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Pecos National Historical Park Pecos Mission
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Pecos National Historical Park
Things To Do
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Park Photo

Red-tailed hawk flying over the Ruins Trail

At Pecos National Historical Park you can walk a 1.25 mile self-guided trail through Pecos pueblo and the mission ruins. (Guided tours are available to groups with advance reservations and every day at 10 a.m. from Memorial Day through Labor Day. Reservations for school groups and tour groups should be made two weeks before visit.)

There's also a 2.3 mile Civil War Battlefield Trail; sign in at the Visitor Center and rangers will provide a gate code and a self-guided interpretive trail map.

The Visitor Center features museum exhibits with text in English and Spanish, a bookstore with gift shop, and a 10-minute introductory film available in either English or Spanish.

The park's summer program includes daily tours at 2 p.m. with a specific focus that changes each day: Arrowhead Ruin, Santa Fe Trail ruts, the Lost Church, Forked Lightning Ranch House, nature and ecology. There are also weekend cultural demonstrations. Reservations for the tours are strongly suggested; call the Visitor Center at 505-757-7241.

For more guided tour and daily activity specifics, please click here.

The winter progam includes tours of the nearby Arrowhead Ruin on Fridays at 1:30 p.m., the Glorieta Pass Battlefield on Saturdays at 1:30 p.m., and the Forked Lightning Ranch House on Sundays at 1:30 p.m. Reservations are required for all weekend tours (call 505-757-7241).

There's a picnic area near the mission ruins, and also one at the Visitor Center.

 
NM Volunteer (Living History encampment) and young friend
NM Volunteer living history demonstrator poses with a young visitor at an encampment near Forked Lightning Ranch headquarters at Pecos National Historical Park
 
binoculars nps
NPS Image
Bringing field glasses here is a good idea! Pecos NHP is home to a wide variety of habitats that attract more than 100 species of birds.

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Did You Know?
The "historical park" designation generally applies to NPS sites that extend beyond single properties or buildings. Pecos National Historical Park interprets Spanish colonialism, pueblo culture, natural history of the Pecos Valley, the Santa Fe Trail, the Civil War, and the ranch history of northern New Mexico.

Last Updated: January 31, 2012 at 10:12 MST