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The Mountainair Chamber of Commerce is your best source of information source. Those who call Mountainair home – who live, work, or have businesses here - have the most reliable information about events, visitor amenities, local attractions, activities, organizations, schools, and community services.
General Information / Community Services / Town of Mountainair / Torrance County / NM
Take a Virtual Tour of Mountainair & Surrounding Area
General Information
Mountainair is located in Torrance County and, although distinctly non-urban, is part of the Albuquerque metro area. Formerly known as the Pinto Bean Capital of the World, Mountainair has long been a traditional ranching and farming community. Community events reflect the Mountainair tradition of blending yesteryear traditions and values with cultural innovation, a practice dating back to Mountainair's early role as area Chuatauqua center.
Our community boasts annual community events such as Firecracker Jubilee, Poets & Writers Picnic, and Sunflower Festival; a summer series of traditional saint's day festivals in Mountainair and the surrounding villages; a vibrant arts community with a dedicated local arts council, galleries, studios, an annual gallery and studio tour, an arts in the schools program, active, and numerous arts related events; the Christian Alliance, a community minded council of churches; the Mountainair Heritage Foundation; a variety of active community organizations; an innovative after-school program.
Mountainair is indeed a good place to live and increasingly popular as both retirement and day trip destination.
Mountainair is in the Mountain Standard time zone, latitude 34.520N and longitude -106.24W. The estimated population, in 2003, was 1,078. Visitors invariably comment on how clear the air is and visible the stars in the night sky are. Located on the Abo Pass between the foothills of the Manzano Mountains and Estancia Valley, the community was named for the breezes from the Manzano Mountains
Nearby parks & recreation: Manzano Mountains State Park, Cibola National Forest, Capella Peak Observatory
Historic sites and museums: Salinas Pueblo Missions National Monument.
Located at the geographic heart of New Mexico, highways US 60 and NM 55 intersect in Mountainair. Interstate 40 is approximately 40 miles north at Moriarty. Interstate 25 is approximately 39 miles west at Belen.Elevation: 6,520 feet above sea level.
Average Temperatures Low - 35.6º High - 67.2º
Average Snowfall 24.6 inches
Average Precipitation 14.25 inches
History of Mountainair, privately published for Centennial
Torrance County NM GenWeb Project (5 monographs on local history)
Demographics - Mountainair Profile (2000 Census)
Wildlife, Recreation, Land Use, and Ranching
Wildlife: Gentle hills, mountain slopes and temperate climate provide a natural habitat that supports mule deer, gray fox, bobcat, desert cottontail, rock squirrels, white-throated woodrat, brush mouse, red-tailed haw, prairie falcon, harlequin quail, red-shafted flicker, scrub jay, common raven, great horned owl, plain titmouse, common bush tit, rufous-sided towhee, chipping sparrow, red spoted toad, collared lizard, desert short-horned lizard, mountain patch-nose snake and black tailed rattlesnake.
Recreation: Our area is rich in scenic panoramas whether hiking, horseback riding, camping or just observing nature. For hunters, annual deer and small game hunting is available. National Parks and Monuments. Camping facilities include. Capella Observatory at Capella Peak. Festivals. Golf and Skiing facilities are available within a convenient drive. The closest golf courses are at Isleta Pueblo and Albuquerque.
Land Use: Ranching, recreational, residential. farming, orchardry, state and national park lands, forestry, wildlife management, archaeology, watershed maintenance.
Ranching: Our area is suited to all kinds and classes of livestock. Cattle, sheep, and more exotic animals thrive in the Mountainair area with utilization of a good grazing rotation program and some supplemental feeding. Continuous year round grazing will deteriorate pastures which would take years to replenish. A general rule of thumb is one animal per 40 acres of pasture. This ratio should be adjusted based on conditions of the seasons.
photo by Bill Miller,
3rd prize, Mountainair Postcard Contest
General
Information / Community
Services / Town of
Mountainair / Torrance
County /
NM
