Set in the heart of Native American ancestral homelands, Gallup, New Mexico, is a gateway to Native American culture. The Navajo Nation lies at the city’s doorstep. The Pueblo of Zuni is south of the city and the Hopi Reservation lies just over the state line in Arizona. The region’s culture truly shines during the Gallup Inter-Tribal Indian Ceremonial, when Native Americans from across the Southwest and Mexico flock to the town for a week of pow wows, parades, an all-Indian rodeo, and other events.

First launched on September 28, 1922, the Gallup Inter-Tribal Indian Ceremonial has been taking place in Gallup, New Mexico, for nearly a century. It’s not only one of the state’s oldest events, but also one of the oldest continuous recognitions of Native American culture and art. (It has inspired similar gatherings in locales across the Southwest, but has always been the original.) After nearly a hundred years, a few of the details of the event’s history have faded away, but the Ceremonial’s founding story is clear.

Founded in 1881 when the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad tracks were laid through town, Gallup, New Mexico, is a gateway to Native American culture. It's the largest town on the edge of the Navajo Nation and is also near both the Pueblo of Zuni and Hopi Reservation just over the state line. Thanks to this rich history, the town is well-known for the Gallup Inter-Tribal Indian Ceremonial, an annual event that includes a pow wow with traditional dances, an arts and crafts fair, an all-Indian rodeo, a pageant, and more. But if you just can’t make it for the ceremonial in August, there are still plenty of ways to experience Gallup’s unique culture year-round.

Starting in the 1950s, draggin’ Main Street in Clovis, New Mexico, was a popular pastime. Cruising the town’s “main drag” was a Friday night ritual with a long line of cars, bumper to bumper, slowly creeping down Main—windows rolled down, radios blasting rock & roll, engines revving, kids hollering, and lots of laughter. This was how teens and young adults enjoyed their weekend social life. It was a way to meet friends, find dates, and check out four-wheeled rivals.

The town of Clovis on New Mexico’s eastern plains is an unlikely birthplace of American rock & roll music, yet some of the industry’s biggest names have recorded here. Straddling US 60 a scant eight miles from the Texas border, the agricultural town was the 1950s home of the Norman Petty Studios, a small recording space in a former grocery store on West 7th Street.

It all started with a flood in northern New Mexico in 1908. Cowboy George McJunkin was checking fences and arroyos for damage after the rain had stopped and came across the largest bison bones he had ever seen. The ground had been washed away in the flood, exposing the bones for the first time in thousands of years. Over the next few years, archaeologists started excavating the site and word began to spread.

There’s a reason that so many New Mexico postcards feature colorful hot air balloons—they’re a unique part of the state’s culture. The crisp, high-desert air provides the ideal climate for ballooning, so locals are used to seeing a sky filled with them on their daily commutes, especially during the fall. But if you haven’t seen the balloons before, the experience is nothing short of magical!

The small town of Artesia, New Mexico, has a unique history tied closely to cattle ranching, farming and dairy, oil and gas, water, the railroad and more—each of which is represented in artifacts, statues, and murals around town. In fact, Artesia was designated a New Mexico Arts and Cultural District by the New Mexico Arts Commission in November 2013.

The Land of Enchantment is known for plentiful art and cultural experiences, but the small city of Artesia has managed to stand apart from the rest. Nestled in the southeast corner of New Mexico between Roswell and Carlsbad, Artesia’s unique culture dates back to the 1800s. The city really started to gain popularity when homesteaders started coming in droves in the 1880s because of the Artesian water system. Before that, the area had been part of John Chisum’s cattle empire.

Tucked in the shadow of the Sangre de Cristo Mountain range along the Pecos River, the Village of Pecos is the ideal mix of historical tradition and wilderness escape. With spectacular landscapes, colorful aspen groves, and endless trails, this quaint mountain village in northern New Mexico is the perfect place for your next adventure.