Recreation

Night time astronomy and astro-physics observatory owned by private consortium of 8 institutions and operated by NMSU. Home of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and the Arc 3.5m Telescope.

Operated by the National Science Foundation, self-guided tours are held daily. Guided tours 2 pm Saturdays, May-Oct. Groups by appointment. Outstanding views of White Sands and the Tularosa Basin. (505) 434-7000.

Cloudcroft Light Opera Company was organized to provide entertainment for local residents and visitors to Cloudcroft and was so successful as to enable the organization to provide scholarships for local high school graduates and monetary help during the year. CLOC operates wholly as a non-profit organization. Since 1993. Join Cloudcroft Light Opera Company for melodramas and murder mysteries. Boo the villain and cheer the hero or try your skills at figuring out whodunit.

An outdoor ice rink with ice skate rentals, warming hut, snack bar and tube rentals.

Developed Recreation Sites: Silver, Saddle, and Apache Sleepy Grass, Deerhead and Pines Campgrounds. Enjoy excellent hiking trails with breathtaking scenery throughout the Lincoln National Forest, all levels of difficulty, including handicapped. For trail guides and maps as well as up-to-the-minute forest conditions, stop in at the Sacramento Ranger District Office, 4 Lost Lodge Rd, Cloudcroft.

Converting abandoned railroad lines located in the Sacramento Mountains of Southern New Mexico into multi-use, multi-access recreational trails. Combining such trails with other trails to provided a fifty mile long loop trail that will lead from Cloudcroft to Sunspot to Oliver Lee State park to Alamogordo to La Luz to High Rolls and back to Cloudcroft. Facilitating similar trail building efforts throughout New Mexico and eventually connecting all such trails to create a statewide rails-trails system. NMRTA now has 450 business, family and individual members located all over the United States.

Ponderosa Pines is a 9 hole golf course, elevation 8000ft. Only 9 miles from Cloudcroft on Hwy. 130. A cool place to play golf on a tought little course (9 holes). Reasonable rates, friendly people, relaxing atmosphere for golf and reunions. Come on out your cart is waiting.

Fresh local fruit in season. Southwest curios? Many unusual jellies, jams & preserves. Canned vegetables & fruit plus dried fruit. Assortment of nuts. Cold apple & cherry cider. Cokes, novelty & gift items. Located on Hwy. 82 just 30 east of Cloudcroft. Runyan Ranches also offers Horseback rinding by appointment and on site fishing, and for the kids a petting zoo.

Southern New Mexico's Premier Winter Resort. The area features 55 trails on 750 acres with 1,900 feet of vertical, served by 10 lifts. Amenities include Ski & Snowboard School, Ski & Snowboard Rentals, a Sport Shop, a Bar, Two Restaurants, Three Snack Bars and Two Outdoor Grills. Call for the snow report - 577-257-9001

Ski Cloudcroft offers a full range of winter sports, including downhill skiing, snowboarding and tubing. We have a full service rental shop and restaurant. Double chairlift, beginner tows school rentals. Vertical drop 700ft, with elevations of 8,350 – 9,050ft. Ski Cloudcroft also host summer events.

Ski Palace has been serving Cloudcroft and the surrounding areas for more than 20 years. We have the largest selection of shaped skis in Cloudcroft. We carry Salomon and Atomic skis, Salomon and Sims snowboards, Trak cross-country skis and Columbia apparel. We have everything to fill your snow play needs. We have a large selection of sleds, discs and tubes for sale or for rent. We also have a large selection of snowboots, gloves and bibs for sale or rent.

Local and family owned. Full service for youth, handicapped, or adult. Elk, Deer, Turkey, Ibex, Oryx, Barbary sheep, Bear, Lion, Predators. Private land, public land or landowner tags, lodge rental available.

For golf in New Mexico, this is one golf course you can't miss. As you tee off on the first hole, a 150 - foot vertical drop welcomes you onto The Lodge golf course. And that's just the beginning. At 9,000 feet above sea level, the terrain is as challenging as it is beautiful.

Snow tubing with lifts and guided snowmobile tours into the Lincoln National Forest.