posted on September 16, 2022
The desert is at its best in the fall. When temperatures have dropped, but the days are still warm, it’s easy to be wooed by vibrant sunsets, stunning red mesas, and the romance of Route 66. In Nevada, Utah, Arizona, and New Mexico, alone, there are over a dozen national parks with incomparable topography to explore, and the season brings local celebrations unique to the American Southwest. Whether you’re looking to relax and escape, get into cultural history and traditions, or set off on a rugged adventure, there’s a road trip destination to add to your fall agenda.
Hot air balloons
The desert, with its dry climate and clear blue skies, is the best place to fly and watch hot air balloons in action. The biggest and most well-known festival, the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta in New Mexico, is a nine-day affair in early October that fills the sky with spectacular color. The schedule includes a wide array of events including twilight balloon glows, special shape rodeos (think big pigs and Star Wars characters), chainsaw carving contests, and the Fiesta of Wheels specialty and vintage car show.
While certainly smaller, there are many other fall events for balloon fanatics or the balloon-curious around the Southwest, including Autumn Aloft in Park City, UT, Page Lake Powell Balloon Regatta in Page, AZ, Colorado River Crossing Hot Air Balloon Festival in Yuma, AZ, and the White Sands Balloon and Music Festival, which launches from the national park.
Ghost towns
The Southwest is studded with small towns that rose up seemingly overnight, when mines or railroad stations were built, and quickly fell to the wayside when the money dried up or natural disasters took out town infrastructure. There are a range of ghost towns to visit — from ruins that the desert has mostly taken back, to restored towns in the style of the Old West, where you can visit recreations of old saloons or take historic carriage tours. Some towns are still home to a few residents, so if you enter remote towns, be respectful as you take a gander at the past.
New Mexico claims over 400 ghost towns to be haunted by, and Utah is home to several abandoned mining towns and early settlements. Notable ghost towns in Nevada include Belmont, NV, which still boasts a few surprisingly well-preserved buildings from the 1800s, and Unionville, NV, where Mark Twain once had a cabin. For a taste of the Old West, head to Tombstone, AZ, the site of a historic gunfight that was made into a movie, and gets reenacted regularly.
Historic pueblo sites and national monuments
The impressive land that now makes up the American Southwest was once home to Indigenous communities, who lived in the desert for thousands of years before colonization. Some of the ancestral pueblos of the Anasazi, Mogollon, and Hohokam people have been preserved across the Southwest at historic sites, where you can hike, see ruins, and learn about their history. Visit Bandolier, Gila Cliff Dwellings, and Chaco Culture National Historical Park in New Mexico, Montezuma Castle and Canyon de Chelly National Monument in Arizona, Hovenweep at the border of Utah and Colorado, and Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado, among others.
Hiking, camping, rafting, and riding at national parks
It’s not a secret that the national parks in the Southwest contain some of the most extraordinary canyons, rock arches and spires, caverns, dunes, and river rapids in the US. Fall is one of the most popular times of year to visit these parks, so you’ll have to plan ahead, but there is no shortage of incredible adventures to take.
Nevada
Great Basin National Park, Death Valley National Park
Arizona
Grand Canyon National Park, Saguaro National Park, Petrified Forest National Park
New Mexico
White Sands National Park, Carlsbad Caverns National Park
Utah
Arches National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park, Canyonlands National Park, Capitol Reef National Park, Zion National Park
Hot springs
When the air starts to get a bit of a chill, a piping hot pool of water in the desert becomes the ideal hiking destination, perfect for enjoying a mountain view. Some pools are developed, with running water into tubs, while others can be muddy, silty, and you might want water shoes to navigate them. There are tons of hot springs scattered across the Southwest, but these are a few to get you started.
On the Arizona-Nevada border, the pools at the Goldstrike Hot Springs, outside Boulder City, NV, are an excellent reward for an exciting and challenging hike through slot canyons with eight sections of rope to help you maneuver over sections of boulders. Open only after September 30 because of the heat, you can follow this trail past a waterfall and all the way down to the Colorado River.
Nevada’s Highway 50, aka The Loneliest Highway in America, runs across the northern part of the state, from Carson City (just east of Lake Tahoe) all the way into Utah. It’s a great road trip route for those who crave a truly open road and public BLM camping, plus it takes you by the beloved, but remote Spencer Hot Springs, outside of Austin, NV, where wild donkeys like to hang out.
One of the best ways to mix hiking and hot springs in New Mexico is to drive the Jemez Mountains Trail National Scenic Byway to the San Antonio Hot Springs, which offer three pools in exchange for a moderately easy hike. There are also many options for varying levels of developed springs in New Mexico, where mineral water is piped into beautiful soaking settings, in Jemez Springs, Ojo Caliente, and a luxurious Japanese-style spa just outside of Santa Fe.
Festivals
You’re likely to come across festivals that celebrate the seasonal fall offerings. In early September in New Mexico, you can catch the famous Hatch Chile Festival that celebrates the distinct green chile featured heavily in New Mexican cuisine. In many cities across the Southwest, you’ll find pumpkin festivals and Oktoberfests to get into an autumnal mood, as well as elaborate processions and celebrations for Dia De Los Muertos in early November.
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Kamala Puligandla
Kamala Puligandla is a writer, editor, and bon vivant in LA. She is the author of two books, Zigzags and You Can Vibe Me On My Femmephone, and is always on the look-out for strange stories, excellent eats, and relaxing locales.
