Driving the long, scenic route in New Mexico takes you to some fascinating ancient sites and quirky, yet intriguing towns. While Santa Fe, Taos, Carlsbad Caverns National Park and White Sands National Park are incredible, going to some of the other ancient sites, out-of-this-world landscapes and small towns means fewer crowds. For the ultimate solitude escape in New Mexico, go on a winter road trip like I did. Start in Albuquerque, Santa Fe or Taos making this a loop to fully experience why New Mexico is called “The Land of Enchantment.”
Day 1: Fort Union National Monument to Albuquerque
It’s less than two hours from Taos, Santa Fe or Albuquerque, Fort Union National Monument is the first stop on this road trip. It was the region’s largest military fort protecting travelers along the Santa Fe Trail between 1851 and 1891. There are two loops from a half mile to 1.6 miles taking you past some of the remnants of Fort Union including the barracks, hospital and depot, which during its heyday was the central supply hub for the American Southwest.
Don’t miss the deep ruts between the third Fort Union hospital and the post-jail. Those ruts are from the wagon trains rolling along the Santa Fe Trail in the late 1800s. I wandered around Fort Union for about an hour before driving 45 minutes to Pecos National Historical Park to see the Pecos Pueblo and a Spanish mission.
Once home to more than 2000 people, the pueblo dates to 1450 as smaller pueblos in the region consolidated into a single larger settlement with 600 rooms. It was four to five stories in places. In the mid-1500s, Pecos Pueblo was a target of Spanish Conquistadors. In the 1600s the Spanish established a colony and Franciscan missions. During the Pueblo Revolt of 1680, pueblos banded together in a successful revolt expelling the Spaniards in the only expulsion of European colonizers in America. It was short-lived because in 1692, the Spanish reclaimed New Mexico and re-established missions, including at the Pecos Pueblo. The Santa Fe Trail also passes through the park. Free ranger led guided tours are offered regularly.
I visited the Pecos Unit, where the archaeological site is, mid-afternoon missing the tour that day. Before walking the 1¼-mile path, I got an ancestral site trail guide in the visitor center. It was a beautiful sunny day just after a big snowstorm and the layer of fresh snow sparkling in the sunshine made the pueblo even more magical. Don’t miss the reconstructed ceremonial room, called a kiva, near the South Pueblo and wandering through the Franciscan convento. Give yourself about an hour to walk through the site. If you have more time, visit the Glorieta Unit. There you’ll find Pigeon’s Ranch, a battlefield site and Cañoncito, which was a Confederate Army camp.
From Pecos National Historical Site, I made it to Albuquerque in less than 1.5 hours and checked into El Vado Motel on Route 66. When it opened in 1937, it was one of the first motels in New Mexico. The historic motel has a modern chic vibe. It’s in a prime location and walkable to shops and restaurants in Old Town Albuquerque.
After you peruse the artisan wares in the shops surrounding El Vado Plaza, sip a craft beer by a kiva fireplace in El Vado Tap Room. They often have live music. I ventured off property in search of traditional New Mexican cuisine and found it at Little Anita’s New Mexican Foods. They’ve pretty much had the same menu for the last four decades. After sipping a traditional margarita and devouring cheese enchiladas, which are stacked not rolled in New Mexico, I leisurely strolled through Old Town Albuquerque. Adobe-style buildings are at the heart of Old Town and filled with over 150 boutiques, galleries, restaurants and museums. If you’re a seeker of handmade jewelry, Old Town Portal Market is not to be missed.
Day 2: Petroglyphs Hike to a Night in “T or C”
I grabbed a latte and bagel sandwich at Kaufman’s Coffee and Bagels and headed out early to hike in Petroglyph National Monument in Albuquerque. You can see petroglyphs in three canyons – Rinconada, Boca Negra and Piedras Marcadas.
I decided to hike in Piedras Marcadas because it has the highest density of petroglyphs in the national monument. “Piedras Marcadas” means “canyon of marked rocks.” The Petroglyph Viewing Trail is less than two miles roundtrip. There are more than 400 petroglyphs along the trail featuring seven sites to see petroglyph clusters. My favorite were the hands at the seventh stop. Have plenty of water and sun protection as there’s not much shade on this hike.
The petroglyphs only sparked my interest in seeing the remnants of three indigenous villages not far away on a scenic drive hugging the Manzano Mountains. The northernmost unit of Salinas Pueblo Missions National Monument is about 1.5 hours from Albuquerque. Before Spanish explorers arrived, each of these villages flourished as trade centers because of nearby dry salt lakes.
The first homes in Quarai Pueblo were built in 1300. In 1627, Spanish friars started a mission called Nuestra Señora de La Purísima Concepción de Quarai. The church was completed in 1632 and I was astounded by how much of its outer walls are still standing. It’s considered the most scenic of the four Spanish missions within the national monument. Wanting to see one of the other missions, I headed to Abó.
Between circa 1300 to the 1670s, it was one of the largest pueblo villages in the region and you sense its magnitude as you drive up to it. As a site on a major east-west trade route, it flourished for over 800 years. Wandering through the housing complex, I imagined what life must have been like here. I was completely wowed by the church’s unique buttress walls rising 40 feet high. I spent about two hours visiting both sites, including the drive. I wished I had more time to visit the third mission of Gran Quivira, the largest of the three villages, but I needed to head south if I wanted to get to Truth or Consequences before sunset.
With Spaceport America about 20 miles southeast, Truth or Consequences is having a resurgence. Originally known as Ojo Caliente de Las Palomas then Hot Springs, the wellness destination is dubbed “America’s most affordable spa town.” The town’s name changed to Truth or Consequences or “T or C” as locals call it, as part of a game show stunt in 1950.
There are multiple properties with soaking experiences. I booked a night at AAA Three Diamond Sierra Grande Lodge and Spa. After checking into the 17-room boutique hotel with elegant understated southwestern decor, I walked to El Faro for dinner where they serve Mexican and American comfort food like enchiladas and burgers. As part of my stay, I got to soak in one of their private geothermal tubs and enjoyed the therapeutic waters attracting weary travelers for centuries.
Day 3: From Cliff Dwellings to a Natural Arch
I took off early the next morning for the 3-hour drive to Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument. This is one of those places where part of the adventure is just getting there. The scenic mountain is a white-knuckle drive along a narrow road winding through the forest and has steep drop-offs. In the national monument the one-mile trail takes you up 180 feet from the valley floor to 40 rooms in a series of naturally formed caves. You can walk in some of the dwellings built by Puebloans during the Mogollon era about 1280EC. It’s estimated 40-60 people lived in the dwellings for only 25-30 years as they farmed in the valley and lived in cliffs. Once resources were depleted, they moved on.
I did the hike, even with plenty of time to explore the dwellings, in about an hour and a half. Ahead of me was the longest drive of this trip. From Gila Cliff dwellings, it’s a little less than six hours to Grants on Route 66 about 1.5 hours west of Albuquerque. Less than 30 minutes from Grants, I stopped at La Ventana Arch in El Malpais National Conservation Area. Just off Highway 117, it’s the second largest natural arch in the state. From the parking area it’s an easy quarter mile walk to an excellent viewing vantage point of the dramatic sandstone arch rising 125 feet high. Surrounded by piñon and juniper trees, it’s 165 feet wide at its base.
Day 4: From Sandstone Bluffs to Inscription Rock to a Night at Hot Springs
I got up before the sun and headed just south of Grants for sunrise at Sandstone Bluffs Overlook in El Malpais National Monument, which covers 114,000 acres of public land protecting volcanic features like lava flows and tubes. El Malpais is Spanish for “badlands” or “bad country.” Walk around the overlook you can’t help but marvel at the 200-million-year-old sandstone as you gaze across fascinating geologic history including some of the most recent lava flows in the continental United States. Not only does the national monument protect a volcanic region, remnants of World War II military training activities may still be within its rugged landscape.
From there I drove about 45 minutes to El Calderon Trailhead. If you have time, a 5.6-mile loop takes you to the top of El Calderon cinder cone. Some of the oldest exposed volcanic rock in the region is at the entrance of Junction Bridge Cave, within the first quarter of a mile of the trail. It’s the only cave open year-round in El Malpais. Lava tubes are closed in winter to protect bats, but in summer the Giant Ice and Lava Bomb caves are open for lava tube caving. Junction Cave is not considered a true lava tube “cave,” but does offer a similar experience making it more accessible than the other wilderness caves in the national monument.
From the trailhead, it’s less than a 30-minute drive to El Morro National Monument protecting an ancient waterhole at the base of a sandstone bluff. El Morro is a cuesta or a slanted mesa with a gentle slope on one side and a steep cliff on the other. If you only have an hour, you can walk along a paved path to Inscription Rock, there are over 2,000 petroglyphs, signatures, dates and messages ranging from ancestral Puebloans to Spanish and American pioneers. It’s a 0.75-mile trail and the main half mile loop is wheelchair-accessible.
If you have more time and are fine with a moderately strenuous section with a fast elevation gain of 224 feet, do the 2-mile Headland Trail. A ranger suggested to me to do the short and steep section first to the top where you’ll see Atsinna, meaning the “place of writings on the rock.” Puebloans lived in the pueblo from roughly 1275 to 1400. The trail goes over white rocks with great views of a box canyon before it descends a series of switchbacks down to the base of Inscription Rock.
My last stop on the trail was the oasis in the stark landscape. The waterhole has been important rest stop for thirsty travelers for centuries. You’ll want 1.5-2 hours to enjoy all the stops along Headland Trail. From late October to late May, El Morro is closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
After your hike, you can drive less than two hours back to Albuquerque or drive 2.5 hours to the village of Jemez Springs known for its hot springs along the Jemez Mountain Trail National Scenic Byway. In the Jemez Historic Site, the Pueblo of Giusewa dates to around AD 1350. It’s estimated the multistory village had as many as 1,000 rooms. The Spanish arrived in 1541 and built the San José de los Jémez Mission in Western Baroque style in 1621. Jemez Historic Site is open 10am-4pm Wednesday through Sunday. Near the village are several commercial and primitive hot springs. Most of the accommodations in Jemez Village are inns. After checking into Laughing Lizard Inn, I walked across the street to Jemez Hot Springs for a sunset soak. Their four therapeutic pools range from 98-105°F. For dinner I walked over to Los Ojos Restaurant and sat at the historic bar enjoying a delightful small town dining experience of Ojos margarita, vegetable enchiladas and live music.
The next morning, I grabbed breakfast at Highway 4 Café and Bakery before making stops at the 300-foot-long Soda Dam a mile north of Jemez Springs. A buildup of calcium carbonate deposits over centuries created the natural dam. I continued the scenic drive through Valles Caldera National Preserve. From there let the road take you to Santa Fe or Taos. Both are worthy of multi-night stays to explore the historic sites, trails, food and culture.