 Enchanted Circle Scenic Byway National Forest Scenic Byway | |
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| Route information | |
| Maintained by NMDOT | |
| Length | 84 mi (135 km) |
| Location | |
| Country | United States |
| State | New Mexico |
| Highway system | |
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The Enchanted Circle Scenic Byway is a New Mexico Scenic Byway and National Forest Scenic Byway located in Northern New Mexico. It begins and ends in Taos, New Mexico.
The 84-mile (135 km) Enchanted Circle Scenic Byway makes a loop through Taos following four main highways: [1] [2] [3]
The byway encircles Wheeler Peak (13,161 feet (4,011 m)) of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. It is the tallest mountain in New Mexico. The scenic byway passes through historic towns, alongside lakes and streams, and near ski resorts and recreational parks. [2]
Taos is the county seat of Taos County, and the largest town in the Enchanted Circle. It is notable for its historic plaza, arts and music scene, and the nearby Taos Pueblo UNESCO World Heritage Site. Recreational opportunities include rafting on the Rio Grande River and skiing and snowboarding at Taos Ski Valley. [2]
North of Taos, NM 522 meets NM 38 at Questa, where Red River recreational opportunities include picnic facilities, fishing, and self-guided tours. The town of Questa is known for its artisans whose works are found at the Artesanos de Questa and historic santos and retablos are at the St. Anthony's Church. [2] [4] [nb 1]
Northeast of Questa, the Rio Grande and Red Rivers intersect in the Wild Rivers Recreation Area. East of Questa is the Red River Valley—where there had been copper, lead, silver and gold mining. The town of Red River offers, shopping, a ski resort, and ATV rentals. Traveling east on New Mexico State Road 38 (NM 38) is Bobcat Pass (9,820 feet (2,990 m)) which leads into the Moreno Valley and a view of the north side of Mount Wheeler. [2] [nb 2]
At the eastern edge of the scenic byway is Moreno Valley, which lies between Eagle Nest and Angel Fire. At the southernmost point of the valley is the Vietnam Veterans Memorial State Park. A ski resort and golf course are located south of the park on NM 434 in the village of Angel Fire. The ski resort's chairlift is used during the summer by hikers, sightseers and mountain bikers. From Angel Fire, west on US 64 is the Palo Flechado Pass (9,101 feet (2,774 m)) with a distant view of San Juan. Campsites, canyon trails, picnic areas, and artist's studios are located in the Canyon of the Rio Fernando de Taos. [2] [4]
The earliest trails used by Plains Indians and Puebloan peoples were those created by buffalo and were followed for hunting. The buffalo were considered "the best civil engineers in the world" for their ability to find the easiest, lowest paths through the mountains. The Old Kiowa Trail, still used today by Native Americans on horseback, is at the base of the Rocky Mountains. An old Navajo Trail criss-crossed the Rio Grande [6] before heading west at Warmsley Crossing (John Dunn Bridge at Arroyo Hondo) [7] There were additional trails that radiated out of Taos [6] from Taos Plaza. [7]
A key trail into Taos was "The Old Taos Trail", which began at the Bent's Fort on the Arkansas River in Colorado, west of the Spanish Peaks, through Sangre de Cristo Pass (west of Walsenburg, Colorado), Old La Veta Pass and into Questa area (NM 522/NM38 area). [8] [9]
It came into Taos at either Taos Pueblo road or half a mile west on Couse Hill. Another route into Taos was along the Cimarron Route. It was this route that most wagon trains entered into the Rio de Fernando canyon valley. [8] The two routes are the "mountain route" and the "Cimarron Route" of the Santa Fe Trail. One of the Cimarron Mountain Routes paralleled the present U.S. Route 64 from I-25 to Cimarron. Trails branched off of the Cimarron Route into several communities. [10] [11] A branch of the route from Bent's Fort went into Taos in or after the founding of the Santa Fe Trail in 1821. [12] The first wagon train was led by Charles Bent in 1831. Bent, the brother of William Bent of Bent's Fort, became the most successful merchant in Taos before being made governor of New Mexico. [13]
History of individual highways:
The Enchanted Circle Scenic Byway was named a New Mexico Scenic Byways on July 31, 1998. [1]
It was designated as a National Forest Scenic Byway by the U.S. Forest Service on December 14, 1989. [23]
The movies Easy Rider and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid were filmed in the area. [4]
Angel Fire is a village in Colfax County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 1,192 at the 2020 census. Angel Fire Resort is a popular skiing and snowboarding destination, with over 500 acres (2.0 km2) of slopes. Angel Fire and nearby communities experience cold winter temperatures and mild temperatures in the summer.
Questa is a village in Taos County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 1,770 at the 2010 census. The village has trails into the Rio Grande Gorge, trout fishing, and mountain lakes with trails that access the Sangre de Cristo Mountains that overlook the area. Questa is on the Enchanted Circle Scenic Byway, near the confluence of the Rio Grande and the Red River. The "Gateway to the Rio Grande del Norte Monument", its visitors can drive to an overlook of the Red River meeting the Rio Grande in the depth of the gorge. The Carson National Forest parallels Questa to the east. The Columbine Hondo Wilderness and Latir Peak Wildness are in the Carson National Forest close to Questa.
Red River is a resort town in Taos County, New Mexico, US in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. The population was 542 at the 2020 census. Red River is on the Enchanted Circle Scenic Byway, and is 36 miles (58 km) from Taos.
The Santa Fe Trail was a 19th-century route through central North America that connected Franklin, Missouri, with Santa Fe, New Mexico. Pioneered in 1821 by William Becknell, who departed from the Boonslick region along the Missouri River, the trail served as a vital commercial highway until 1880, when the railroad arrived in Santa Fe. Santa Fe was near the end of El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro which carried trade from Mexico City. The trail was later incorporated into parts of the National Old Trails Road and U.S. Route 66.
Carson National Forest is a national forest in northern New Mexico, United States. It encompasses 6,070 square kilometers and is administered by the United States Forest Service. The Forest Service's "mixed use" policy allows for its use for recreation, grazing, and resource extraction.
The historic U.S. Route 66 ran east–west across the central part of the state of New Mexico, along the path now taken by Interstate 40 (I-40). However, until 1937, it took a longer route via Los Lunas, Albuquerque, and Santa Fe, now roughly New Mexico State Road 6 (NM 6), I-25, and US 84. Large portions of the old road parallel to I-40 have been designated NM 117, NM 118, NM 122, NM 124, NM 333, three separate loops of I-40 Business, and state-maintained frontage roads.
The Cimarron River, flowing entirely in New Mexico, United States, was also known as La Flecha or Semarone. Its headwaters are Moreno, Sixmile, and Cieneguilla creeks in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, which feed into Eagle Nest Dam. From the dam, it runs for 60 miles (97 km) to below the city of Springer, New Mexico, in the Taylor Springs area, where it flows into the Canadian River, the southwesternmost major tributary flowing into the Mississippi River via the Arkansas River sub-basin.
State Road 522 (NM 522) is a 41.096-mile-long (66.138 km) state highway in far northern New Mexico. It was named the Senator Carlos R. Cisneros Memorial Highway, after the late Taos County Commissioner and state senator, in 2022.
The Santa Fe Trail Scenic and Historic Byway is a 188-mile (303 km) National Scenic Byway and Colorado Scenic and Historic Byway located in Prowers, Bent, Otero, and Las Animas counties, Colorado, USA. The byway follows the Santa Fe National Historic Trail through southeastern Colorado and connects to the 381-mile (613 km) Santa Fe Trail Scenic Byway in New Mexico at Raton Pass, a National Historic Landmark at elevation 7,834 feet (2,388 m). The byway visits Amache National Historic Site and Bent's Old Fort National Historic Site, both National Historic Landmarks, and winds between the Spanish Peaks and Raton Mesa, both National Natural Landmarks.
The Eagle Nest Dam is a dam just east of the town of Eagle Nest, New Mexico on U.S. Route 64. The dam, on private property, is on the Cimarron River, and is responsible for Eagle Nest Lake.
The Trail of the Ancients is a collection of National Scenic Byways located in the U.S. Four Corners states of Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona. These byways comprise:
Northern Rio Grande National Heritage Area is a federally designated National Heritage Area in the U.S. state of New Mexico. The national heritage area includes a section of the upper Rio Grande Valley that has been inhabited by the Puebloan peoples since the early Pre-Columbian era.
Abo Canyon, also known as Abo Pass, is a mountain pass at the southern end of the Manzano Mountains of central New Mexico in the Southwest United States.
Taos Downtown Historic District is a historic district in Taos, New Mexico. Taos "played a major role in the development of New Mexico, under Spanish, Mexican, and American governments." It is a key historical feature of the Enchanted Circle Scenic Byway of northern New Mexico.
Wild Rivers Recreation Area is located in north central New Mexico within the Rio Grande del Norte National Monument. Two rivers that run through the park, the Rio Grande and Red River are National Wild and Scenic Rivers. NM 378 that traverses the recreation area is designated a New Mexico Scenic Byway. Recreational opportunities include whitewater rafting, hiking, biking, fishing and camping.
Bobcat Pass is a mountain pass located in Taos County, New Mexico on the Enchanted Circle Scenic Byway.
Palo Flechado Pass, also called Taos Pass and Old Taos Pass, is a mountain pass located in Taos County, New Mexico, United States on the Enchanted Circle Scenic Byway.
The North Central Regional Transit District operates a network of several local and intercity bus routes in northern New Mexico, serving Santa Fe, Española, Taos, and many smaller communities along a network of 25 fixed routes and one demand-response route, one dial-a-ride and complementary Paratransit service in the Taos area. Routes operate Monday through Friday only, with the exceptions of the "Taos Express," which operates only on weekends, the Mountain Trail route to the Santa Fe National Forest and Ski Santa Fe, which operates daily, and seasonal daily service from the Town of Taos to Taos Ski Valley.
State Road 38 (NM 38) is a state highway in Taos and Colfax counties in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Its total length is approximately 29.3 miles (47.2 km). It traverses the Sangre de Cristo Mountains through portions of Carson National Forest and Moreno Valley. NM 38's western terminus is at NM 522 in Questa, and the eastern terminus is at U.S. Route 64 in Eagle Nest. The highway passes through Bobcat Pass, the highest mountain pass in the state.
