RiverBear Photo Blog: Santa Fe, NM #3 - Day Trip High Road to Taos

GET-YUR-MOTOR RUNNIN' ROAD TRIP

Astoria - Santa Fe - Death Valley - Astoria

October 25, 2013 (Day 11 of 44)

Taos, NM Via The High Road

Miles Today: 194 / Trip Miles: 1,903

Click on Map to Make Larger

High Road to Taos:
The High Road to Taos Scenic Byway is a winding route from Santa Fe to Taos through the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. It is rich in the history, art and culture of Native Americans and early Spanish settlers. Most of the route is through the Santa Fe and Carson National Forests. Our day trip only scratched the surface of this wonderful area. I could definitely spend more time exploring this route and the surrounding area. [Rating = B+]

Pueblo of Nambé:
The Subaru STI's incredible handling ability came in handy as we made a sudden 90-degree turn from paved New Mexico Highway 503 onto the dirt road to Nambé (population - 600 / elevation - 6,00 feet). Occupied since about 1300, this Tewa pueblo was first described by Castano de Sosa in 1591. The Tewa people are a linguistic group of the ancient Pueblo people who speak the Tewa language and share the Pueblo culture.

Juan de Oñate (Spanish Conquistador, explorer, and colonial governor of what is now New Mexico) arrived in the area in 1598. He forced Nambé Pueblo, like other pueblos, to start paying taxes with cotton, crops and labor. Catholic missionaries came into the area, threatening local religious beliefs. Pueblos were renamed after Catholic saints, and Nambé's first church was built in the early 1600s. The Spanish also introduced new foods to the Pueblo communities, including peaches, peppers and wheat. [Rating = C]

Chimayó:
Chimayó (population - 3,200 / elevation - 6,100 feet) is a community known for its fine Spanish weaving & crafts and famous, beautiful church, the Santuario de Chimayó. Chimayó is also famous for its heirloom chile (Capsicum annuum "Chimayo"). We never saw the Santuario. After spending a half-hour searching for the church, our group voted to "forgetta 'bout it", and we headed north. Excuses: poor maps, even worse road signage and local residents who didn't know where the church was located --- no kidding! In 2013 the local newspaper, Rio Grande Sun, commented on the area's drug problem: "This year’s death count was the worst recorded. We remain firmly at the top of the national list for drug overdose deaths per capita." [Rating = C]

Truchas:
The road through the village of Truchas (population - 1,200 / elevation - 7,800 feet) runs alongside a deep canyon. Buildings seem to be precariously placed on its rim, but some of them have been there for generations. Looking east, the 13,100 foot Truchas Peaks rise a mile high above the village.

"Truchas" is the Spanish word for trout. The community began as the "Nuestra Señora del Rosario, San Fernando y Santiago del Rio de las Truchas Grant", a Spanish land grant in 1754. Due to its geography and location, Truchas remained a relatively unchanged outpost over the centuries. A paved road did not enter the community until the early 1970s. [Rating = B-]

Las Trampas:
Las Trampas is located in a small valley with views of the Truchas Peaks rising on the eastern horizon. "Trampas" means "traps" in Spanish. Founded in 1751 by a Spanish land grant entitled "Santo Tomás Apostol del Río de las Trampas", the village was settled by twelve families from Santa Fe. The church of San Jose de Gracia at Las Trampas is one of the finest examples of the southwestern parish churches still standing. It was built between 1760 and 1776, but local legend says the church actually dates from a much earlier time when twelve devout men built a church of the twelve apostles during the twelve year period from 1580 to 1592. [Rating = B]

Taos:
Taos, located on the west slopes of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, is noted for its art colony and the photogenic Taos Pueblo. The town (population of 5,700) sits at an elevation of 7,000 feet. It is estimated that the Taos Pueblo was built between 1000 and 1450 A.D., with some later expansion. The pueblo is considered to be the oldest continuously inhabited community in the United States. Taos was established around 1615 following the Spanish conquest of the Pueblo villages. Beginning in 1899, artists began to settle in Taos, and formed the Taos Society of Artists in 1915. In time, the Taos art colony developed.

We had lunch at award-winning Doc Martin’s restaurant, walked around the downtown historic district and did some shopping & people-watching in the Taos Plaza. The plaza is a great place to find a bench and people-watch. Our visit was way too brief. I could easily spend a week, or more, on my next visit to Taos. [Rating = B+]

Doc Martin's:
The Taos Inn is made up of several adobe houses dating from the 19th century, one of which was the home of Thomas "Doc" Martin who hosted the formative meeting of the Taos Society of Artists in 1915. After Doc's death, his widow converted the houses into a hotel, which opened in 1936 as Hotel Martin. The name was changed to "Taos Inn" by subsequent owners. Doc Martin's offers outstanding southwestern cuisine … the best food on the trip! This was another excellent recommendation by friends Charlie & Drew. [Rating A-]

Rio Grande Gorge Bridge:
The Rio Grande Gorge Bridge (aka "Gorge Bridge" & "High Bridge") carries U.S. Highway 64 across the river. Sidewalks with observation platforms allow visitors to gaze down at the Rio Grande River, 650 feet below. This steel deck arch bridge is the seventh highest bridge in the United States. The span is 1,280 feet. The bridge has appeared in several films, including Natural Born Killers, Twins, She's Having a Baby, Paul, Wild Hogs and Terminator Salvation. [Rating = B]

Rio Grande River:
Spanish conquistadores discovered the mouth of the Rio Grande River in 1519. In the next 100 years they built some of the earliest North American settlements along its banks. These explorers named the river "El Río Grande", or "The Great River". It has been called many other names. The Pueblo people called it “P'Osoge” or “'Big River”. Shipwrecked British sailors crossed it in 1568 and called it "The River of May".

This river is not a typical river that carved out its own valley. Rather, the valley appeared first and the river followed. This "rift valley" is a separation in the earth's crust caused by earth movements when the North American and Pacific plates scraped against each other some twenty-nine million years ago. The Rio Grande is among the longest twenty-five rivers in the world and the fourth or fifth longest in North America — between 1,800 and 1,900 miles long overall. For 1,250 miles it forms the international boundary between the United States and Mexico.

Tomorrow:
Day trip to Bandelier National Monument.

Photos

(Click on Photos For Larger Image)