BLM dispersed camping / Zia Pueblo

Nice smooth gravel roads and large drive through campsites in beautiful scenery. Not far from towns but far enough away to feel remote.

Yes as we drove in we saw people occupying other sites and shooting. It’s BLM land if you don’t want that shit go to a national park or something pay and fight a reservation or lottery system.

Our site had shells and some litter but were spacious enough we found a spot to set up camp, built a fire, and had a nice night. We were fortunate and if anyone was camping around us we didn’t hear them during the night. Yup we had some bovine companions come through camp it was not a big deal.

Woke up by gunfire at 3am. We knew full well to expect some gunfire at dawn but 3am was a little too early. It was way to close to be comfortable. Additionally, the entire location was full of litter. It was quite shameful. Shotgun shells, bullet casings, beer bottles, cow feces... cows marched through our site at one point waking us up.

So the road getting here is a bit of a long dirt road, somewhat washboarded by the big trucks that drive along it. The area is big and has a selection of camp sites / flat areas to choose from. The shooting sounds were indeed there, but didnt bother us much. Cattle grazing in the area sometimes. Overall not a bad place to camp. Nearby are also some hiking and biking trails.