Cibola National Forest is a collection of land parcels scattered about central and western New Mexico. In some places, like the lowland deserts, it doesn't resemble anything remotely like a "forest." The forest ranges in elevation from an arid 5,660 feet to a snowy, windswept 11,301 feet atop Mount Taylor. Lower elevations are characterized by rolling hills cut by sand washes and small canyons. Up high, prominent canyons and exposed rock faces define the mountainsides.

How's this for contrast? Most other major mountaintops in the Cibola sprout electronic equipment, including Sandia Mountain with its vast complex of TV and radio stations serving all of New Mexico. The Langmuir Research Site on South Baldy conducts atmospheric research, primarily on lightning.

And yet, the forest is also graced with four federal wildernesses totaling 150,000 acres, among them Sandia Wilderness, a true "urban wilderness" close to Albuquerque. Water is scarce in these wildernesses, which means those willing to pack their own will relish in absolute solitude.