Elephant Butte Lake RV Resort: July 4-7, 2018

Elephant Butte, New Mexico is a small resort town located just north and east of Truth or Consequences, New Mexico off I-25.  Elephant Butte Lake is the largest lake in New Mexico.  The Rio Grande River runs into Elephant Butte from the north and exits the lake in the south.  However, the lake and river are controlled by a dam built in 1916 by the U.S. Reclamation Service (Bureau of Reclamation today). When built, Elephant Butte Lake and reservoir was the largest at the time. 

On July 4th we boarded our RV and headed for Elephant Butte Lake RV Resort to enjoy a long weekend.  One would have thought that this weekend the area would be over run by tourist, but it was not.  June 30th Elephant Butte Lake held its famous fireworks show, the largest in New Mexico.  During that weekend over 75,000 people were in the area.  Consequently, this weekend it felt like we had the area to ourselves. 

We arrived at noon and checked in on July 4th.  The people running the office are very friendly and kind.  They made us feel like family.  We were assigned lot 64 in the lower bowl which was a pull in site for our 38 foot Tiffin Allegro red.  Pulling into the site was easy.  The hook ups were easily accessible and well placed.  The site included a picnic table which we always appreciate. The park was clean and quite.  The park is pet friendly. This included a number of well placed pet paths and stands with bags and baskets for cleaning up after your pet. It was clear that a number of the RVs were parked for the long haul a fact confirmed on Friday night when a number of cars pulled in by their campers and unpacked for the weekend. 

The area has a number of opportunities to enjoy the beauty of New Mexico.  There are bicycle paths Tahoa speed boat with tube from Sports Adventure near Elephant Butte State Park.  The rental price was reasonable. The staff was friendly.  The boat was well used and worn, but the motor was well kept and ran very well.  The boat allowed us to enjoy the large lake and sunshine without sweltering in the July New Mexico heat.
around the little city of Elephant Butte.  Traffic is light if you wish to roam on back roads.  There are a number of ATV trails, something we did not try.  We decided to spend an afternoon on the water on Friday.  Thursday, July 5 we rented a 16 foot

Sports Adventure includes Paparonis' Pizzeria which is only open on Friday night , Saturday and Sunday, a fact not well published.  Went went to Sports Adventure early to have a pizza only to find out that the Pizzeria was closed and would open Friday night.  Snacks would have to tide us over while we spent the afternoon on the water. 

Friday we went to Riverbend Hot Spring Inn and Spa and took advantage of a two hour special to enjoy the mineral hot springs and relaxation area.  I needed the hot springs to easy sore muscles from tubing the day before.  The staff was friendly and accommodating.  This is certainly a place we plan to revisit in the winter months of New Mexico. 

Saturday came before we knew it and it was time to pack up and head back home.  However, this is clearly a camp ground and location that we plan to visit on a regular basis.