RV Trippin to Las Vegas NM. . . .

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This weekend we decided to head up to northern New Mexico for a relaxing getaway. Historic Las Vegas New Mexico used to be a stop on the Old Santa Fe Trail. Many movies have been filmed here, one in particular, and our favorite is Red Dawn with Patrick Swayze. Patrick Swayze actually lived here in Las Vegas as well. There are so many historical sights, great eats, and fun finds to be had here. Come with us as we go trippin through this small town gem.

we are almost there yaaaaay!!

We were STARVING when we arrived so we decided to head on over to Charlie’s Spic & Span Restaurant and Bakery. This is one of our favorite places to go for authentic New Mexican food.



We ordered the Huevos Rancheros and Combination taco plate (1 beef, 1 chicken, 1 roast beef). Sooo good, cant beat it!

Now you can’t leave this place without taking a look at all the baked goods they have. Im pretty sure those cinnamon buns are the size of my head! mmmmmm delicious!


But wait theres more! They make, right in front of you, homemade tortillas.

They sell these by the dozen and we bought two because we cant get enough! They are literally the best tortillas I’ve ever had, and that’s saying something (sorry grandma)

As a bonus on the way out, there was a little table with authentic Native American Jewelry for sale. So beautiful!


Now that our bellies were full and we were “carb” happy, it was time to head through town and towards the Montezuma Hot Springs.

I love seeing historic towns and buildings, I wonder about their stories and the many people who have traveled these same streets, even by horseback. On the right you will see the Historic Plaza hotel. This hotel was built in 1882 and was called “The Belle of the Southwest” because it was the nicest hotel around.

Rounding the bend to the Montezuma Castle which is used as the United World College, we see the older building on the right. Now if anyone knows what this is let me know, Ive looked high and low for what this building used to be and cant find anything.

We didnt go any closer to the castle but it was still pretty neat!

A little bit more down the road we see the traffic lining up for the Hot Springs. Since they are directly off the main road, and there is no strenuous hike involved to get there, they are often full of people.

Pretty neat when you get out and explore!!

Of course there are a few rules so people don’t get CRAZAY!
One of the pools. A little one seater back there, a lounger if you will.
Close ups of the same pools.
The Gallinas river flows alongside these pools. Amazing how it is frozen but the pools are so warm.
another pool with some cool markings around it
We had to take a little hike along the river to get to the other pools. Very scenic and you can hear the water.

There was one more pool but I couldnt get a picture of it since there were people in it. I dont want to be known as the hot springs creeper with a camera!

Im not sure what this building was used for, it is boarded up now.
I think these stairs lead into the Montezuma Castle/World College. It says no trespassing so I got a quick shot of the beauty below the bridge from the stairs.

After a relaxing soak and some great conversations with a couple all the way from Amarillo, we began the trip to our campsite. . . with a few stops along the way

Just a little past the hot springs we came across this gorgeous place, called the ponds. . . looked even better in person and I wanted to stay here all day! In the 1900s, before refrigeration was invented, ice cutting to keep food cold was done here at the ponds.


This was a cute little picnic type area off Old Cinder road. Probably looks even cooler at night with those lights on.
we be trippin

This may sound odd but I love it when we stop at random gas stations along each journey. Maybe its my shoppoholicness, I dont know. In Las Vegas, that place is the Love’s at the end of town. There’s always a gem to be had there, as you can see below

Las Vegas, NM is roughly in that Pink dot area.

Finally we made it to our campground. There are many great camping areas surrounding Las Vegas. One of our favorites is Storey Lake State Park (I’ll show that another time), but for this trip we went boondocking way out of town at some private land we own. It is always breathtaking there

went on a nice hike and found some bear tracks
That’s starvation peak way in the back there
A rustic, hearty, homemade dinner to wind down the day. (Pot Roast with Yucca root in place of potatoes) https://trippinwithjane.com/clean-eating-pot-roast/

Hope you enjoyed trippin with us! There is always so much to see and do in these small towns, it is so fun to explore and learn! As promised below is the cost breakdown for the trip.

  • Round trip Fuel: $101.14
  • Campsite: $0 boondocking on our land
  • Food: $40.57 for Spic & Span. Brought the rest of the food from home.
  • Hot Springs: $0
  • Hiking:$0
  • TOTAL=$141.71 for a 3 day getaway! ($47.24 a day, not bad)
Home is where you park it. . . goodnight folks!

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