Is NM for me? (Albuquerque, Silver City: fit in, crime, Home Depot)

[outdoorman]

I grew up in North Calif in the 60s,70s and 80s moving away in 1987 but now thinking of relocating from outside Savannah, Ga to somewhere else as sadly my wife of 25 yrs has decided to move on.
I am an experienced physician assistant so expect to find work practically anywhere there is are medical practices. Anyways, I love the outdoors and would like to find some where to move where my 16 yr old son and I can enjoy 4 wheeling, hunting, hiking, fishing, kayaking/boating.
My ideal area would be like where I spent my youth (northern Calif redwoods) in green forested areas with plenty of free public lands (not over-regulated) to allow multiple recreational activities.
I would like to live in a gun friendly, moderate minded area that has all the amenities you need (home depot, walmart, hunting/fishing supplies,etc) but difinitely not in the "rat race" of overpopulated communities/cities with traffic-jammed commute lines.
Because I have a 16 yr old son, good education is important and drug/crime ridden areas are out.
I'm budget-minded and desire to live in a moderately priced home of 3/2/2.
If I could I would love to buy at least a few acres but if too costly, want to have quick access to public recreational land.
Thanks for any suggestions

[Towanda]

I guess my first question would be -- do you want a cooler climate where you will have a lot of snow in winter and cool summers? -- or a milder climate where the summers are hot and there would not be a lot of snow?

[rruff]

... or milder climates where it isn't really cold in winter or hot in summer?

Which would be the S NM mountains... like Ruidoso and Silver City. Silver City is a good fit in most ways, but it is over 100 miles from a bigger town. Ruidoso has a Walmart but you are ~35 miles from a Home Depot and Lowes. Ruidoso has lower crime. Silver City is a bit warmer and drier... and I'd give it the edge for outdoor recreation. Silver City is more progressive and California influenced... Ruidoso is more conservative and Texas influenced. Schools are ok but not great in either. Silver City is a little cheaper place to buy a house.

[outdoorman]

Thanks for your suggestions in that today iis funny but just minutes after reading GPL Enterprise's post I have a young man in my exam room who is from Edgewood. He is private in the army who grew up in Edgewood. He confirms that there is plenty of land for my son and I to enjoy dirtbike riding, 4 wheeling and tells me that the mountains are close by. Also that Alburqurque is only 1/2 hr or so away when you need to get into a city for something. Now got to read about Aztec. I did forget to ask him if there is any public water as lakes or rivers in the area.

[rruff]

Edgewood is a good choice if you want to be next to a big urban area. From your original post it didn't seem like you did. As for 4 wheeling I'm not so sure you'd find that convenient. You are right next to the biggest town in the state, so expect public lands to be a bit crowded. Rivers? The Rio Grande goes through Albuquerque, but I don't know of anything else. Rivers are generally sparse in NM. What would get classed a little creek in most places gets called a river here.

[songinthewind7]

As for your son, I've heard that Cloudcroft and Capitan have a good education program going on. They are both smaller towns but close to larger towns.
CLose to hiking, atv'ing. I don't have a clue to where kayaking can be done unless it's somewhere up in Northern NM.