Next 7 departures
- SatOct 3
ClearNo significant weather expected. Temperatures 60–73°F along the way.
Along the way
Checkpoint · arrival Weather · temperature Austin7 AM CDT Slight chance of light rain showers73°F Lampasas8 AM CDT Light rain showers likely67°F Brownwood9:15 AM CDT Light rain showers likely66°F Sweetwater11 AM CDT Chance of light rain showers68°F Lubbock12:45 PM CDT Partly sunny65°F Clovis1:15 PM MDT Partly sunny69°F Santa Rosa3:15 PM MDT Sunny73°F Las Vegas4:15 PM MDT Sunny71°F NM-518 northwest of Mora5:15 PM MDT Mostly sunny60°F Taos6 PM MDT Mostly sunny70°F - SunOct 4
ClearNo significant weather expected. Temperatures 55–74°F along the way.
Along the way
Checkpoint · arrival Weather · temperature Austin7 AM CDT Chance of light rain showers72°F Lampasas8 AM CDT Chance of light rain showers67°F Brownwood9:15 AM CDT Slight chance of light rain showers66°F Sweetwater11 AM CDT Mostly cloudy71°F Lubbock12:45 PM CDT Mostly sunny71°F Clovis1:15 PM MDT Mostly sunny73°F Santa Rosa3:15 PM MDT Mostly sunny74°F Las Vegas4:15 PM MDT Sunny68°F NM-518 northwest of Mora5:15 PM MDT Sunny55°F Taos6 PM MDT Sunny67°F - MonOct 5
ClearNo significant weather expected. Temperatures 58–76°F along the way.
Along the way
Checkpoint · arrival Weather · temperature Austin7 AM CDT Partly sunny70°F Lampasas8 AM CDT Partly sunny68°F Brownwood9:15 AM CDT Partly sunny67°F Sweetwater11 AM CDT Partly sunny72°F Lubbock12:45 PM CDT Mostly sunny70°F Clovis1:15 PM MDT Sunny75°F Santa Rosa3:15 PM MDT Sunny76°F Las Vegas4:15 PM MDT Sunny71°F NM-518 northwest of Mora5:15 PM MDT Mostly sunny58°F Taos6 PM MDT Sunny67°F - TueOct 6
ClearNo significant weather expected. Temperatures 59–82°F along the way.
Along the way
Checkpoint · arrival Weather · temperature Austin7 AM CDT Mostly sunny67°F Lampasas8 AM CDT Mostly sunny63°F Brownwood9:15 AM CDT Mostly sunny65°F Sweetwater11 AM CDT Sunny76°F Lubbock12:45 PM CDT Sunny74°F Clovis1:15 PM MDT Sunny79°F Santa Rosa3:15 PM MDT Sunny82°F Las Vegas4:15 PM MDT Sunny76°F NM-518 northwest of Mora5:15 PM MDT Sunny59°F Taos6 PM MDT Partly sunny67°F - WedOct 7
ClearNo significant weather expected. Temperatures 56–80°F along the way.
Along the way
Checkpoint · arrival Weather · temperature Austin7 AM CDT Mostly sunny65°F Lampasas8 AM CDT Mostly sunny63°F Brownwood9:15 AM CDT Sunny66°F Sweetwater11 AM CDT Sunny79°F Lubbock12:45 PM CDT Mostly sunny76°F Clovis1:15 PM MDT Sunny80°F Santa Rosa3:15 PM MDT Sunny80°F Las Vegas4:15 PM MDT Sunny73°F NM-518 northwest of Mora5:15 PM MDT Mostly sunny56°F Taos6 PM MDT Mostly sunny66°F - ThuOct 8
ClearNo significant weather expected. Temperatures 56–80°F along the way.
Along the way
Checkpoint · arrival Weather · temperature Austin7 AM CDT Mostly sunny67°F Lampasas8 AM CDT Mostly sunny63°F Brownwood9:15 AM CDT Sunny66°F Sweetwater11 AM CDT Sunny78°F Lubbock12:45 PM CDT Sunny77°F Clovis1:15 PM MDT Sunny80°F Santa Rosa3:15 PM MDT Sunny80°F Las Vegas4:15 PM MDT Sunny71°F NM-518 northwest of Mora5:15 PM MDT Sunny56°F Taos6 PM MDT Mostly sunny66°F - FriOct 9
ClearNo significant weather expected. Temperatures 55–80°F along the way.
Along the way
Checkpoint · arrival Weather · temperature Austin7 AM CDT Mostly sunny67°F Lampasas8 AM CDT Mostly sunny64°F Brownwood9:15 AM CDT Mostly sunny67°F Sweetwater11 AM CDT Sunny79°F Lubbock12:45 PM CDT Sunny77°F Clovis1:15 PM MDT Sunny80°F Santa Rosa3:15 PM MDT Sunny79°F Las Vegas4:15 PM MDT Sunny70°F NM-518 northwest of Mora5:15 PM MDT Sunny55°F Taos6 PM MDT Sunny64°F
The worst conditions expected at any checkpoint, timed to when you would reach it driving without stops. Levels use Road Travel’s driving-risk scale.
The route, stop by stop
Checkpoints in order, with driving time from Austin (no stops) and elevation. The forecast above is timed to these.
- Austin, TXStart 535 ftelevation
- Lampasas, TXMile 68 · 1 h 5 min 1,032 ftelevation
- Brownwood, TXMile 139 · 2 h 17 min 1,338 ftelevation
- Sweetwater, TXMile 249 · 4 h 3 min 2,170 ftelevation
- Lubbock, TXMile 372 · 5 h 51 min 3,196 ftelevation
- Clovis, NMMile 472 · 7 h 20 min 4,269 ftelevation
- Santa Rosa, NMMile 576 · 9 h 9 min 4,619 ftelevation
- Las Vegas, NMMile 642 · 10 h 16 min 6,426 ftelevation
- NM-518 northwest of Mora, NMMile 686 · 11 h 12 min 9,448 ftelevation
- Taos, NMMile 720 · 12 h 4 min 6,968 ftelevation
Typical weather by month
Average daily highs and lows, and days with an inch or more of snow, at Austin, NM-518 northwest of Mora and Taos.
| Month | Austin 670 ft | NM-518 northwest of Mora Gascon station · 8,250 ft | Taos 6,965 ft | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High / low °F | Snow days | High / low °F | Snow days | High / low °F | Snow days | |
| Jan | 63° / 42° | 0 | 44° / 18° | 4.1 | 42° / 12° | 2.3 |
| Feb | 67° / 46° | 0 | 45° / 20° | 4.5 | 46° / 19° | 1.6 |
| Mar | 73° / 52° | 0 | 51° / 24° | 4.9 | 55° / 25° | 1.1 |
| Apr | 80° / 59° | 0 | 57° / 29° | 3.4 | 63° / 31° | 0.9 |
| May | 87° / 67° | 0 | 65° / 36° | 0.6 | 73° / 37° | 0 |
| Jun | 93° / 73° | 0 | 75° / 43° | 0 | 84° / 47° | 0 |
| Jul | 97° / 75° | 0 | 76° / 47° | 0 | 87° / 53° | 0 |
| Aug | 98° / 75° | 0 | 74° / 47° | 0 | 84° / 51° | 0 |
| Sep | 91° / 70° | 0 | 69° / 41° | 0 | 78° / 45° | 0 |
| Oct | 83° / 61° | 0 | 61° / 32° | 1.4 | 67° / 32° | 0.5 |
| Nov | 72° / 51° | 0 | 52° / 24° | 2.7 | 53° / 22° | 0.9 |
| Dec | 64° / 43° | 0 | 44° / 18° | 4.4 | 42° / 14° | 2.7 |
NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020: AUSTIN-CAMP MABRY (USW00013958, 670 ft); GASCON (USC00293488, 8,250 ft); TAOS (USC00298668, 6,965 ft). Snow days are days with at least 1 inch of new snow. “—” means the station does not publish that normal.
Road conditions
Closures and chain rules change by the hour, so we link to the official reports for Texas and New Mexico rather than repeat them.
- Texas · TxDOTDriveTexas road conditions
- New Mexico · NMDOTNMRoads conditions and cameras
Check the official National Weather Service forecast and each state's road report before you leave.
Get alerts timed to where you’ll be when you get there
Road Travel plans the drive from Austin to Taos with the forecast at every stretch for the hour you’ll reach it, then warns you about weather ahead while you drive.
Questions about this drive
How long is the drive from Austin to Taos?
720 miles, about 12 hours of driving without stops, by way of US-183 and US-84. Fuel, food and rest stops add to that.
What is the highest point on the drive?
On NM-518 northwest of Mora, at 9,448 ft. It comes at mile 686, about 11 h 12 min of driving after you leave Austin.
Does it snow on NM-518 northwest of Mora in November?
The nearest long-term NOAA station, Gascon (8,250 ft), averages 11.0 inches of snow in November, with about 3 days of 1 inch or more (1991–2020 normals).
How cold is Taos in January?
Taos averages a high of 42°F and a low of 12°F in January (1991–2020 normals).