New Mexico's 5 Coldest Mountain Towns Deliver Breathtaking Views And Stunning Scenery

New Mexico is an otherworldly, dreamlike place where just one visit may show you exactly why they call it the "Land of Enchantment." This Southwestern state is home to a variety of landscapes, including deep desert, open plains, piney forests with alpine lakes and scenic views, as well as stunning canyons, mesas, cliffs, and petroglyphs as found in Bandelier National Monument. It's also a very rugged place, with 88 named mountain ranges rising throughout much of its territory, which in turn are dotted with alluring towns.

New Mexico's unique and often quirky communities have come to help define the place. You'll find settlements such as Old Mesilla, an artsy little town with Old West charm, as well as Hatch, known as the "Chile Capital of the World," but it's the mountain settlements that offer some of the most soul-stirring vistas in the state. They also boast cool temperatures in the summer — a time when the rest of the state is often scorching — as well as icy conditions in the winter, when many of these communities transform into magical snowy wonderlands.

Visiting a mountain town in New Mexico is a way to experience some of the state's most arresting natural scenery while also keeping cool or diving into winter sports activities. While there are many to choose from, here are five of the coldest and most beautiful, according to both reviews from visitors and weather data.

Surrounded by the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, Taos is New Mexico at its most scenic, artsy, and outdoorsy. This high-desert settlement of around 6,500 people is known for its beauty, Southwestern vibes, as well as its deep history and culture as seen in the Taos Pueblo — a 1,000-year-old UNESCO World Heritage Site. People come to Taos to hike, bike, browse its more than 70 galleries, or take in the expanse of the Rio Grande Gorge and surrounding plateau from a hot air balloon.

In the cold months, Taos becomes a playground for skiers and snowboarders who flock to the slopes of the world-class Taos Ski Valley resort. The fact that Taos sees an average low of just 13 degrees Fahrenheit in January makes it one of the most frigid spots in the state, as well as an ideal place for snow sports enthusiasts. However, Taos also stays relatively unscathed by New Mexico's often-punishing heat, with daytime summer highs in the low 80s, followed by cool evening and morning temperatures.

This makes Taos a great place to visit, as its scenery reveals itself at any time of the year. A summer hike in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains will take you through thick forests into an idyllic world of alpine meadows, glacial lakes, and cold water streams, while a winter ski excursion offers deep powder bliss. Taos also boasts some of the most amazing views in the state. At 13,161 feet, nearby Wheeler Peak is New Mexico's highest point and doesn't require technical gear or deep expertise to climb, while the Gorge Bridge is an architectural marvel 650 feet above the Rio Grande that can only be truly appreciated in person.

Situated in the southern part of the state, Ruidoso is a picturesque mountain village surrounded by over a million acres of national forest and wilderness. It's also one of New Mexico's colder towns, with wintertime temperatures regularly dipping down into the 20s. The fact that it sits at nearly 7,000 feet above sea level also keeps the extreme heat away, as the average high temperature hovers around 67 degrees Fahrenheit, making it an ideal escape from the baking lowlands.

Like Taos, Ruidoso is one of New Mexico's hotspots for skiing and other winter sports. Nearby resort Ski Apache boasts an average of 15 feet of snow and 11 lifts, and in the summer, the complex offers gondola rides to the top of the resort to enjoy views of the 12,000-foot Sierra Blanca Peak. It also runs zip lines that have garnered rave reviews online. "Zip line — Adrenaline junkie must do!" wrote one customer on TripAdvisor. "Starting over 11,000 feet and about a mile long on the first round. Amazing views! Can't beat it!"

As for Ruidoso's natural gems, head into the Lincoln National Forest for hiking, mountain biking, camping, and more. Here you'll find stands of fir, spruce, pinyon pine, and juniper, with summer temperatures dipping low enough to require a jacket at elevation. The area around the village is also home to some cooling bodies of water, including Grindstone, Alto, and Bonito lakes, three gorgeous mountain reservoirs good for kayaking, fishing, picnicking, or just strolling along their shores.

Raton sits just a stone's throw from the Colorado border in New Mexico's northeastern corner, and is consistently listed as one of the coldest spots in the state. Winter temperatures often plunge as low as 15 degrees Fahrenheit during the chilliest months of the year, while summer highs peak in the low 80s during the day. Like all the towns on this list, this has to do with elevation more than anything, as Raton is perched high in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains at a height of 6,600 feet.

To experience some of Raton's natural splendor, check out Sugarite Canyon State Park, which sits just 5 miles outside of town. Established in 1985 at the site of a decommissioned coal mine, this park features 20 miles of hiking paths winding through deep forest and open meadows, along with fast-flowing creeks, wildflowers, and two beautiful lakes. The park also has two campgrounds with 40 developed sites, and in the winter draws snowshoeing, sledding, and cross-country skiing enthusiasts.

While you're in the area, head to the top of nearby Capulin Volcano National Monument for some truly epic vistas. This extinct cinder cone volcano is part of the 8,000-mile Raton-Clayton Volcanic Field and reaches an elevation of 8,182 feet, offering jaw-dropping views of four states from the top. The volcano last erupted around 60,000 years ago, and visitors hike along the rim, drop into the volcano's vent, or scramble through lava flows at the base of the mountain.

Home to just over 500 people, the village of Red River sits at 8,750 feet in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains (not too far from Taos) and delivers everything you would want in a New Mexican mountain town. Red River sees temperatures as low as -10 degrees Fahrenheit in the height of winter, with an average of 156.7 inches of snowfall each year. While it can get into the mid-80s in July, things cool off quickly once the sun begins to dip in the sky, and extreme heat is almost never an issue.

It should come as no surprise that the village and its surroundings are a haven for winter sports aficionados who come to do their thing at the Red River Ski Area. This mountain resort offers what it calls "real skiing and snowboarding," with deep powder and no crowds. Come summer, the complex transforms into a cooling oasis for those looking to avoid the furnace of the desert, with ziplining and disc golf, as well as lift rides offering luscious views of the Red River and the mountains surrounding it.

Red River and its unspoiled surroundings are also served by a number of hiking paths. These range from quick and easy nature trail jaunts to more challenging routes heading deep into the mountains, where hikers can expect some of the best views in the state. This includes a challenging approach to the 13,161-foot Wheeler Peak, New Mexico's tallest mountain.

The village of Angel Fire not only often tops the list of New Mexico's coldest places, but sometimes finds itself number one in the Lower 48 as well, with temperatures hitting lows down to -22 degrees Fahrenheit. This settlement of just over 1,000 people is nestled in the mountains 24 miles east of Taos, and sits at 8,600 feet above sea level with clear views of Mt. Wheeler. As the highest-perched of any towns on this list, it should come as no surprise that it's also the coldest.

Angel Fire is a ski town that's home to the Angel Fire Resort, which prides itself on being family-friendly, with a nosebleed-inducing peak elevation of 10,677 feet. This, of course, means the views are mighty, whether you're cruising the slopes in the heart of winter and careening along a zipline during the summer months, when average highs only reach into the low 70s.

To really dive into the scenery surrounding Angel Fire, hit the Elliot Barker Trail. Open to hikers, mountain bikers, and equestrians, this nearly 6-mile loop ascends through stands of aspen to the high-mountain Palo Flechado Pass in a 1,100 vertical-foot climb that is sure to have you sweating while also marveling at the incredible vistas.

When composing the list of New Mexico's five coldest mountain towns that deliver breathtaking views and stunning scenery, we looked at some of the most frequently mentioned mountain towns in the state on sites such as Reddit, Tripadvisor, Only in Your State, and more. We then examined their temperature data, mainly on Weather Spark (as well as a couple of other sites), and out of that came up with a list of mountain towns that met both criteria: good scenery and New Mexico's coldest temperatures (in both summer and winter). While a certain amount of subjectivity went into this article, we feel that the list you see accurately reflects what we set out to do — hunt down chilly mountain towns in New Mexico that don't skimp on natural beauty.