While traveling through the mountains of Utah and later Colorado, we noticed Tad Cooper kept getting hot; hotter than he should. So as we were coming out of the mountains, we decided to have him checked out at a Freightliner dealership. Luckily for us, Farmington, New Mexico had one, and we were able to bring him in. While staying in and around Farmington, we were able to take in a fair amount of the area.
RV Lodging around Farmington, New Mexico
While in the area, we stayed in three different locations.
Farmington Freightliner
The most uncomfortable stay in our life on the road. Due to the service bays at the dealership being first-come, first-served, we weren’t able to just drop off the bus. Luckily, they allowed us to “camp” in their front parking area. Once the business closed for the day, we were able to get some sleep, but not long into the morning, as they had delivery trucks and other big rigs coming in for maintenance and repair, idling right beside the bus while they handled paperwork. We were very grateful, however, that they allowed us to stay in our bus while we waited our turn for our bus to be seen.
Northern Edge Navajo Casino
We’ve become accustomed to staying at the odd casino when we need a convenient “stop between stops,” and Northern Edge Navajo Casino was just what we needed. Just a few minutes outside of Farmington, we were able to stay there a few days before our “appointment” at the Farmington Freightliner. Staying here was much like other casinos with the occasional security patrol, but otherwise nice and quiet.
Bisti Badlands
One of our favorite walking places in New Mexico! The Bisti Badlands trailhead access isn’t much in the way of camping, as it’s just a large parking lot with some vault toilets. People can camp there following the same basic BLM and National Forest rules: 14 days. While the camping wasn’t much, the badlands are well worth the lack of nice camping for the access to several hundred acres of untouched desert wilderness.
Activities and Amenities Around Farmington, New Mexico
Westland Park
While we stayed at the Farmington Freightliner, we spent several days at Westland Park. The main draw of Westland Park was its large off-leash dog park. However, the rest of the park was also very nice, with riverside walking trails, a playground, and even bathrooms.
Dining
Mom and I have learned the value of getting “us time.” What this has turned into is instead of just Dad trekking into town for laundry and shopping trips, Mom comes, too. Since we treat it as a “date day,” we will sometimes grab lunch in town. We look for local, inexpensive, and non-national chains. On our most recent trip we tried two such restaurants, Dad’s Diner and Joe’s Italian Restaurant.
Dad’s Diner is an adorable vintage-themed “boxcar diner” with classic American fare. Apparently, it’s known for its chocolate cake dessert, but we were too full from my mushroom and Swiss burger, and Mom’s fish and chips, to try it. We did see it on the counter when we paid, and it was intimidating—in a good way.
Joe’s Italian was actually our second choice of the day. We initially wanted to try Pazzo’s Pizza, a small mom-and-pop pizza shop that looked amazing online, but they keep strange hours, we showed up starving, and 30 minutes before they opened… Still craving pizza, we saw that Joe’s Italian had pizza, so we headed there, but upon seeing their menu, we pivoted again. In a rare convergence, both Mom and Dad ordered the caciofini, a creamy mushroom and artichoke sauce with chicken and angel hair pasta. The meal came with small salads and bread knots, and filled us both up to the brim. Mom actually had to get a doggie bag!
RV Amenities Near Bisti Badlands
We’ve returned to Bisti Badlands 3 times now, and have had a lot of time to explore the area looking for supplies. So far, our favorite place to dump and get fresh water is the Sinclair gas station in Farmington off of East Main Street. They have large diesel lanes that accommodate our bus, an easy-to-access and complimentary dump station, and a propane refill station with good clearances. It’s a great all-in-one RV stop.
As for laundry, Farmington is peppered with Laundratopia-branded laundromats that we’ve always found inexpensive, clean, and uncrowded.
When it comes to getting parts and repairs, Farmington is a crossroads of brands and dealers. While we’ve previously shopped at the Farmington Freightliner, the town also has a bevy of truck and RV part suppliers and repair shops, and they’re not afraid to refer you to the shop that has the parts they do not.
And we should have done this 3 years ago, but shout out to Hoodoo Glass. They were able to replace the damaged front windshield on Tad Cooper with minimal delay!
Many people see the Four Corners area (where New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, and Colorado all meet) as a desolate desert. However, the desert has its own beauty and the cultural influences are amazing. If you have the opportunity to learn about the indigenous people from the Four Corners region, don’t pass it up.
All said, Farmington, New Mexico is a great place to stop, get your rig worked on, and re-acclimate to the lower elevations. It’s got a little of everything and is worth the stop when passing through!