State Road 120 (NM 120) is a

state road A state highway, state road, or state route (and the equivalent provincial highway, provincial road, or provincial route) is usually a road that is either numbered or maintained by a sub-national state or province. A road numbered by a state or ...

in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...

. The route traverses four counties: Colfax,

Mora Mora may refer to: People * José Maria Mora (1847–1926), Cuban-American photographer, often credited as "Mora" * Mora (singer) (born 1996), a Puerto Rican singer * Mora (surname), a Spanish name (includes a list of people with the name) Plac ...

, Harding, and Union, and is the longest state road in New Mexico. The highway's only grade-separated

interchange Interchange may refer to: Transport * Interchange (road), a collection of ramps, exits, and entrances between two or more highways * Interchange (freight rail), the transfer of freight cars between railroad companies * Interchange station, a rai ...

is with

Interstate 25 Interstate 25 (I-25), also known as the Pan-American Freeway, is a major Interstate Highway in the western United States. It is primarily a north–south highway, serving as the main route through New Mexico, Colorado, and Wyoming. I-25 st ...

(I-25) in Wagon Mound.

Route description

Starting as

paved road A road surface (British English) or pavement (North American English) is the durable surface material laid down on an area intended to sustain vehicular or foot traffic, such as a road or walkway. In the past, gravel road surfaces, macadam, ho ...

in the far southwestern corner of Colfax County in the community of Black Lake at the intersection with Route 434, New Mexico State Road 120 changes into an unpaved road just before mile marker 3. It travels east around the northern edge of Ocate Mesa and then heads southeast down Manueles Canyon on the northeastern side of Ocate Mesa.Raton, N. Mex.; Colo., NJ 13-11, 1:250,000 topographic map"
1954, revised 1976

United States Geological Survey The United States Geological Survey (USGS), founded as the Geological Survey, is an agency of the U.S. Department of the Interior whose work spans the disciplines of biology, geography, geology, and hydrology. The agency was founded on Mar ...

Due east of the top of Ocate Mesa it enters Mora County and heads south-southeast. Passing the south end of Ocate Mesa, the road heads southeast and at mile marker 12 the surface becomes paved again. In winter, this unpaved section is prone to heavy ice, snowpack, and mud. NM 120 Mile 12

After mile marker 12, the road continues southeastward passing the unpaved Los Le Febres turnoff on the right (to the west). At this point Manueles Creek on the left side of the road is joined by Wheaton Creek to form Ocate Creek, and the road follows Ocate Creek southeast with the Maxwell Land Grant on the left (NE) and the Mora Land Grant on the right (SW). The road then enters the community of Ocate where it intersects with Route 442. Leaving Ocate again alongside Ocate Creek, the road heads east twisting through the foothills of Los Naranjos Peak to the south in the Ocate Creek

water gap A water gap is a gap that flowing water has carved through a mountain range or mountain ridge and that still carries water today. Such gaps that no longer carry water currents are called wind gaps. Water gaps and wind gaps often offer a pract ...

into the community of Naranjos. From Naranjos the road leaves the Ocate Creek bed and heads almost straight southeast, passing numerous ranch roads, for to the town of Wagon Mound. out of Naranjos, the road passes the in elevation, La Chata Crater, on the left (NE).Burdett, William H. (1998) ''The Roads of New Mexico'' Shearer Publishing, Fredericksburg, Texas, pages 36–37, Just before the town the road turns east and still on the west side of Wagon Mound, it has its only

at its intersection with

I-25 Interstate 25 (I-25), also known as the Pan-American Freeway, is a major Interstate Highway in the western United States. It is primarily a north–south highway, serving as the main route through New Mexico, Colorado, and Wyoming. I-25 st ...

(exit 387). The road then crosses the intercontinental railroad tracks of the

BNSF Railway BNSF Railway is the largest freight railroad in the United States. One of six North American Class I railroads, BNSF has 36,000 employees, of track in 28 states, and over 8,000 locomotives. It has three Transcontinental railroad, transcontine ...

. Within Wagon Mound the road heads east and is called Park Avenue. Leaving Wagon Mound, the road again passes numerous ranch roads heading east, past Los Mesas del Conjelon on the right (south), for about and then heading southeast another to its intersection with the

Canadian River The Canadian River is the longest tributary of the Arkansas River in the United States. It is about long, starting in Colorado and traveling through New Mexico, the Texas Panhandle, and Oklahoma. The drainage area is about ."NM 120 – Bridge Replacement Project Canadian River"
New Mexico State Transportation Department NM Hwy 120 MM 44 Looking West

Crossing the Canadian River bridge the road enters Harding County and then heads north-northeast about into the town of

Roy Roy or Roi is a masculine given name and a family surname with varied origins. France In France, this family name originated from the Normans, the descendants of Norse Vikings who migrated to Amigny, a commune in Manche, Normandy.. The deriva ...

. The road comes into Roy as the Wagon Mound Highway, then zags up to Second Street and then up to Third Street where it intersects with Route 39. Then heading three blocks east as Third Street, the road turns due north as Floersheim Street and leaves Roy as the Yates Highway. Running along section lines the road heads north and east intermittently, passing numerous ranch roads and going through part of the Kiowa National Grassland which is predominately north of the road,DeLorme Mapping Company (2000) ''New Mexico Atlas & Gazetteer'' (second edition) DeLorme, Yarmouth, Maine, page 26, for to the community of Yates. later heading due north the road passes into Union County. After in Union County headed mostly north, but still on section lines, the road terminates at its intersection with

U.S. Route 56 U.S. Route 56 (US 56) is an east–west United States highway that runs for approximately in the Midwestern United States. US 56's western terminus is at Interstate 25 Business (I-25 Bus.), US 412 and New Mexico State Road 21 (NM 21) in Sp ...

and

U.S. Route 412 U.S. Route 412 is an east–west United States highway, first commissioned in 1982. U.S. 412 overlaps expressway-grade Cimarron Turnpike from Tulsa west to Interstate 35 and the Cherokee Turnpike from east of Chouteau, Oklahoma, to west of t ...

east of

Gladstone William Ewart Gladstone ( ; 29 December 1809 – 19 May 1898) was a British politican, starting as Conservative MP for Newark and later becoming the leader of the Liberal Party (UK), Liberal Party. In a career lasting over 60 years, he ...

. A dirt road continues north at that point for a couple of miles into the Don Carlos Hills.

Major intersections

References

External links

{{authority control

120 120 may refer to: *120 (number), the number *AD 120, a year in the 2nd century AD *120 BC, a year in the 2nd century BC *120 film, a film format for still photography * ''120'' (film), a 2008 film *120 (MBTA bus), a Massachusettes Bay Transport Aut ...

Transportation in Colfax County, New Mexico Transportation in Mora County, New Mexico Transportation in Harding County, New Mexico Transportation in Union County, New Mexico

Route description

Major intersections

See also

References

External links