© 2020 History in Santa Fe
Website images courtesy of the Palace of the Governors and La Herencia Photo Archives.
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Experience the unknown just beyond the confines of Santa Fe. Many of these locations are close enough to have you back to town in time for dinner. If you have an extended stay or now call Santa Fe home, I encourage you to take advantage of all that New Mexico has to offer. The New Mexico Tourism department is a great place to start planning your next adventure.
There’s a lot to see and do no matter which direction you take. The High Road to Taos is a popular day trip. If you head that way stop for lunch Rancho de Chimayo and visit the Santuario de Chimayo and the local weaving shops. Taos is a smaller version of Santa Fe, so there’s lots to see and do. A visit to the Taos Pueblo is must as is the Rio Grande Gorge.
If you aren’t taking the High Road to Taos then take a left off US-84 West and head to Bandelier for a hike. Back on US-84 West make a stop at the Hacienda de Guru Ram Das Ashram. Sikhism, the fifth largest religion in the world, was introduced to the Western Hemisphere in Santa Fe in 1967. Today, their burgeoning community resides in Santa Fe County in the community of Sombrillo. Venturing on US-84 there will be sites to see when you get to Española and some terrific northern New Mexican restaurants. In Española you’ll head up 285 N to the hot springs.
Sadly, the Ojo Caliente hot springs of my childhood no longer exists. Like the rest of the world, Ojo Caliente has become gentrified and upscale but the springs themselves are still nice. In Las Vegas, NM you’ll find hot springs in a more rustic setting. (F.Y.I. Las Vegas, New Mexico existed hundreds of years before Las Vegas, Nevada was created for returning World War II soldiers.) My favorite hot springs are located along the Colorado River in Pagosa Springs in southern Colorado.
South of Santa Fe you can take a hike at Tent Rocks or take NM-14, where you’ll pass through old mining towns and beautiful scenery on the backroad to Albuquerque. The largest city in New Mexico, Albuquerque has a population of 553,000. With the surrounding communities the population of metropolitan Albuquerque is approximately 750,000, so they offer many big city attractions like the zoo and aquarium. The International Balloon Fiesta in October brings thousands of people from around the world to Albuquerque.
At some point a visit to Carlsbad Caverns and White Sands National Monuments in southern New Mexico are otherworldly experiences to add to your bucket list. A visit to White Sands during the full moon is like being on another planet. And I never tire of Carlsbad Caverns, which I’ve visited numerous times since my childhood. In 2017 I took my friend Geshela Sherab to Carlsbad Caverns and as I did an internet search for hotel rooms, I found that most of them were booked or ridiculously expensive. My immediate thought was that the caverns had become very popular but it wasn’t until I arrived in Carlsbad that I discovered that it was the Permian Basin, currently the highest producing oil basin in the world, located in southern New Mexico and Texas, that has thrown that community off kilter. So, if you plan on visiting to Carlsbad Caverns just make it a day trip and head to another town for a hotel, otherwise you’ll end up paying a lot of money for mediocre accommodations.
Another interesting site in that area that you’ll pass through is the community of Roswell, the town that’s famous for UFOs. As your drive by the airport you’ll see hundreds of jumbo jets with names like Qantas, Singapore Air, Lufthansa, Emirates and other international fleets. The airport in Roswell has a section where the airlines store their planes there when they’re not in use. Here you are in the middle of nowhere and violá right in front of you pops up a parking lot for jumbo jets!
Poeh Museum and Cultural Center – newmexico.org/listing/poeh-museum-%26-cultural-center/3251 – 15.8 miles via US-84 W.
Nambé Falls – nambepueblo.org/nambe-falls-lake
Hacienda de Guru Ram Das Ashram – espanolaashram.com – 23.5 miles via US-84 W & US Hwy. 285 N.
Poeh Museum and Cultural Center – newmexico.org/listing/poeh-museum-%26-cultural-center/3251 – 15.8 miles via US-84 W.
Nambé Falls – nambepueblo.org/nambe-falls-lake
Hacienda de Guru Ram Das Ashram – espanolaashram.com – 23.5 miles via US-84 W & US Hwy. 285 N.
Puye Cliff Dwellings – puyecliffdwellings.com
Bandelier National Monument – nps.gov/band/index.htm
Los Alamos -Bradbury Science Museum – lanl.gov/museum
Los Alamos History Museum – losalamoshistory.org
Valles Caldera – nps.gov/vall/planyourvisit/hours.htm
Jemez Hot Springs – jemezsprings.org
Santuario de Chimayo – holychimayo.us
El Potrero Trading Post – potrerotradingpost.com – *Try their heirloom red chile and homemade salsa mix.
Chimayo – weavers
ortegasweaving.com – chimayoweavers.com –
Rancho de Chimayó – ranchodechimayo.com
Couse-Sharp Historic Site – couse-sharp.org
H Lawrence Ranch – dhlawrenceranch.unm.edu
L. Blumenschein Home & Museum – taoshistoricmuseums.org
Hanuman Temple – nkbashram.org
Harwood Museum – harwoodmuseum.org
Kit Carson Museum – kitcarsonmuseum.orgTaos Pueblo – taospueblo.com
Mable Dodge Luhan House – mabeldodgeluhan.com
Millicent Rogers Museum – millicentrogers.org
Rio Grande Gorge – taos.org/what-to-do/landmark-sites/rio-grande-gorge-bridge
San Francisco de Asís Mission – nps.gov/nr/travel/american_latino_heritage/San_Francisco_de_Assisi_Mission_
Taos Art Museum at Fechin House – taosartmuseum.org
Taos Galleries – taos.org/what-to-do/arts-culture/art-galleries
Taos Pueblo – taospueblo.com/
New Mexico Tourism – newmexico.org/places-to-visit/regions/northcentral/espanola
Española Visitor’s Center – espanolanmusa.org/263/City-of-Espaola-Visitors-Center
Bond House Museum – nnmrac.org/bond-house-museum—old.html
Los Luceros – Historic Site – nmhistoricsitesorg/los-luceros
Dar al Islam Mosque – daralislam.org
Georgia O’Keeffe House – okeeffemuseum.org
Ghost Ranch – ghostranch.org
Alpaca Ranch – bluemesaalpacas.com
Pecos Monument – nps.gov/peco/index.htm 27.4 miles from Santa Fe via I-25 north.
Dwan Light Sanctuary – uwc-usa.org/about-us/our-campus/the-dwan-light-sanctuary
Las Vegas Hotel and Plaza – plazahotellvnm.com
La Vegas Museum – facebook.com/lasvegasmuseumnm
Montefiore Cemetery – jmaw.org/montefiore-new-mexico
Montezuma Hot Springs – visitlasvegasnm.com/montezuma-hot-springs
Storrie Lake State Park – emnrd.state.nm.us/SPD/storrielakestatepark.html
Tent Rocks – blm.gov/visit/kktr
Turquoise Trial – turquoisetrail.org
Mineshaft Tavern – themineshafttavern.com – *Wild Hogs starring John Travolta was filmed in Madrid.
Albuquerque Bio Park &Zoo – cabq.gov/culturalservices/biopark
Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta – balloonfiesta.com
Albuquerque International Balloon Museum – balloonmuseum.com
Albuquerque Museum – cabq.gov/culturalservices/albuquerque-museum
Breaking Bad Tours – breakingbadrvtours.com
Explora Science Museum – explora.us
Indian Pueblo Cultural Center – indianpueblo.org
Kimo Theater – en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KiMo_Theater
National Hispanic Cultural Center- nhccnm.org
New Mexico Museum of Natural History & Science – nmnaturalhistory.org
Old Town – albuquerqueoldtown.com
Petroglyph Monument – nps.gov/petr/index.htm
Popejoy Hall – popejoypresents.com
Rattlesnake Museum – rattlesnakes.com
Route 66 Albuquerque- visitalbuquerque.org/about-abq/route-66
Sandia Peak Aerial Tram – sandiapeak.com
Carlsbad Caverns – nps.gov/cave/index.htm
White Sands National Monument – nps.gov/whsa
© 2020 History in Santa Fe
Website images courtesy of the Palace of the Governors and La Herencia Photo Archives.