Skiing

Did you know that on winter nights in Red River, the mountain itself seems to catch fire, in the best possible way? Skiers and snowboarders carrying shimmering red flares descend the Face, the steep black diamond run that looks straight down on town, in a slow, S-shaped stream of light, while fireworks burst overhead. It is Red River Ski Area's Torchlight Parade, and it turns an ordinary ski day into a celebration the whole town can watch.

Drive the Enchanted Circle south from Eagle Nest, through the wide Moreno Valley, and you come to the youngest town on the loop. Angel Fire did not grow up around a mine or a railroad. It began as a cattle ranch, and the ski resort at its heart was dreamed up at the family dinner table. The LeBus family came from Wichita Falls, Texas, in 1954, after buying the roughly 10,000-acre Monte Verde Ranch. Two years later Roy LeBus and his brother G.F.

Did you know Red River once had two ski areas? Just west of town, a small beginner hill called Powder Puff Mountain taught generations of first-timers to turn, stop, and fall in love with winter in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. It was never the biggest mountain in New Mexico, and that was exactly the point. Powder Puff was friendly, close, and built for learning.