New Mexico · Rock climbing · Nogal

Ruidoso Area

Ruidoso Area in New Mexico has 4 climbing routes with mixed and sport styles.

4 routes

5.10+ – 5.11c

Sport · Mixed

Is Ruidoso Area open right now?

Alert in the area

The Forest Service lists 5 alerts for Lincoln National Forest.

Order# 03-08-26-002: Temporary Road Closure
Agency alert covering Lincoln National Forest · Order 03-08-26-002 · USFS · Lincoln National Forest
Order# 03-08-01-26-002: Area and Trails Closure
Agency alert covering Smokey Bear Ranger District · Order 03-08-01-26-002 · USFS · Smokey Bear Ranger District
Current Fire Restrictions and Related Prohibitions
Agency alert covering Lincoln National Forest · USFS · Lincoln National Forest
InciWeb - for current incidents
Agency alert covering Lincoln National Forest · USFS · Lincoln National Forest
Snow Play Closure
Agency alert covering Smokey Bear Ranger District · Order 03-08-01-24-007 · USFS · Smokey Bear Ranger District

As of Oct 25, 11:40 am MDT · Source: USFS · Lincoln National Forest. Agencies don't list every closure — check before you go.

Best time to visit Ruidoso Area

Best months: May–June and September–October. Best months have typical highs of 55–85 °F, lows of 30 °F or warmer (32 °F where the station doesn't record snow), at most one snowy day and no more than 12 wet days.

Jan
42° / 19°
6 wet
Feb
45° / 22°
6 wet
Mar
51° / 26°
6 wet
Apr
58° / 31°
4 wet
May
66° / 38°
5 wet
Jun
74° / 45°
9 wet
Jul
72° / 48°
16 wet
Aug
71° / 47°
16 wet
Sep
67° / 42°
10 wet
Oct
60° / 34°
6 wet
Nov
51° / 26°
5 wet
Dec
43° / 19°
6 wet

Typical high / low (°F) and days with rain or snow, 1991–2020. Measured at Cloudcroft, NM, 32.5 mi away at 8,679 ft. The station sits about 1,500 ft lower than this place, so expect it a little cooler here. This station doesn't record snowfall. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020.

The Ruidoso Area climbing area sits in the White Mountain Wilderness, within the Smokey Bear Ranger District of Lincoln National Forest in New Mexico. The Forest Service manages the land, and the area falls inside designated wilderness. The climbing here is sport and mixed, with four routes in total. The Todd Skinner Route is a mixed climb at 5.10b, and the Turkish Delight, First Date and AKA Raspberry Tart are sport routes ranging from 5.10+ to 5.11c. For timing, late spring and early fall are the most comfortable. Typical averages from a nearby weather station in Cloudcroft show May highs around 66°F and September highs around 67°F, while July and August bring the most wet days, about 16 each month. That station sits roughly 1,500 feet lower than the area, so temperatures up high run cooler. The Bluefront Trail starts just 0.4 miles away, and Lookout Mountain and the Crest Trail are both within about 2 miles. For more climbing, No Way Out Boulder is about 5 miles off.