico lowland desert cannot match — the main reason guests make the climb. Pets are welcome. Alto sits above the Ruidoso valley in the Sierra Blanca range, surrounded by Smokey Bear and Billy the Kid country. The Ruidoso resort community, the Mescalero Apache Reservation, and Sierra Blanca Peak's ski and summer recreation are all close. Directions from Roswell: Highway 70 to Highway 380, to Capitan, then south on Highway 48 to the Highway 37 junction, then 1.25 miles on Highway 37 — the second RV park on the left. From El Paso: Highway 70 to Highway 48, through Ruidoso to Highway 37. Summer draws desert escapees. Reserve ahead.

from $44/night

Silver Springs RV Park and Trout Pond

38 RV Sites, 7 Tent Sites

Silver Springs RV Park and Trout Pond occupies one of the most elevated and atmospherically dramatic camping positions in New Mexico — perched at nearly 9,000 feet in the Lincoln National Forest, approximately five miles from the mountain village of Cloudcroft and just 34 miles from the resort community of Ruidoso. At this altitude, ponderosa pines tower overhead, the air is genuinely cool even in midsummer, and the Silver Springs RV Park and trout pond experience feels refreshingly removed from the desert heat of the lowlands below. Full-hookup sites with WiFi, water, sewer, and electric serve RV campers, while tent sites share the forested grounds for guests who prefer sleeping under mountain stars. The one-acre trout pond, stocked weekly with rainbow trout throughout the summer, is the resort's most distinctive amenity — all catches are kept (no catch-and-release), with the park staff cleaning and bagging fish for guests. A clubhouse, community fire pit, horseshoe pits, and mountain views from every site complete the on-site experience. Pets are welcome, and the wildlife corridor location ensures elk, mule deer, wild turkey, and hummingbirds are regular visitors throughout the season — with the occasional black bear making a memorable appearance on the property's edge. The Lincoln National Forest surrounding the park offers hiking, mountain biking, and trail riding through high-country terrain that defines the Sacramento Mountains character — limestone ridgelines, mixed conifer forest, and canyon overlooks that differ dramatically from the desert country just an hour downhill. The historic town of Lincoln, about an hour west, was the site of the Lincoln County War and Billy the Kid's famous jailbreak — a fascinating chapter of American frontier history preserved at the Lincoln State Monument. Smokey Bear Historical Park & Museum in Capitan commemorates the beloved fire prevention symbol, featuring exhibits and the actual burial site of the original Smokey Bear. Ruidoso, 34 miles away, offers casino gaming at Inn of the Mountain Gods, horse racing at Ruidoso Downs, and ski slopes at Ski Apache for winter guests. Silver Springs RV Park and Trout Pond is a summer destination at heart, with the season running from late spring through early fall when the pines are green and the trout pond is fully operational. The altitude keeps temperatures comfortable even at the height of summer, making it a popular escape from the Chihuahuan Desert heat for guests from Alamogordo, El Paso, and the Rio Grande valley. Reserve early for summer weekends, when cool mountain air, stocked trout fishing, and Lincoln National Forest access make this one of the most coveted RV spots in southern New Mexico.

Sandhill RV Park

from $50/night