Raton New Mexico

We stayed at a KOA in Raton NM this past week. While most KOA's are just fine this particular KOA left much to be desired. The camp was really like a big parking lot. There were no trees, no grass and no dog run for Buddy Girl. The camp store had very few items, so we had to go to the grocery store in town. Most people who stopped thru were there for one night and moved on. There were a few nice things we did while we were there.

1. We went to the Capulin Volcano.
   I did not know what to expect from a dormant volcano as I have never seen one. It really looked like a big hole in the ground with a bunch of rocks :). The views from the top of the mountain were very nice and you could see forever.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

2. We played golf at Raton NM Country Club. 
   
   
   (Todd had his own post about this course and you can read about it  here:  http://friggingreat.blogspot.com/2015/09/course-review-raton-country-club.html)
   
   
   The golf course was so pretty, and full of wild life. Deer were everywhere and we could get so close you could almost feed them. The view of the mountains was spectacular and the eagles flying above were a beautiful sight to see.  
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
3. We visited Sugarite Canyon State Park.  
   We were able to go on a little hike after exploring the park by car. Sugarite was an old Coal mine town that over time was swallowed back into nature after the mine closed and everyone moved away. It is now a small state park.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

History

The name Sugarite derives from either the Comanche and Ute name for a bird found in the Canyon or the Spanish name, Chicarica, for chicory, a plant found here. Sugarite Canyon was used as a water supply for Raton as early as 1891. The lakes continue to be used for that purpose. Coal mining in the canyon began in 1894 and the town of Sugarite was established as a coal-mining town in 1912. Sugarite had a population of nearly one thousand at its peak. The mines began to shut down in 1941 and in 1944 the post office and railroad were shut down.[4] Sugarite Canyon State Park was established in 1985 and now receives about 125,000 visitors per years. (wikipedia.org)

I am not sure if we will ever visit Raton again. It is one of those places you can say you have been thru.