Back to original page Printer Friendly Version of REDTT's: Archeological and Paleontological Sites New Mexico offers amazing sites that will link us to the past. Find out more about the life and culture of ancient peoples and cities. View evidence of people living amongst the dinosaurs and Folsum Man, try to translate the ancient petroglyph writings, observe old artifacts and pottery! Get in on a real archeological dig, visit museums with hands-on activities for kids, roam the parks, and feel the honor of our history in our many monuments. New Mexico - an important link to our past! Archeological & Cultural Trips in the Southwest - Travel Northern New Mexico to Mesa Verde to Chaco Canyon and then to the Navajo Nation Fair! Aztec Ruins National Monument - Large, multi-story archeological site dating from the early 1100's. Reconstructed Great Kiva. Self-guiding trail & museum. Near Aztec, NM via NM 550 (505) 344-6174. The New Mexico Cultural Treasure site - an alphabetical search index of historical and cultural treasures of NM. Search for the Aztec Museum! City of Aztec web site Blackwater Draw Museum & Archeological Site - Located in Portales and right on Highway 70, see three impressive museums and one active archaeological dig site. The Blackwater Draw site and Museum are home to various displays and artifacts dating back millions of years. Early investigations revealed evidence of human occupation, as well as the Columbian Mammoth, camel, horse, bison, saber-toothed cat and dire wolf. View artifacts discovered at the draw site. These artifacts give visitors a tour through time, allowing them to interpret life from Clovis time (over 13,000 years ago) to the present. Open seven days a week. Portales, NM (505) 562-2202. The archeological site is 7 miles due west of the museum. (505) 356-5235 Clayton Lake State Park - See more than 500 dinosaur tracks! Fishing, picnicking, hiking, camping. Open daily. Near Clayton, NM (505) 374-8808. **Dinosaur Days - Event every May - 800-390-7858 for details! Dinosaur Discovery Museum - 16,000 square feet of discovering the past!! Includes 8 robotic dinosaurs, a video room, a gallery, a gift shop and a life-size quarry where kids can dig for bones! New displays on the way! Hours: 10am - 5pm Admission: $5.50 general, $3.50 children, $4.50 seniors. Located inside Grants,NM city limits. Take I40 to exit 85 south (away from town). The museum is located just off Exit 85. For more information call (505) 287-5558. El Malpais National Monument - Lava flows, lava tubes, ice caves, sandstone bluffs, Ventana Arch and various archeological sites! Located near Grants, NM (505) 783-4774 The National Park Service Discover Grants - Cibola County Chamber of Commerce. Information about El Malpais and local vacation information. L.L.Bean - travel web site has location info, pictures and a brief history! Farmington Museum - Four Corners history, San Juan Basin geology exhibits and children's museum and hands-on science center! Farmington, NM (505) 599-1174 Folsom Museum - Displays of Folsom Man (circa 12,000 B.C.) and replicas of Folsom spear points excavated in the 1920s. Located 13 miles north of Capulin, NM (505) 278-2122 (summer) or (505) 278-3616 (winter) Kent Hall Museum - At New Mexico State University. Hundreds of specimens of gems, minerals, fossils and a collection of locally found dinosaur bones! Emphasis is given to the anthropology, history and natural history of Southern New Mexico and Northern Mexico. Located on University Ave., Las Cruces, NM (505) 646-3739 Maxwell Museum of Anthropology - Tues - Fri: 9am - 4pm Sat: 10am - 4pm Archaeological, ethnological, archival, photo and skeletal collections from all over the world!! The only museum in the Southwest encompassing the entire history of mankind and culture around the world!! Permanent exhibits include, "People of the Southwest" - 11,000 years of Southwest culture; "Ancestors" - Tracing human origins back 4 million years. Monthly arts & crafts demonstrations. FREE admission. Call for information. Located on the corner of University Blvd. & Martin Luther Kings, Jr. Ave. in Albuquerque, NM (505) 277-5963 Mesalands Dinosaur Museum - See the ONLY display in the world of the TORVOSAURUS, a rare, meat-eating dinosaur. Life size skeleton which was a close relative of the Tyrannosaurs that lived in the Jurassic Period. Other displays include bronze skeletons, fossils, and more. 10,000 square foot museum! Located in Tucumcari, NM, corner of First and Laughlin Streets. Take I-40 to exit 322, go north 1.6 miles, turn east on Laughlin Street. Daily business hours. Closed Sunday and Monday. (505) 461-DINO (3466) New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science - Fossils, 12 billion years of natural history. Dinosaurs, "time machine," living forest and a 3,000 gallon, shark-infested aquarium, rumbling volcano, ice age cave. Dynamics Theater, hands-on children's discovery area and nice gift shop. Located at 1801 Mountain Road NW in Albuquerque, NM (505) 841-2800 Petroglyph National Monument - More than 15,000 prehistoric and historic Native American and Hispanic petroglyphs stretch across 17 miles, along Albuquerque's West Mesa escarpment. Trails and visitor center. Located just west of Albuquerque, NM (505) 899-0205 Desert USA site The Collectors Guide to NM Art site Petroglyphs - The ultimate resource! 750 links to the "petroglyph" sites all over the world as well as New Mexico! Many photos, history, gifts, art, wearables, etc. Check it out! Note: Not necessarily a travel resource, but cool info! We will still list New Mexico information separately. Salmon Ruins, Museum, and Research Library - Exhibits, artifacts and records found by the excavation of the Salmon Ruins. Available for your visit to Salmon Ruins are an 11th century Chacoan great house and an original 19th century homestead; replicas of a sweatlodge, hogans, tipis, and a pithouse for you to investigate; a museum exhibiting artifacts from the decade-long excavations of Salmon Ruins; a research library specializing in the archaeology and history of the American Southwest; and a unique gift shop offering a variety of books, Navajo weavings, quality silver jewelry, pottery, craft and kids items, and archaeological reference materials. Bloomfield, NM (505) 632-2013 Sandia Man Cave - See evidence of ancient man! Take a self-guided hike & explore the area. Go to Placitas, New Mexico and ask for directions. Southwestern "Rock Art" gallery - click here for links to petroglyph sites all over the southwest! Thelma A.Webber Southwest Heritage Room - Prehistoric Indian, early homestead and ranch and oil field artifacts, plus more than 40,000 books. Located Located in Hobbs, NM (505) 392-6561. Three Rivers Petroglyph Site - Over 20,000 cool petroglyphs dated 950AD-1150AD! Climb around the rocks and formations and try to guess what the ancient people were trying to depict. See the "Pit House Village" showing how the early inhabitants might have lived. 6 picnic shelters with water & restrooms. a well visited and enjoyed site. Located between Tularosa & Carrizozo, NM. (505) 525-4300. See more pictures: Viva NM site Back to original page .