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Portales

Los Portales was a familiar place to Billy the Kid in his cattle rustling cattle days (he once claimed he wanted to start a ranch there). Its small, shallow caves offered shelter and several springs provided water. There was a rock corral, too. Pat Garrett, who knew it was one of the Kid's hideouts, was familiar with it, too. When the first cattleman settled there in 1881, it was known as Portales Springs. Once the Pecos Valley & Northeastern Railroad laid tracks five miles northwest in 1899, the folks at Portales Spring packed up and moved northwest, taking the name with them. Eventually the original springs dried up, sand and silt began to bury the caves, and the corral disappeared. The city of Portales (elevation 4,010 feet or 1,223 meters), the Roosevelt County seat, is home to Eastern New Mexico University and the famed valencia peanut. It has four motels, one bed and breakfast, and 20 restaurants. Melrose is 37 road miles (59.5 kilometers) away, Fort Sumner 68 miles (109.4 km) away, Roswell 91 miles (146.4 km) away, Santa Rosa 113 miles (181.9 km) away, and Ruidoso 162 miles (260.7 km) away.

Portales-Roosevelt County Chamber of Commerce
100 S. Avenue A, Portales, New Mexico 88130
(575/356-8541 or 800/635-8036) www.portales.com
chamber@portales.com