In March 2026, my family and I decided to take a week to vacation and go rockhounding in New Mexico. Since we had several places we wanted to go, we chose a base in Las Cruces and rented an Airbnb that would accommodate all of us, and have things to do that would make it fun for everyone. We used to camp on these trips, but I’m past the days of sleeping in a tent. The house we found had a pool and hot tub, a fire pit, a pickleball court, and a large, well-equipped kitchen; something for everyone.
We left Lubbock on Saturday morning. Since it is only about a six-hour drive, we took our time, had lunch, and did some touristy stuff in Ruidoso. Then, just outside Alamagordo, we stopped at PistachioLand, a place we had driven past at least a dozen times. Great pistachio ice cream, by the way. We arrived at our rented house in the evening and got settled in.
We drove to Deming on Sunday, the last day of the 2026 Rockhound Roundup, and spent about five hours browsing the 100+ vendors. They had everything a rockhound would want. Rough rock, slabs, cabs, minerals, fossils, jewelry, and beautiful display pieces. Most prices were reasonable, and we found several things to bring home, but if you go, be sure to take cash, since many vendors do not take cards.
After the Roundup, we drove to City of Rocks State Park and spent a few hours wandering through the formations that give the “City” its name. Shaped by a volcanic eruption and years of erosion, the rock columns create winding paths and hidden passageways that are fun to explore, and many of them are easy to climb. The park has well-kept picnic areas, camping spots, and a visitor center that explains the geology behind it all. Having been there before, we knew what to expect, and when the sun goes down, the view of the night sky is incredible. If you’re looking for a place to camp, this is one you won’t regret.
White Sands National Park is a fascinating wind-swept gypsum dune field that covers miles of the valley between Alamagordo and Las Cruces. We went there on Tuesday, and thankfully, there was no wind. Being early in the year, the temperature was in the mid-70s, which made for a very nice day for a picnic and some sliding on the dunes. The visitors' center has an informative presentation on the geology of the White Sand and how it forms the dunes. Lake Lucero is situated in the lowest place in the valley, and when the gypsum sediment is washed down from the mountains, it settles in the lake. When the water evaporates, it forms selenite crystals. As the selenite breaks down, it becomes the sand that is blown to form the dunes.
On Wednesday, one of my sons, one of my daughters, her husband, and I made the drive from Las Cruces to the small town of Magdalena. The Magdalena mining district was once one of the largest producers of lead and zinc ores in the state. Our destination was the Graphic Mine, a privately owned, pay-to-dig site. On the way, we stopped at Bill's Rock Shop, where we got a quick demonstration of the kinds of minerals we might find. After paying our permit fees, they handed us a map and the keys to two locked gates along the road to the mine. The road was rough, but thankfully, we were in a high-clearance four-wheel-drive pickup, or we would not have been able to get there.
One bonus: the Nitt Mine, which sits along the same road, is included with the same permit. The Nitt had pyrite, mostly in very small pieces. We did not dig there or spend much time, because we were anxious to ‘get to the main event.’
The view from the dig area at the Graphic Mine was impressive, and at an elevation of about 7600 feet, we could see the valley stretching out for miles below. The temperature was cool with a slight breeze, just right for digging without breaking a sweat. The dump piles covered the side of the mountain near the parking area, so we did not have to hike far. I began digging in a spot that someone else had already worked, and when I hit a layer of rocks that looked promising, I started working sideways along it. Within the first 20 minutes, we were finding collectable minerals.
Obviously, everything was coated in dirt, so we brought water to clean anything that had color, and just set aside any rocks that did not. Here is a tip: get a spray bottle that has enough pressure to blast off some of the dirt. Before we left Lubbock, I bought a couple of 48-oz handheld pump spray tanks, the kind used for spraying weed killer or fertilizer. They were powerful enough to clean the dirt off so we could see the color underneath.
Between the four of us, we carried four or five 2-gallon buckets of material up to the parking area and dumped them out. When we stopped for lunch, we cleaned everything off and selected the best ones, leaving the rest for someone else to sort through. I noticed that it looked like others had done the same thing; there were several piles scattered there. I should have looked through them for easy picking, but digging minerals in the dump was what we came for, and I enjoyed that more.
We collected several thumbnail-sized to golf ball-sized pieces, but we did not find the ‘big one’ that everyone was hoping for. After about five hours of digging and sorting, it started to warm up to the point of being slightly uncomfortable, so we decided to call it a day. When we went back to the rock shop, the owner told us that the videos on YouTube made it look easy, but in reality, those collectors had spent up to a month out there digging every day. She helped us identify our finds and seemed as happy with our experience as we were.
As we headed back to Las Cruces, we made a stop in Socorro at the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology to see the museum. What an incredible place. If you are ever in the area, I suggest you check it out. I can’t imagine the value of the collection there; it must be astounding. A few years ago, I went to the Field Museum in Chicago, and I don’t believe their collection of minerals was as large or as professionally displayed.
On Thursday, we took the grandkids to the west side of the Mesilla Dam to rockhound. The kids had a great time and found some petrified wood, a couple of fossils, agates, jaspers, and a lot of leaverite. It was unusually hot that day, so we only spent an hour or two, but the kids were satisfied with the additions to their collections.
We had a great week: shopping the show, sightseeing, hiking, digging in a mine, visiting an awesome museum, and surface collecting by the dam. We ate at some great restaurants, swam in a very cold swimming pool, soaked in a very hot hot tub, roasted hot dogs and marshmallows over an open fire, and made and ate some great meals in a kitchen and dining room with a table for 12. That was a great rockhounding trip!
© Walter Beneze 2026
