Cruces Basin Wilderness is an 18,876-acre high mountain basin in northern New Mexico within Carson National Forest, protected since December 19, 1980, as part of the National Wilderness Preservation System. Near the Colorado border, it spans roughly 7 miles north to south and 5 miles east to west, with elevations from 8,525 to 10,900 feet. Its terrain is shaped by the Cruces, Beaver, and Diablo-Escondido creek drainages, and includes forest, meadows, and rocky ground. A 1979 forest fire cleared old-growth stands and helped create the aspen groves and open meadows seen today. The area supports elk, deer, predators, trout, and beaver.