James Canyon: Cloudcroft to Mayhill

East of Cloudcroft, US 82 leaves the high country and runs through James Canyon, signed as the James Canyon Highway, toward Mayhill and the Rio Penasco valley. The drive is 18.2 miles in about 25 minutes. It starts near 8,700 feet, at the top of the Sacramento Mountains, and the bends come in steady, sweeping runs without any tight stretches.

This is the quieter half of the crossing from Alamogordo to Mayhill. It continues from the climb out of the Tularosa Basin, so the two drives pair naturally. East of the mountains the highway descends onto the plains of eastern New Mexico.

At Mayhill, US 82 meets NM 130, which runs west up the Rio Penasco toward Weed and Sacramento. NM 130 also links back to Cloudcroft, 21.9 miles between its two ends on US 82, so it is an alternate way to make a loop.