The location for your wedding is important!  I've officiated at wedding sites all over, but you can find a fabulous New Mexico wedding location right here in Sierra County.  By far the most popular ceremony site is at the Winding Road picnic area atop the Dam Site Recreation Area at Elephant Butte Lake, shown above and in several other photos here or on the home page.  Be sure and check out the Links You Might Like page for more locations, as many of the lodging areas have either fenced courtyards, an arch, kitchens, catering, great views, or other features which would make them a good choice for either a wedding ceremony or wedding reception. 

For instance, the Pelican Spa has a great fenced courtyard surrounding the rooms, as well as a full kitchen for use by the guests.  Blackstone Hotsprings has a fenced courtyard with covered gazebo and is definitely gay-friendly.  Firewater Lodge is totally fenced with a nice courtyard featuring a large crystal.  Those three Truth or Consequences lodging locations also offer some rooms with the natural hot springs mineral water right in your room!  Sierra Grande Lodge is the most upscale with a courtyard and kitchen and full bar for catered events, and spa services.  Elephant Butte Inn has a swimming pool, wedding arch with distant lake view, full restaurant and bar, banquet room, & spa services.  The Club Restaurant at Sierra Del Rio Golf Course (Turtleback Mountain Resort) has a patio with a great view of the golf course and full bar.  Dam Site Restaurant (restaurant currently closed) has a great patio with a great view of Elephant Butte Island and a variety of lodging options.  While the restaurant is closed, it's a great place to use the patio for a potluck picnic area!  Riverbend Hot Springs Resort has a couple of good spots for a ceremony, depending on how many guests you have.  There's a photo on my home page of a couple I married on the pier over the Rio Grande River at Riverbend.  La Paloma Hot Springs has a nice room for a reception, and I recently married a couple standing in front of their new fountain.  They are the only hot springs establishment that allows lodging guests to use the hot springs 'baths' 24/7.

There are great ceremony sites around the water including Caballo Lake and several spots around Elephant Butte Lake.  You can also choose Ralph Edwards Park, right next to the Rio Grande River, with a gazebo available; or other informal locations in the area.  Don't forget to plan on a soak in one of the natural hot mineral baths while you're in T or C!

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