Along the southern edge of The Rim
The locals call it “The Rim.” You won’t find it on any map, at least not by name. If you drive west out of Carlsbad New Mexico, you’ll cross the far western edge of the Great Plains. It’s a pretty drive. Rolling hills dotted with clusters of scrub brush and cedar trees. After about an hour the world abruptly falls away in front of you revealing a stunning vista. Welcome to The Rim.
The Rim is technically an escarpment (a line of steep slopes and cliffs) that creates a dramatic boundary between the higher Great Plains and the Rio Grande Rift some 3000 feet below. For our purposes it provided a sixty-mile stretch of rugged back roads to explore, with amazing views and few if any people.
Our destination. Image: Google Earth
I discovered The Rim while exploring Google Earth. From a “satellite view” it looks like a giant scar stretching down the southeast corner of New Mexico creating the western border of the Guadalupe Unit of the Lincoln National Forrest. I couldn’t find much information on the area, but it looked remote and interesting. The perfect place for a camping adventure.
On the first day of 2024 we rolled into Carlsbad, New Mexico after four days of camping in the desert of West Texas. We grabbed a hotel room for the night so we could shower, do laundry, and reconnect with the world before heading out into the Lincoln National Forest the next day.
Unwelcome news arrived in the form of a weather forecast calling for sub-freezing temperatures, high winds, and significant snow accumulation on what would be the second day of our planned camping along The Rim. We didn’t really want to put a major snow storm between us and the 1500-mile trip home. And although Pati would have done it, she wasn’t disappointed when we finally made the decision to compromise. Instead of camping on The Rim we would make a day-trip to explore the area, then head back east early the next day in front of the approaching storm.
The next morning we left Carlsbad, New Mexico at dawn and drove deep into the Lincoln National Forest. Just past the tiny settlement of Queen we turned off onto the National Livestock Road and started our journey north along The Rim.
At first there is not much to see. Seemingly endless stands of stunted cedar trees line both sides of the road. The only inhabitants were the occasional grazing bull or cow. After about an hour the gravel trail rises to the top of the limestone ridge and you have one of those “stop the car and jump out to take in the view” moments. The term “breathtaking” is overused, but it is an accurate description of the 180-degree vistas that open up before you.
After about two hours of trundling along and taking in the views, the temperature dropped, clouds rolled in, and it starting snowing. A wet snow with those big, heavy snowflakes. Pati worked on making lunch while I wandered off to find a place to sit and reflect. It was so quiet you could hear the snowflakes as they gently landed.
We quietly ate our lunch in the shelter of the Jeep, watching snow squalls blow across the landscape below. It was beautiful, but at the risk of sounding like fair weather campers, neither of us were disappointed that there was a nice, warm, dry hotel room waiting for us somewhere down the road.
As we prepared to start our way back towards Carlsbad a young buck stepped out from the cedar trees, looked at us for a moment, then disappeared across the road in the brush. Other than cattle, it was the only wildlife we saw that day. We spent several hours trundling back south. The skies cleared a bit, letting the occasional burst of sunshine illuminate the cliffs and rolling hills below. With the fading light of day in the rearview mirror we made our way back toward Carlsbad. If solitude and scenery are your thing, The Rim is a good place to put on your list.
Member of the local welcome committee.
Bonus Video: The Rim
This short video includes some cool drone footage that helps convey the grandeur and expanse of The Rim. It is dedicated to our son, Tom. Tom and I had planned to make this trip as a father-son outing over a decade ago. Unfortunately, that didn’t work out. But if there are special places where heaven and earth intersect, thin spots between here and the after, this is definitely one of them.
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