Rio Grande del Norte National Monument

Created in 2013 from partly existing public lands, The Rio Grande del Norte National Monument encompasses a large amount of land along the Rio Grande River from the Colorado border to south of Taos. Far from any major city, you'll likely enjoy trails to yourself in the morning and few other visitors in the off-season. One of the main activities offered on the monument is white water rafting, but it's also open to backpacking, mountain biking, camping, fishing, and hunting with certain restrictions.

The best area to visit and get an overview of the park is the river gorges surrounding the Wild Rivers Visitors Center. The Sheep Crossing Overlook provides one of the most photographic views in the monument and is along the road to the visitor center. There are numerous primitive and basic campgrounds within the park, visit the park website and select the interactive map to see them all.