New Mexico has a mixture of public, private and sovereign lands. Besides the obvious Municipal, County and State lands we also have Bureau of Land Management (BLM) areas, Wilderness areas, National Historical sites and Indian Reservations.

In addition, there are National Security concerns that seem to grow each day. It's a daunting list but fortunately we have only a few areas of concern today.

When we place a cache or seek one, we create perceptions in the minds of the public and government personnel and bad perceptions lead to more regulations. Besides common sense and the geocaching.com guidelines, keep the following in mind when placing a cache in New Mexico:

Known land management regulations and concerns:

Placing caches near major public infrastructure such as bridges, dams, power and pumping stations, petroleum and gas storage or transportation hubs, schools and government buildings should be considered carefully because of National Security concerns and surveilance. Airport caches are discouraged or banned. If you think a cache could be mistaken for a bomb, don't do it.

All Indian Reservations are off limits to caching without express written permission from the tribe. Please check your coordinates carefully, as there have been several submissions in the last few months that have been put on hold or archived. Make sure you know where the boundaries are if you are caching close to a reservation. Be particularly aware in the checkerboard regions.

All National Parks, Nat. Historic Sites and National Wildlife Refuges are off limits to caching. This includes The Bosque Del Apache National Wildlife Refuge. This is an informal decision that will be codified soon. It never hurts to ask!

BLM (Bureau of Land Management) land is open to geocaching with authorization:

From BLM New Mexico Geocaching on public lands:

The BLM must confirm that geochaching activities do not jeopardize public health and safety, do not cause environmental damage, and do not conflict with other authorized land uses. Prior to establishing a cache on public lands, please contact the local BLM Field Office to identify the intended location and to request authorization. Through this contact, BLM can verify that the proposed cache location:

* Is not near any prehistoric or historic archaeological site, cave, cave entrance, ruins, stock tanks, wildlife waters, or other sensitive resources;
* Will not interfere with threatened or endangered species habitat;
* Is not inside a designated wilderness, wilderness study area, or research natural area where such use is not considered appropriate;
* Will not conflict with other land uses or users;
* Is not hazardous or presents any hazards to the public; and
* Requires no other special considerations or undue disturbances.

Also see: BLM Instruction Memorandum No. 2005-092

National Forest land is open and amenable to caching. They ask only that you observe their recreational use guidelines and avoid areas temporarily closed for wildlife breeding cycles and such.

Carson National Forest
Cibola National Forest
Gila National Forest
Kiowa National Grassland
Lincoln National Forest
Rita Blanca National Grassland
Santa Fe National Forest

Some Wilderness areas (such as the Sandia Mountains with dozens or hundreds of caches) have had no problems with caching, but others (such as the Pecos with fewer than 10 caches) have people trying to get caches banned.

New Mexico State Parks have no formal policy; it is up to each park manager to allow or deny caches in their respective park.

Albuquerque Open Space has enacted caching guidelines as of April, 2006 that severely restict caching in most of the foothills, the bosque and large areas of land on the east and west sides of the Albuquerque area. No one is allowed to walk off existing official trails, caches must be permitted, must be no more than two feet off an official trail, cannot use natural material for camoflauge and cannot exceed 125 cubic inches among other regulations. Regulations and printable permit are here , their web site is Albuquerque Open Space

Even when in areas that allow caches tread lightly. Take only memories (and swag), leave only footprints (and swag).

(much of the above courtesy of RockyMtnReviewer)