travel tangent: new mexico 2012

A tangent for anyone missing travel and adventure during the pandemic.

After four guided hiking trips together, MAC and I decided to make our own adventure in May 2012 with a trip to New Mexico.  We’d both had difficult years since our backpacking trip to Yellowstone National Park so we opted to plan our own itinerary, include lots of time to relax, and stay at cozy places.  Along with the desert and canyon landscapes I love, New Mexico had long appealed to me because of its blend of cultures that include indigenous (Puebloan, Navajo, and Apache), Spanish, and Mexican peoples.  I had planned to go there in 2008 for my first guided trip, but REI Adventures didn’t run their New Mexico trip that year so I chose Havasu Falls.  And because I chose the Havasu Falls trip, I met MAC.  Cause and effect.

I have always remembered the 2012 trip as fabulous and New Mexico as surpassing my high expectations.  But in researching this post, I was reminded of what a great itinerary we had created ourselves for a trip to Northern New Mexico. I must have done some serious negotiating with MAC, who likes more spontaneity than I do, because we made reservations for all of our accommodations. 

Note: If you want to follow along on a map with the itinerary, see here on the NPS site.

MAC and I met up at the Albuquerque airport—I flew in from Seattle, Washington and MAC from Atlanta, Georgia.  We rented a car at the airport and, while catching up, navigated to our B&B in the Old Town area of Albuquerque, New Mexico’s largest city.  We had a charming and coloUrful room in the attic of this historic building in a residential area.  After unloading the car, we sat on the front porch enjoying complimentary wine with cheese and crackers (which really set the tone for the entire trip).  It was there that I visibly offended the B&B owner by asking for a recommendation for a Tex-Mex restaurant.  I hadn’t done all my research.  I politely got a short lesson on the unique cuisine of New Mexico rooted in its multicultural history. 

Walking to the restaurant the host had recommended (Church Street Cafe in one of the oldest buildings in the city), MAC and I frequently stopped to look at and photograph the adobe houses with chile ristras hanging by their front doors.  New Mexico is one of the US states in the Four Corners area of the southwest along with Arizona, Utah, and Colorado.  We had travelled to Arizona and Utah in 2008 and 2009 and a lot of the desert landscape on the trip was similar with sagebrush, cottonwood trees, piñon and ponderosa pines but the adobe architecture was unlike the other states.  It was unlike anywhere I had been before.

After a delicious breakfast at the B&B and chatting with other guests, we packed up the car.  Our final destination for the day was Santa Fe, New Mexico’s capital, to the northeast but we headed north towards the Jemez National Recreation area of Santa Fe National Forest for a medley of outdoor adventures.  When MAC pulled off the highway to go to a winery, I shouted “dude, it’s only 10:15!” (yes, I was still learning to be spontaneous and, yes, we did buy wine). 

Our first hike was really a short walk to Spence Hot Springs, a small pool among the pines.  There was less than a dozen of us there and everyone was considerate in giving others time in the water.  Next we drove to a trailhead for a short hike to see (and for MAC to photograph) Jemez Falls, the highest waterfalls (70 ft) in the Jemez Mountains.  Then we drove to the Valles Caldera National Preserve (a volcanic crater) and hiked the Valle Grande Trail to surprisingly (and undesertly) large green mountain meadows.

Our outdoor itinerary completed for the day, it was on to Santa Fe.  Possibly the only snag of the trip was when we arrived at our B&B in the downtown: I had failed to read the entire long reservation confirmation email so I missed the passcode at the very end of it that was necessary to get in to the building and pick up our room key.  While I was sitting in the car, flustered and trying to figure out how to get roaming on my phone to access my email, MAC charmed another guest into letting us in. 

We stayed there two nights and had a lovely set up—a small adobe building adjoined to the main house with a private entrance and patio and with two twin beds in an L shape along the walls and with lots of southwestern décor.  We enjoyed the wine and cheese and crackers we’d bought along the way on our private patio.  For dinner, we chose a rooftop cantina.  The first thing you need to know about ordering food in New Mexico is when the server asks if you want your meal with green or red chile sauce, say “Christmas” (meaning both).  During our time in Santa Fe, we walked around the downtown a lot admiring the adobe buildings and experiencing the Santa Fe Plaza, including The Palace of the Governors (the oldest government building in the country). 

The next morning, we met the delightful young woman who managed the B&B and had a delicious egg/bean/chile dish baked in an individual ramekin and served with watermelon slices and muffins just out of the oven.  This New Mexican breakfast seemed perfect to me!  MAC got a recommendation from the woman for a nearby authentic French bakery where we picked up treats for the day and where MAC dusted off her first language (French) with the owner.

We drove west to Bandelier National Monument, a fascinating place that preserves the archeological sites of Ancestral Puebloan peoples.  We did the popular Pueblo Loop Trail in Frijoles Canyon to view the sites and peek into the cliff dwellings.  To get to Alcove House, a large ceremonial cave, we had to climb up 140 feet using wooden ladders, stone stairs, and a path in the rock but the exposure seemed a walk in the park after the exposure I’d dealt with in 2008 (Mooney Falls in Havasu Canyon) and 2009 (Angels Landing in Zion National Park).  We also hiked the longer Frijoles Falls Trail.  It was a hot day and, on the return, we took our boots off and soaked our feet in Frijoles Creek which flows from the Jemez Mountains to the Rio Grande.  When other tourists saw MAC and me biting into the fresh beignets we’d brought, they asked us wishfully if we’d got them at the park canteen (no, from Clafoutis Bakery!).  

That evening, we enjoyed more time on our private patio before walking downtown to have dinner at The Shed, a family-owned restaurant since the 1950’s housed in a hacienda that dates back to the 17^th century.  This is where MAC, who was used to southern BBQ sauces and had not been finding the food as spicy as she expected, finally found the chile sauce hot enough.

After another delicious breakfast baked in a ramekin, we packed up the car and drove northeast on the High Road* to Taos.  This route winds through the Sangre de Cristo Mountains (the southern most part of the Rocky Mountains) with scenic views of high desert, forests, and small villages.  It was along this road that I was surprised to see cemeteries coloUrfully decorated like lively places of celebration, not like the grim, gray graveyards at home.  We walked around Taos, a small town known for artists, and we celebrated MAC’s birthday at brunch on a patio.  A man dressed as Zorro rode by on a horse which seemed like an unsurprising thing for Taos.  I was a bit underwhelmed with the place but I think we just weren’t there long enough. 

At the end of the High Road, we had gone to see the historic San Franciso de Asis Mission Church but the area was packed with people (and cars) for an actual church service.  After lunch, we went back and had the place almost to ourselves.  This distinctive adobe church, over 200 years old and an example of New Mexico Spanish Colonial style, has been the subject of many artists including Georgia O’Keeffe and Ansel Adams.

Next we headed west and crossed the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge.  The Rio Grande begins in Colorado and flows the entire length of New Mexico before serving as a border between Mexico and Texas and flowing into the Gulf of Mexico.

After stopping to look at the gorge, it was on to our accommodations at Ojo Caliente Mineral Springs Resort and Spa.  The resort is considered one of the oldest health spas in the US but the springs have been in use since the Ancestral Puebloan peoples.  We stayed in a cottage for two nights and enjoyed soaking in the twelve different pools surrounded by red rock cliffs—the place felt luxurious but comfy and the food in the dining room was excellent.  I made a note that MAC and I shared a breakfast burrito the second morning—that was probably the only time the entire trip when our appetites settled for less. 

After we left Ojo Caliente, we drove to Georgia O’Keeffe country.  First to Ghost Ranch, with coloUrful red rock cliffs, where O’Keeffe had a studio.  Then to the nearby huge Abiquiu Lake (actually a reservoir) with views of Cerro Pedernal, a flat-topped mountain that was a favoUrite subject of O’Keeffe.  Then we visited the tiny town of Abiquiu, where O’Keeffe had a home, and stopped to enjoy the view of a meandering Rio Chama which flows into the Rio Grande. 

Back in Sante Fe, we stayed a third night in our little adobe room and walked to the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum.  In the evening, we drove over to The Railyard district for dinner and an explore.  On our last morning in Santa Fe, we sat at a big table in the kitchen of the B&B and ate another stellar breakfast while chatting to the young manager.  My stomach and I were a little sad to leave.

But we had more hiking to do—at Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument.  This park with hoodoos reminded me of Bryce Canyon and the slot canyons we had explored in Utah in 2009.  We hiked the trails there including the Canyon Trail through slots and with a 630 foot climb to a mesa top to view the hoodoos, the surrounding mountains (Sangre de Cristo, Jemez, Sandia), and the Rio Grande Valley.  Kasha-Katuwe means “white cliffs” in Keresan (Puebloan language).

Then it was back to Albuquerque.  Going up the long tree-lined driveway to Los Poblanos Historic Inn and Organic Farm, the destination for our final night in New Mexico, I had a sense of how special the place was.  It remains my favoUrite hotel experience ever.  The place includes a lavender farm and a field-to-fork restaurant that requires not just a table reservation but a meal reservation, even for breakfast, to minimize food waste.  The meals were outstanding.

Shortly after arriving, we went for a swim in the outdoor pool which we had all to ourselves.  While we were lounging, a woman came out of the dining room with lavender cookies warm from the oven on a plate for us.  The only downside of the stay for MAC was the white peacocks that had the run of the place.  Peacocks are LOUD and our room freebies included ear plugs. 

The next day, it was time to go to the Albuquerque airport for our flights home.  MAC and I put together an amazing itinerary and, somehow, managed to fit in some hiking around our meals and wine drinking.  Besides the excellent green and red chile sauces, I tried distinct dishes with blue corn, tamales, chile relleno, and posole (hominy).  And all the wine we drank there was local.  New Mexico has a long history with wineries since Spanish monks planted grapes in the early 17^th century so they could make their own wine for religious ceremonies.  My sensory memories include not just taste but smell—I brought back sage body products from Ojo Caliente and lavender ones from Los Poblanos.

Writing this post reminded me of why I fell in love with the place and why, before my simpler-living plans, I had toyed with the idea of retiring there for part of the year.  And MAC and I only saw the northern part of The Land of Enchantment—there are two national parks in the south neither of us have been to: White Sands (the newest national park) and Carlsbad Caverns.  Maybe we’ll fit that trip in with visiting Colorado—the only state in the Four Corners we have not explored together.

*The “low road” to Taos goes through the valleys along the Rio Grande.

References and related links:

• MAC: mon amie Caroline.
• NPS: US National Park Service.
• REI: Recreational Equipment, Inc.
• Northern New Mexico Area Map (NPS site).
• Bandelier National Monument (NPS site).
• Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument (Bureau of Land Management site).
• Georgia O’Keeffe Museum
• yellowstone and grand teton 2011 (post #161)
• death valley 2010 (post #159)
• arizona and utah 2009 (post #157)
• havasu falls 2008 (post #155)
• donuts (post #146)