Best Equestrian Camping near Cibola National Forest and National Grasslands

Top of New Mexico" near Albuquerque is a fantastic camping spot if you love open spaces and beautiful desert views. The sunsets here are breathtaking, and you might even spot wild horses roaming around. There's plenty of space for tents or RVs, and it's quiet and well-maintained, making it a perfect place to relax and enjoy nature. It can get a little windy, but that just adds to the experience. The road to get there winds through some houses, but once you arrive, you're surrounded by pure nature. also the food is so good, there are many food brands like subway menu who offers quality fast food services.

We had the perfect 5 night stay. It was easy to get around to the sites we had planned on visiting. The hosts were super nice and accomodating when we had a wifi issues, they got us up and running again quickly. We used the grill area and even hosted friends visiting one night with their horse trailer and 2 horses. We stayed one night in the TeePee which was just magical and cozy, a mini vacay inside of our otherwise rustic van camping trip! The bathroom is located inside an enclosed out building with the shower located in an outdoor but private/roofed adjacent area. All and all, thumbs up for communication, comfort, basic amenities and ambience!

CAMPGROUND REVIEW: Turquoise Trail Campground, Cedar Crest, NM

Turquoise Trail Campground is a small privately owned campground located five miles north of I-40 off Route 14 (exit 175) just outside the east side of Albuquerque. Tucked along the base of the Sandia mountains, at 6940’ elevation. http://www.turquoisetrailcampground.com/

There is plenty of visible signage to guide you down Snowline Dr into the campground.

As you approach the office/museum on the right, the RV/Camper loop is visible on the left (which appeared full). Behind the office building are two tent loops (upper and lower). There are two very clean bathroom/showerhouses located between the office and tent loops. A laundry room and dishwashing sink is located at the back of the office building. *This is also the only water access for the tent loops.

RV sites have full hookups. Tent sites have only a leveled, gravel tent pad, picnic table and standing grill. Only stove fires were permitted at our visit due to open fire restrictions.

Tent sites are separated by scrub brush, which offered partial privacy between most sites, but you will hear your neighbors. The outer tent sites back up to a residential area, with a fence separating. Bring earplugs for undisturbed sleeping, as road noise from Route 14 can be heard, along with local dogs randomly in the distance.

At $20 a night, the campground is convenient and sufficiently met our needs as we traveled west on a tight itinerary.

Shower tokens are provided with your nightly fee. Each token gives you 7 minutes of shower time.

There is plenty to do nearby, with bike trails and hiking trails…though nothing of particular interest in the campground itself.

The bustling city of Albuquerque is the next exit west, so you are still very close to shopping, eateries, and nightlife.

Really easy to get to, up this lil windy residential road, go slow, that opens up into a huge public land past an open gate. Lots of paths from cars, just follow anyone you'd like and then pull over beside any ol bush. Don't run over any cactus.

Stayed for two nights and the sunsets were awesome. During the day it was very very windy but not too hot. Saw some wild horses the first morning but when I got too close one of them starting running toward me and I said hell no. Classic dispersed desert camping but with good service and close to Albuquerque.

Used Google Maps and had no problem finding the place. Lots of open area to choose from for parking. The road up to the location is paved but once you enter it is gravel. I have a pro master van and had absolutely no problems. Just drive slow and you should be fine. Might be worse if it was raining heavy or something but overall not a bad path. Saw wild horses which was awesome. The vegetation has a lot of thorns and spikes so for a casual hiker it’s best to stay on the gravel roads. The cell signal was pretty good but not perfect. Enough to have phone calls easy but internet connection was a bit slow.

Keep in mind that you will be cutting through neighborhoods once the pavement ends you will see signs stating "public land". Some of the roads are gravel and rocky, so if you have a low car be cautious. Horses roam freely out here. Open space. You can literally camp anywhere out here. I personally don't like camping off the main road. Several "signs" of camp fires, some trash (please pick up your trash people) not a lot. Not enough to make the place dirty etc. The place is literally 40 mins away from me so this is a great get away place. I spent the day there and plan on camping there.