Beginner Off-Road Trails Near Santa Fe, New Mexico

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…
Learn more about Dead Dog Trail & Santa Fe Ranch

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…
Learn more about Caja del Rio to La Bajada Mesa-USFS 24

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…
Learn more about El Camino Real y Diablo Canyon Trail

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…
Learn more about BLM-SFNF Connector & Camping

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…
Learn more about Arroyo Hondo Forest Service 79

This Santa Fe county road 56C will take you 4.7 miles connecting to the Caja del Rio to La Bajada Mesa-USFS 24 trail. It goes through the Santa Fe Ranch Cienega Recreation area which is…
Learn more about Shortcut to Caja del Rio - Santa Fe County Road 56C

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…
Learn more about Pacheco Canyon

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…
Learn more about Glorieta Baldy

North Glorieta Pass can be run from its east entrance at the top of Rowe Hill off of CR34 or from its west entrance located off of CR51. The primarily dirt two track is just…
Learn more about North Glorieta Pass

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…
Learn more about Upper Diablo Canyon Rd

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…
Learn more about Close to the Southern Edge

This is an easy route that connects I-25 at the top of La Bajada Hill with Highway 14 at the Village of Cerrillos. For many years, there was a well-marked turnoff to Waldo on I-25.…
Learn more about Where is Waldo?

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…
Learn more about Dalton Canyon

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…
Learn more about Hang Glider Road

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…
Learn more about Molino Meadows

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…
Learn more about Santa Cruz Lake Overlook Campground

The beginning of the trail starts off with driving on flat grass and mild rocky terrain. It quickly becomes a narrow path that cuts through heavy foliage that can be difficult to navigate with a…
Learn more about Rowe Peak Pass

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…
Learn more about Elk Mountain

When I tell people I'm in New Mexico, they automatically think about the desert, but the Santa Fe National forest encompasses 1.6 million acres of mountains, valley's and mesa's. This trail ranges from an elevation…
Learn more about Pecos Barillas 83

Maria's Canyon, FS 416, is a scenic off-road forest service road that offers an engaging experience and serves as the main access route into the extensive trail system in the area, making it a vital…
Learn more about Maria's Canyon - FS 416

Bull Creek is one of the most beautiful drives I've ever been on. Driving past the Santa Fe National Forest off Interstate 40, I knew that taking the time to explore this area was going…
Learn more about Bull Creek 86

This primarily dirt two-track partially loops through the northwest section of the Glorieta Mesa area. It features some deeper ruts and off-camber sections and has the potential to become very slick mud after rain or…
Learn more about West Mesa Loop

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…
Learn more about Borrego Mesa Trail

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…
Learn more about Pecos WIlderness Border Road

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…
Learn more about Clara Peak

This route is easy but can be more difficult due to weather conditions. This shortcut connects I-25 to Highway 14, the Turquoise Trail. There is private land on both sides of the road with barbed…
Learn more about Wild Horse Shortcut

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…
Learn more about Borregoanger Cabin Cutoff

Beanfield Ridge is a short single track through a grassy high desert terrain that is easy to miss from both entrances because there are no trail markings in this area. It departs from Maria's Canyon…
Learn more about Beanfield Ridge

Tightrope Connector is a very short single track through a grassy high desert terrain that links Maria's Canyon Road to Beanfield Ridge. It provides a method of jumping into some technical single track more early…
Learn more about Tightrope Connector

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…
Learn more about St. Peters Dome Wilderness Exploration Route