Beginner Off-Road Trails Near Ribera, New Mexico

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El Cerrito Area of Santa Fe National Forest

Open mesa plains with a web-like network of dirt roads with the occasional rocky obstacle and/or ledge. The general area is wide-open with scenic views of surrounding mesas. If you navigate deep enough into this…
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Total Miles
32.3
Tech Rating
2 Easy
Best Time
Sp / Su / Fa / Wi

County Road A19A to Hermits Peak

This is a county road with beautiful scenery that runs along a creek and passes through small villages. It leads up to the National Forrest and a mountain peak with amazing views. On this trail,…
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Total Miles
18.2
Tech Rating
2 Easy
Best Time
Sp / Su / Fa / Wi

Molino Meadows

This is an easy trail across some open meadows on NM State Land. Unfortunately, despite maps of the trail showing National Forest access, the trail currently dead ends at a gate preventing access to FSR…
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Total Miles
2
Tech Rating
1 Easy
Best Time
Sp / Su / Fa

Glorieta Baldy

Glorieta Baldy is a trail on the South end of the Pecos Mountain area featuring numerous camp sites and an expansive view of the Pecos/Glorieta area. The trail starts at the back of a neighborhood…
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Total Miles
14.4
Tech Rating
3 Easy
Best Time
Sp / Su / Fa

Dalton Canyon

This trail is one of the more accessible routes into the Pecos Mountains. Navigable by most cross-overs, this trail is a local favorite for camping and riding. The trail is mostly well-maintained gravel, with some…
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Total Miles
2.4
Tech Rating
1 Easy
Best Time
Sp / Su / Fa / Wi

Elk Mountain

The Elk Mountain Trail is an out-and-back at Santa Fe National Forest in New Mexico. It is an easy and very scenic ride to the peak at 11.6k feet, where the views are incredible. Towards…
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Total Miles
13.8
Tech Rating
2 Easy
Best Time
Sp / Su / Fa

Arroyo Hondo Forest Service 79

Forest Service road that climbs a wide loose and rutted road. There are many shallow ruts and a few deep ruts that must be navigated around if clearance is an issue. There is a very…
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Total Miles
4.6
Tech Rating
3 Easy
Best Time
Su / Sp / Fa

Ute Canyon

A nice in-and-back trail on forestry service roads through the Santa Fe National Forest near Ledoux, NM and Morphy Lake State Park. This is a woodcutting area so there can be the occasional traffic, but…
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Total Miles
5.7
Tech Rating
3 Easy
Best Time
Sp / Su / Fa / Wi

Pacheco Canyon

Pacheco Canyon is a great easy trail near the Santa Fe Ski area, just outside Santa Fe, NM. The trail can be run in either direction, but the views heading downhill into Tesuque Village are…
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Total Miles
7.2
Tech Rating
1 Easy
Best Time
Sp / Su / Fa

Borrego Mesa Trail

Beginning in the New Mexico town of Cordova, this trail climbs into the foothills of the Sangre De Christo Mountains. While the Borrego Mesa trail itself is relatively easy, it provides access to several other…
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Total Miles
8.5
Tech Rating
1 Easy
Best Time
Sp / Su / Fa

Borregoanger Cabin Cutoff

Borregoanger cabin is a foundation deep in the National Forest next to an unusual quartz and granite promontory. The trail to reach the cabin leaves from the Borrego Mesa Trail and climbs down switchbacks into…
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Total Miles
2.2
Tech Rating
3 Easy
Best Time
Sp / Su / Fa

Dead Dog Trail & Santa Fe Ranch

This road off of the Camino Real Road is an easy drive, except for a dip with soft sand early on crossing Alamo Creek. There are a couple of mud puddles that had bypasses. For…
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Total Miles
4.1
Tech Rating
2 Easy
Best Time
Sp / Su / Fa / Wi

Forest Road 722

This is an in-and-back leading through Carson National Forest. Winding through and cresting at nearly 10,000 feet this is an easy cruise with some awesome scenery. Minimal traffic in the area but there is woodcutting…
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Total Miles
6.5
Tech Rating
2 Easy
Best Time
Sp / Su / Fa

Pecos WIlderness Border Road

This route runs through the open highlands of Borrego Mesa, providing expansive views of the surrounding foothills. This section is not maintained and is prone to significant washouts and ruts. In dry conditions, the primary…
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Total Miles
1.7
Tech Rating
2 Easy
Best Time
Sp / Su / Fa

Caja del Rio to La Bajada Mesa-USFS 24

The Caja del Rio Road (#24) is a 23-mile drive across the Caja del Rio Plateau to La Bajada Mesa. It ends with a large escarpment dropping 1000 feet to the valley below with the…
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Total Miles
20.8
Tech Rating
2 Easy
Best Time
Sp / Su / Fa / Wi

BLM-SFNF Connector & Camping

This short unnamed road is part of the Caja del Rio area of the Santa Fe National Forest. It provides access to the large BLM area with Diablo Canyon and the Camino Real trail adjoining…
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Total Miles
1.3
Tech Rating
1 Easy
Best Time
Sp / Su / Fa / Wi

El Camino Real y Diablo Canyon Trail

The El Camino Trail road will take you to Diablo Canyon and to the Rio Grande River. It is almost an extension of the Camino la Tierra road off of Hwy 599. It changes in…
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Total Miles
8.8
Tech Rating
2 Easy
Best Time
Sp / Su / Fa / Wi

Santa Cruz Lake Overlook Campground

This road leads to the overlook campground then dead ends at the trailhead located above Santa Cruz Lake on a high escarpment, overlooking the lake from the southern end. Owned and operated by the BLM…
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Total Miles
1.5
Tech Rating
1 Easy
Best Time
Sp / Su / Fa / Wi

Close to the Southern Edge

This is a short side road off of Caja Del Rio Road USFS 24, which takes you to a Southern escarpment of the plateau overlooking the Santa Fe River basin below. There are a few…
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Total Miles
1.4
Tech Rating
2 Easy
Best Time
Sp / Su / Fa / Wi

Hang Glider Road

Hang Glider road is a short side road near the end of Caja del Rio Road USFS 24. There is nothing special about this trail until you reach the end with spectacular views to the…
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Total Miles
0.3
Tech Rating
2 Easy
Best Time
Sp / Su / Fa / Wi

Upper Diablo Canyon Rd

This short road is somewhat deceiving as it appears to take you to a water pump station and nothing more. At the very end of the road is a single spot for dry primitive camping…
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Total Miles
0.8
Tech Rating
3 Easy
Best Time
Sp / Su / Fa / Wi

Clara Peak

Clara Peak a relatively relaxed drive starting through the plains of the lower BLM land east of Espanola before starting to climb in the Santa Fe National Forest. 31 mile road which lasts the majority…
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Total Miles
15.7
Tech Rating
3 Easy
Best Time
Sp / Su / Fa

Jemez to Espanola

This is a very scenic route around the North side of the Valles Caldera. It goes from the Jemez Mountains over to Espanola and is a great full-day loop with plenty of exploring to be…
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Total Miles
57.7
Tech Rating
3 Easy
Best Time
Fa / Su / Sp

Coyote Mesa Trail

Coyote Mesa Trail is listed on MUVM maps as FR462. Its starts just south of Tijeras in Chamisos Canyon, and crosses the mesa north of Cedro Peak ending near the Zuzax area. This trail offers…
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Total Miles
2.8
Tech Rating
2 Easy
Best Time
Sp / Su / Fa / Wi

Cedro Peak Loop via FR 542

Cedro peak is one of the best sets of 4x4 trails near Albuquerque. This route goes up to the peak using the more primitive FR 542 route, and then returns on the wide gravel roads…
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Total Miles
2.8
Tech Rating
3 Easy
Best Time
Sp / Su / Fa / Wi

Palo Duroso Canyon

Despite appearing on most maps as NM state road 165, Palo Duroso Canyon is an unimproved dirt road from the time it leaves Placitas until until it meets 536 going to Sandia Crest. This road…
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Total Miles
7.9
Tech Rating
1 Easy
Best Time
Sp / Su / Fa

St. Peters Dome Wilderness Exploration Route

This is one of the more varied trails in New Mexico in terms of scenery and topography. Starting in the Jemez mountains with large pine forests, this trail transitions to mesa prairie, and then dives…
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Total Miles
18.2
Tech Rating
2 Easy
Best Time
Sp / Su / Fa / Wi

Osha Pass/70b

This route is the main forest road that provides access to the 70 Moto Trail, which is a width-restricted motorized trail that climbs to Osha Pass. This trail also provides access to the Elliot Barker…
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Total Miles
2.5
Tech Rating
2 Easy
Best Time
Sp / Su / Fa / Wi

Apache Trail

This trail is an offshoot of Forest Road 70/Osha Pass trail. It leaves the main trail and tracks along the boundary of public and private land for a short while before climbing the mountainside and…
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Total Miles
3.1
Tech Rating
3 Easy
Best Time
Wi / Fa / Su / Sp

Forest Loop Road 445

Forest Loop Road 445 leads from NM Highway 165 to the northern base of the Sandia Mountains and back to NM 165. The western side of the loop is more difficult with some washouts, arroyos…
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Total Miles
5.5
Tech Rating
2 Easy
Best Time
Wi / Sp / Su / Fa