Mescalero Sands North Dune OHV Area

Mescalero Sands North Dune OHV Area offers more than 610 acres of sand dunes rising more than 90'. For those folks who love tooling around in their dune buggies, sand rails and all terrain cycles, this is heaven on Earth. The dunes are made up of fine quartz particles and the dune field covers most of the property. In a normal year, the wind moves the dunes about one foot. What holds the dunes in place is a very shallow water table and the sand's capacity to hold water. That works well enough to allow mature cottonwood trees to exist in some areas.

The road in to Mescalero Sands is solid enough to carry trucks and buses with ease, but Beware: as soon as normal highway vehicles leave that road, they sink in the sand.

The Bowl Parking Area is on the north side of the property. It has shelters and picnic tables but no drinking water and no toilets. The Cottonwood Site is on the south side of the dunes and has picnic tables and grills under three shelters with a vault toilet nearby, but no drinking water.

To get to the Mescalero Sands North Dune OHV Area: From Roswell go east on US 380 for 45 miles, turn south at the sign. From Tatum, go west on US 380 for 27 miles and go south at the sign. The area is classed as "open" with no trail or camping restrictions. However, there are use fees: Individuals - $3; Vehicle (2 or more people) - $5; Bus (more than 15 people) - $15.

Hunting is not allowed.

Maps: BLM - Tatum