Another long trip today. Not. We are getting spoiled with the recent short hops to nearby parks! We are leaving Rockhound State Park which is just a few miles south of Deming and today’s destination, City of Rocks State Park, is just a few miles north of Deming. A trip of less than 1 hour.
Didn’t know what to expect for this park, but after we drove over the last rise we looked down into a large, relatively flat valley. In the middle of the valley was a grouping of rocks sticking out of the ground. As we drove closer it actually did look like a city of rocks!
Apparently a large volcano erupted here and after 35 million years of erosion these rocks remained standing.
These large weathered rocks come in all shapes and sizes, with trees and cactus growing all around them.
Some rocks form recognizable shapes like a camel, a bunny, and other familiar forms…
The developed campsites (those with electricity and water) are grouped together in front of the largest grouping of rocks.
But the nicest campsites and the primitive ones (no services). These sites are nestled into the rock formations.
This would be a great park to camp at if you have an RV that does not require electricity or water (we will definitely come back here in our expedition vehicle).
We are only in City of Rocks State Park for three nights, but we managed to get in a couple of hikes.
One 8 km hike to the top of nearby Table Mountain (elevation rise of 669 feet, so calling it a mountain is a bit of a stretch).
Even though the “mountain” is closer to a hill than a mountain, the views from the top are still spectacular as the surrounding geography is so flat.
Trip Summary:
Depart from: Rockhound State Park, NM
Depart time: 11:30 am (Dec 17)
Odometer: 129570 miles
Arrive time: 2:30 pm City of Rocks State Park, NM
Odometer: 129614 miles
Gas Summary (fill-ups):
Odometer: 129582 miles, 11.8g @ US$3.25/g (US$38.25)
Hello,
Cousin Mark Hensler here. Your dad gave me the blog information. That vehicle looks like a beast. Looks like you guys are enjoying yourselves. If you guys are in Southern California, my wife and I would love to take you out to dinner.
Hey Mark. We agree: a beast it is! We’re really excited. Thanks for the invite, I’ll send an email re our winter/spring plan.