Best View Ever!
Our campground sits at the stomach-dropping rim of a canyon overlooking some badlands. Our canyon rim curves around and then juts out into a spine into the canyon. For those who aren’t afraid of heights or are part mountain goat, there is a trail leading out onto the spine and traversing 5 increasingly steep peaks until one stands deep out on the canyon with steep drops all around. I made it out to the 2nd peak before my fear of heights got to me. In fact, most of New Mexico has been a challenge for me. Steep hikes with drop-offs galore at Tent Rocks, Bandolier, and now Angel Peak.
The Campground
Angel Peak Recreation area (South of Bloomfield on Highway 550, turn east on County Road 7175 for 6 miles) features several picnic areas overlooking the canyon and various stunning rock formations rising out of the canyon badlands. The campground is small (maybe a half dozen campsites) and while a couple are large enough to fit a small motorhome, it was tough to find spots even for our little fiberglass trailers – and forget being level! But the view and the hikes can’t be beat. The price is right (free) and there are picnic tables, some with sun roofs, and pit toilets. There’s a lot of oil/gas pipes and pumping in the area, but this doesn’t really detract from the beauty of the spot.
It was very windy one day that were here – and I’m talking trailer rocking, I wonder if it’s going to tip over kind of windy!! Plus,because of all the desert sand, I now have a fine layer of dust/sand over every interior surface of the trailer. It reminded me of living in West Texas and getting through the sandstorms there.
View looking back from out on ‘the spine’ at our campsite.
‘The Spine’ – our first scenic rock out-cropping in the canyon. The sure-footed can hike all the way out to the last ‘peak’ on the left.
This castle-like rock formation is behind our ‘spine’, and as lovely as it is, down the canyon a ways, is a much larger, more elaborate formation with it’s own scenic viewpoint and picnic area (aptly called Castle Viewpoint).
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