Every Holiday Evening, Upper Canyon's Season Starts at the Traffic Circle at 5:30

Where does Ruidoso's holiday season begin each night? For the five-plus weeks from Thanksgiving to January 2, it begins at the top of the traffic circle at the west end of Sudderth Drive, where Upper Canyon starts.

That's where Grindstone Stables loads its sleighs every evening at 5:30 p.m. Teams of draft horses with bells pull them through what the stable calls "the oldest part of Ruidoso." Christmas in the Park and the Festival of Lights Parade also start at 5:30. If you live in Upper Canyon, the season's evening schedule runs on your neighborhood's timetable, and it runs every night of the season.

The Route Is the Neighborhood

Grindstone Stables lists the 2026–27 sleigh season as "Thanksgiving-Jan 2 2027." Thanksgiving falls on November 26 this year. Each ride lasts 30 minutes and leaves from Martha's Fabrics' parking lot at 101 Vision Dr., at the top of the traffic circle. The first one goes at 5:30 p.m. and another follows every 15 minutes. Blankets are provided.

The sleighs don't need snow. The stable fits them with a few hidden wheels so they roll smoothly on dry pavement, which means the season doesn't depend on the weather the way the slopes at Ski Apache do. Discover Ruidoso's sleigh ride guide, updated October 19, 2026, describes the draw as a crisp winter evening and "the holiday decorations of Ruidoso's oldest neighborhood."

For people who live here, the thing being visited is the street outside your window and the lights on your own porch. Other Ruidoso neighborhoods have holiday events nearby. In Upper Canyon, the event comes through the neighborhood itself.

The practical details:

• Fare: $30 for adults, $15 for children 12 and under
• Reservations: recommended; call Grindstone Stables at 575-257-2241
• Departures: 5:30 p.m., then every 15 minutes
• Season: Thanksgiving through January 2, 2027

The stable's page posts a 2026–27 calendar image but doesn't list the individual nights in text. Before you promise a ride to visiting family on a particular evening, call and confirm that night is on the schedule.

Two Shifts at the Traffic Circle

The traffic circle runs on two schedules, with cafés serving through the early afternoon and sleighs loading after dark.

On the morning shift, Bosque Coffee & Crepes is directly across from the sleigh lot at 100 Vision Dr. Visit Ruidoso's 2026 roundup of what's new calls it a new permanent location, and the menu covers coffee, crepes, breakfast and savory plates. It's open 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. and closed Wednesdays and Sundays. Down the hill, Casitas Café at 2919 Sudderth Dr. serves coffee, breakfast and lunch from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. every day except Wednesday. The café recommends checking its Facebook page for current hours. Torino's, at 2913 Sudderth Dr. just before the circle, offers brunch, Tex-Mex, barbecue and fried chicken. Its listed hours are 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday, but call ahead before you plan around them.

Compare those hours with the sleigh schedule. Bosque closes at 3 and Casitas at 2. The first sleigh leaves at 5:30. For most of the week, the coffee crowd and the sleigh crowd never meet at the circle, because the cafés are dark for hours before the horses arrive.

This matters most on Wednesdays. Bosque and Casitas are both closed, and Torino's listed hours start that day. If you want a morning coffee at the circle midweek, that changes your plans. On an evening with guests, the realistic order is an early dinner at Torino's on a night it's open, then a short walk up to the 5:30 sleigh, rather than a full afternoon spent at the circle.

The Same Hour Runs Downstream

The sleigh rides set the evening's start time, and two December events in Midtown use the same one.

Christmas in the Park is Thursday, December 3, from 5:30 to 8 p.m. at Wingfield Park, 300 Center St. The tree lighting is around 6 p.m., and the evening includes music, skating, Santa and sleigh rides. The lights stay up through January.

The Festival of Lights Parade is two nights later, Saturday, December 5, beginning at 5:30 p.m. on Sudderth Drive. The Village of Ruidoso Parks & Recreation calendar gives the route as the corner of Sudderth and Mechem, through Midtown and down to the Chamber of Commerce. The Ruidoso Midtown Association says Toys for Tots will collect new, unwrapped toys at the parade.

The 5:30 start time on both nights makes the trade-off clear. On December 3 and December 5, the sleigh rides at the circle and the main event in Midtown begin at the same moment. Guests who want both need two evenings, and since the sleighs run across the whole season, the parade night is the one to protect.

A Resident's Rink Pass

Of everything on the Midtown calendar, the Wingfield Park ice rink offers the clearest local advantage. The rink opens for the 2026–27 season on Saturday, November 28, with opening-day hours of 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. A day pass costs $20 with skate rental or $12 if you bring your own skates.

A full season pass for Ruidoso residents only also costs $20, the same as one visitor's day of skating with rentals. The season runs through Presidents' Day, February 15, 2027, more than six weeks past the last scheduled sleigh night.

Some rink rules can catch out a household that drops in on a busy day:

1. The rink holds a maximum of 60 skaters. At capacity, skating moves to 45-minute rotations.
2. Children 12 and younger need a parent on the rink premises.
3. Children 5 and younger need an adult on the ice with them at all times.
4. The rink closes for severe weather when necessary so staff can get home safely.
5. All sales are final, with no refunds.

With a 60-skater cap, the season pass is most useful on quieter weekday afternoons, when the rink is far from full.

November 28 Is When Everything Stacks Up

The sleigh season begins at Thanksgiving, and the Saturday after it brings nearly every other part of the winter calendar online on the same day.

Ski Apache's November 28–29 opening is a target that depends on conditions, so treat it as a plan rather than a promise. The sleighs at the canyon's mouth don't depend on snow at all, so they're the one item on that day's list that runs regardless of the weather.

The Weeks Before the Sleighs

Before Thanksgiving, the holiday shopping calendar runs out of the Ruidoso Convention Center at 111 Sierra Blanca Dr. The 39th annual Ruidoso Christmas Jubilee runs November 13–15. Hours are noon to 5 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, and admission is $5. The following weekend, November 20–22, A Christmas Affair brings artisan vendors, gifts, treats, live entertainment and family activities to the same building.

On Sudderth, a few shops sit between the canyon and Midtown. Discover Ruidoso's holiday shopping guide includes Rocky Mountain Christmas at 2609 Sudderth Dr., a year-round shop for ornaments, Christmas décor and holiday gifts. The same guide lists Mountain Arts Gallery & Framing at 2530 Sudderth Dr. for art, pottery and home goods. CoCo's Confections & More, at 2629 Sudderth Dr., joined the Midtown Association earlier this year and sells homemade sweets.

For Thanksgiving Day itself, Inn of the Mountain Gods is serving a Thanksgiving Brunch at Wendell's Steak & Seafood, 287 Carrizo Canyon Rd. in Mescalero, from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on November 26. Adults are $95, and reservations are strongly recommended. After that, the Upper Canyon sleighs take over the evenings until January 2.

If you own in Upper Canyon and are wondering how this holiday season figures into what your cabin is worth heading into ski season, Gavin R Bigger can walk you through it. Get a custom market valuation and a tailored listing plan built around how the canyon actually runs from Thanksgiving through New Year's.