Scenic Spots

Wildlife refuges, overlooks and waterfalls. Choose a place, then check the access details that shape your day.

Find your next stop

Some places are a short walk from a car park; others depend on a gate, a season or a closure notice. Open the planning notes before adding a stop to your route.

Wildlife

Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge

Near San Antonio

Bosque del Apache is a winter crane and goose destination built around a 12-mile Auto Tour Loop. Plan for dawn fly-out or evening fly-in from early November through late January, then verify current hours, fees, and refuge conditions.

Access & planning

Access: Auto Tour Loop open daily from one hour before sunrise to one hour after sunset; no camping or overnight parking.
Fee: $5 per private vehicle; check current fees before travel.
Details checked: 2026-09-29

Read the guide

A Mexican wolf walking toward the camera at Living Desert Zoo and Gardens in Carlsbad — Mexican wolf at Living Desert, 2014 Larry Lamsa · Commons · CC BY 2.0

Wildlife

Living Desert Zoo and Gardens State Park

Near Carlsbad

Explore the gardens, native wildlife and 1.3-mile walking route at Living Desert in Carlsbad. Plan around the 3:30 pm last entry and current admission.

Access & planning

Access: 9 am–5 pm; last entrance 3:30 pm. Closed Christmas Day. No camping or pets; trained service dogs are permitted.
Fee: Adults 13+: $10; children 7–12: $5; ages 6 and under: free. Annual park passes are not valid.
Details checked: 2026-09-22

Individual guide in progress

Landscape

Rio Grande Gorge Bridge

Near Taos, about 11.5 miles southeast

The Rio Grande Gorge Bridge sidewalks have been closed to pedestrians since September 22, 2025. Vehicles still cross, and the west-side rest area and West Rim Trail remain open.

Access & planning

Access: Bridge sidewalks closed to pedestrians since September 22, 2025 and still closed July 31, 2026. Vehicles cross normally. West-side rest area, viewpoints, and West Rim Trail remain open.
Fee: No admission or parking fee at the bridge, rest area, or West Rim Trail.
Details checked: 2026-07-31

Individual guide in progress

Landscape

Sitting Bull Falls

Near Carlsbad, 42 miles east

Visit the spring-fed waterfall and picnic shelters at Sitting Bull Falls near Carlsbad. Check the 3:30 pm entry gate, day-use fees, access and canyon conditions.

Access & planning

Access: Day use, 8:30 am–4 pm daily; entry gate closes at 3:30 pm. Check forest alerts before driving.
Fee: $10 per vehicle per day; $25 per multi-passenger vehicle. See the Forest Service for pass details.
Details checked: 2026-09-19

Individual guide in progress

Landscape

The Route 66 Musical Highway

Near Tijeras

The Route 66 Musical Highway is an eastbound rumble strip in Tijeras that was engineered to play America the Beautiful when right-side tires follow the white line at exactly 45 mph.

Access & planning

Access: Eastbound on NM-333 between mile markers 4 and 5, with the right-side tires against the white line at exactly 45 mph.
Fee: Check the official visitor information.
Details checked: 2026-07-27

Individual guide in progress

Sources & photo credits

Official visitor information: Bosque del Apache refuge overview, Bosque del Apache conservation work, Bosque del Apache wildlife species, Bosque del Apache wildlife watching, Bosque del Apache visitor information, Bosque del Apache laws and regulations, Friends of Bosque del Apache Festival of the Cranes, New Mexico Tourism San Antonio guide, NOAA 1991-2020 climate normals, Bosque del Apache station, State park visitor information, Friends of the Living Desert trip planning, Park birding guide, NMDOT Raise the Rails project, NMDOT pedestrian-closure statement, NMDOT Rio Grande Gorge Rest Area status, Rio Grande del Norte National Monument, BLM Orilla Verde Recreation Area, Official Taos Gorge Bridge page, Earthship Biotecture visitor center, Forest Service hours, fees & access, Forest alerts, NPS recreation overview, New Mexico Bureau of Geology, Route 66 Musical Highway, Route 66 Musical Road, Tijeras.

Photography via Wikimedia Commons. Images resized and cropped for layout; individual credits and reuse licenses are listed below.

View image sources & credits

Sandhill cranes at Bosque del Apache, 2013, by Jason Crotty, CC BY 2.0, resized and re-encoded as WebP, via Wikimedia Commons. CC BY 2.0 reuse terms.
Mexican wolf at Living Desert, 2014, by Larry Lamsa, CC BY 2.0, resized and re-encoded as WebP, via Wikimedia Commons. CC BY 2.0 reuse terms.
Rio Grande Gorge Bridge, 2010, by Daniel Schwen, CC BY-SA 4.0, resized and re-encoded as WebP, via Wikimedia Commons. CC BY-SA 4.0 reuse terms.
Sitting Bull Falls, September 2022, by RaeAnnCarrasco, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped, resized and re-encoded as WebP, via Wikimedia Commons. CC BY-SA 4.0 reuse terms.