Tularosa Falls

In Southern New Mexico is a beautiful, unexpectedly large and crashing 25 foot waterfall that you can visit. This creek flows year ’round, unlike many water sources in the desert southwestern United States. It is directly off Highway 70 and less than ten minutes from the center of the city of Tularosa. (It was only 5 minutes from our Airbnb)

I was searching for things to do on this New Mexico trip when I first booked everything, at the end of last year. I cannot recall on which website I found it; something like Atlas Obscura or AllTrails, but now I cannot find it, whatever it was that clued me in about this place back in December.

One thing that looked wonderful and nearby, was a trail to a place called Tularosa Falls. I was down for a waterfall hike! But the more I investigated, the more it looked like we would not have the opportunity. Comments on whatever website it was let me know that the place had been purchased by a private owner and was no longer allowing the public to come and see the falls. I sighed with disappointment.

Then, within a month, a random TikTok account came across my feed: the private owner of Tularosa Falls! (Big Brother is always watching) Via a series of TikToks, he explained that he and his wife were preparing the place for a future RV and tent camp site. Well, it wasn’t access, but it was interesting, and his drone photos of the falls, and the huge amount of work they were putting into the place was also interesting. So I followed the account, and every time Daniel updated his TikTok account for Tularosa Falls RV Resort & Campground, I was more impressed.

Daniel reminds viewers all the time that he and his family are trying to get the place ready for regular public use. It’s not done! Evidence of new construction, and temporary solutions are there. It does not detract me from enjoyment of the place, because I am good at envisioning a future, even if I only have a foundation in front of me.

I was happily watching updated TikTok videos, and explanations, as they came through. The first one I saw was in January, and the scene was covered in snow. As the year progressed, I saw the massive projects Daniel and Thuy were undertaking, with help from parents too! The road was built, then graveled. The viewing area was designed, and constructed. RV sites were carved out, and leveled, and graveled.

Viewers began to beg for access, even while it was not finished. People begged to bring their RVs, even before he was ready. They asked for permission to just see the falls. Daniel had been announcing their planned opening on a date well after Pedro and I would be back in Oregon. But, over time, realizing the crazy demand for access, he and his wife slowly and gradually began to allow reservations and passes, on a case by case basis.

For the very first few customers, he left a business email and invited us to email him and ask for a visit. That’s what I did, the first day of May. And Pedro and I got passes! I felt so fortunate to have this special access, and just weeks before our trip to New Mexico.

When we arrived, we got to meet Thuy, and Daniel was kind enough to spend some real time talking with me, even though he was busy and had things to do. He said we had arrived at the perfect time: right between guest passes, as one group left and the next one was about to arrive. Pedro and I had a different kind of pass, because I was one of the very first that reserved a time to visit. We had the whole place to ourselves for about 15 minutes.

Daniel asked me to point out anything we spotted that we would need or that could make the place better. He said there were extra picnic tables and if there was a spot we wanted a table, he would be happy to help us carry a table to the spot we wanted. It was clear he is absolutely open to making this as visitor-centric as possible. We loved it exactly as it was, and didn’t ask for anything else.

Visit their website now, Tularosa Falls RV Resort & Campground. You can get passes to stay the night, or passes to visit and swim in the falls. Work is not complete, so be prepared to go with the flow. There are porta potties, and the RV hookups are not ready. Remember: they were planning to finish it more and THEN invite the public, but due to high demand they opened it before they were done. Don’t show up with expectations, but rather, show up and try to find the vision this couple has. The place is already amazing, but it is going to be much more amazing. It’s hard not to be filled with gratitude when you are standing there in the cool water, listening to the crashing falls.

Just recently, a storm came through and flooding made a mess of the place. The gravel on the driveway washed down the hill, a tree fell into the water. The creek course changed, and it dug the swimming hole so deep that it would be over my head. Daniel has it all cleaned up again, and learned some things. Happily, he learned that his retaining walls held, and protected the parking area and the viewing platform. It showed him that their expectation of having to periodically close access to the public due to weather is a real thing. No one was injured, and there was no major property destruction that I can see in the video he made.

But on May 30, while Pedro and I were there, the next time slot opened, and a fresh batch of guests arrived and made a beeline for the water. We cleaned up all our picnic stuff, put our shoes back on, and waved and thanked Daniel for everything.