South to the Bosque del Apache

If you haven’t gotten enough of the area’s birdlife along the Rio Grande in the city, head to the Bosque del Apache bird sanctuary [1], which is the site of an awe-inspiring fly-in of giant sandhill cranes during November and hosts hundreds of other migratory species in the fall and winter. On the way there or back, you can strike out into truly remote New Mexico along the Quebradas Scenic Backcountry Byway [2].