Good stopover in New Mexico or Colorado?
 

Hi-- I am planning a road trip from Dallas to Yellowstone in June. I'm willing to travel a long way (500 miles or so) on the first night. It would be great if I could make it into Colorado, but New Mexico would be OK, too. I've looked at the map and poked around on the Internet, but haven't seen anything the intriques me. It's just a stopover, but I'd like to stay somewhere kind of interesting, with a good restaurant and some atmosphere -- Wild West or whatever. Any ideas, or should I just let serendipity take over?

I don't know what the lodging and restaurants are like but Lincoln, New Mexico (550 miles from Dallas) is full of wild west history. It's the home of the Lincoln County Wars and Billy the Kid.

http://www.newmexico.org/ScenicAttra...way_billy.html

http://www.nmmagazine.com/NMREGIONS/selincoln.html

Utahtea

Almogordo in NM is a good choice too.
Not far from White sands Nat'l mnt and
there is a good space museum.
Lot of hotels/motels...
Lincoln is nice with only one hotel so
to reserve in advance.The town is well conserved, with a lot of...story about
Billy the kid(truth or not..??).
Erik.

I should have been more specific on my intended route. I've been to both Alamorgordo and Lincoln and enjoyed them both, especially Lincoln. But I'm trying to take the faster route to Yellowstone, which is further north, possibly stopping in Rotan, NM or Trinidad,Colorado or even the route my trip planning software suggested, which is on 287 through a bit of Oklahoma before hitting 70 into Denver. The only town I see in Oklahoma is Boise City, which does show a scenic highway so it might be kind of interesting. Any thoughts on these or nearby places to stop for our first night, have a nice dinner and enjoy the victory of actually getting out of Texas?

I don't think there's anything "must see" sites on US287, though the high plains is quite pretty to me - who've grown up in large cities. I'd just go by how I feel and find a motel when I feel tired. Won't put too much effort in finding an "interesting" place; especially if you're driving during the day, all the sites will be closed by the time you arrive.

Also keep in mind that you probably won't find a "name-brand" motel after Amarillo, until Lamar, CO. Just small independent ones in places like Boise City, OK or Springfield, CO.

My trip planner shows the 287 route to be the fastest, so I thought Boise City might work. I wrote a separate post specifically for that hoping to get some feedback. I don't mind non-brand-name places at all and actually prefer independent lodging and restaurants. But I know it can be a little dicey, so I'm looking for some voices of experience.

A little search find a lot of name-brand motels in Dalhart, TX. You'll need to make a small detour to US87/385 from 287, but that will add about 18 miles to your trip. Dalhart is about 50 mile South of Boise City, OK.

Or try to make it to Lamar, CO. It's 96 miles North of Boise City.

Jayne - Just want to add this. I've driven on many US highways in the TX & OK Panhandle and Eastern CO, but have never actually driven on US287.

But from looking at motel "distribution", I'd assume most people will take US87 from Amarillo west towards I-25 at Raton, as there are lots of them in Dalhart, TX and Clayton, NM. If you just want to do it fast, I'd stick with US287 north through eastern CO until I-70 in Limon. There should be zero traffic in those areas, so you can drive fast, and bypassing Pueblo and Colorado Springs. And no need to climb Raton Pass on I-25, which is close to 8,000 feet.

Hubby votes for the fast way, of course, which is up 287. I really wouldn't mind this, since I've been the Raton way before. I just like to get the most bang for my buck anytime I stop. You know, make the best of the situation, even if it's a tiny town in the middle of nowhere.

The most logical place to make the first stop is in Amarillo. They have good hotels and motels and many places to eat. Probably the most bang for your buck on US-287 until you reach I-25.

Yes, in fact last time we went Yellowstone (1993), Amarillo was our first stop. We enjoyed Palo Duro Canyon and the Caddilac thing (can't remember what that was called)... but I'd like to get further down the road this time and at least get out of the state! : )

Dallas to Lamar, CO is only 578 miles via 287. Easily doable in a day. In fact, you still have over 700 miles to get to Jackson, WY. If you want to get up there in 2 days, you really should stop at Lamar or even Limon.

Thanks, rkkwan. Guess I should look around at what's in Lamar. Our reservations at Old Faithful begin on our fourth day out, so we have some time to sightsee along the way. I just wanted to make that first day the long one because the tolerance level will be higher, if you know what I mean. We considered spending a little time in the Denver/Boulder/Estes Park areas if we could find something we really wanted to see. We want to arrive fairly early on our first day in the park to maximize our time.