Outdoor recreation is the fastest growing use of the Cibola National Forest and more than a million visits are made each year to this popular Forest. The name is a Zuni Indian word, pronounced SEE-bo-lah, meaning _buffalo_. Buffalo may have roamed the Cibola in years past, but today’s big game animals making the Cibola their home are the Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep, Rocky Mountain mule deer, white-tailed deer, elk, antelope, and bear. Game birds include turkey, grouse, quail, and dove; spring and fall migrations of ducks and geese use the Cibola as a resting place. There are 18 campgrounds with 249 family units and 14 picnic grounds with 382 family units scattered through the vast domain of the Cibola National Forest. Sandia Crest in the Sandia Mountains east of Albuquerque is a goal for many travelers. Here on this 10,678-foot mountain top, there is a breathtaking view of the middle Rio Grande Valley and the Estancia Valley—a jet age view of nearly 10,000 square miles. The visitor stands on rocks which in eons past were under the sea, as indicated by fossils found on the peak. Recent recreation developments have been made at the Sandia Ski Area where a new 7450-foot double chair lift will carry 700 riders an hour on a 1650-foot vertical rise to the restaurant and upper terminal on Sandia Crest. A tramway ascends the west face of the Sandias to meet the Ski Area chair lift at the Crest. The fabled Manzano Mountains rising above the plains to the west of State Highway 10 and south of U.S. Highway 66 are fast becoming a haven for the camper, picnicker, or sightseer willing to follow secondary roads to find the perfect spot to enjoy the forest. Capillo Peak, 9368 feet high, Mosca Peak, Cerro Blanco, and Manzano Peak lure the mountain climber. Legends surrounding the old Spanish communities of Tajique, Torreon, and Manzano are exciting campfire stories after a day spent exploring the high country. West of the Rio Grande, the San Mateo Mountains north of Grants and the Zuni Mountains forming the backbone of the Continental Divide southeast of Gallup can be a new experience in outdoor recreation. McGaffey Lake recreation area, not too far from the route of the _conquistadore_ Juan de Oñate, is a cool retreat after crossing the desert and lava flow. West of Socorro on U.S. Highway 60, with Magdalena as headquarters, the high Datil, Gallinas, and Magdalena mountains and another San Mateo range rise above the San Agustin Plains, an ancient lake bed. Mt. Withington and Mt. Baldy, 10,787 feet high, dominate the landscape. Good roads and developed campgrounds are available. Hunting for wild game as well as for unusual gem stones and geologic finds are favored activities in this western section of the Cibola. District ranger stations are at Grants, Gallup, Magdalena, Mountainair, and Tijeras. Lincoln National Forest