Pilar

After driving the High Road on the way to Taos, we drove Highway 68 on the way back to Santa Fe. This road runs along the Rio Grande River and through part of the Rio Grande Gorge.

Pilar
New Mexico Historical Marker
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This marker is located on Highway 68 in Pilar, New Mexico. The GPS coordinates for this location are N 36° 16.080 W 105° 47.324.

You can log your visit to this landmark at waymark.com.

 

In 1795, 25 families were granted land along the Rio Grande at Pilar, then known as Cieneguilla. The Battle of Cieneguilla was fought at Embudo Mountain near here in March 1854. A large force of Utes and Apaches inflicted heavy losses on 60 dragoons from Cantonment Burgwin near Taos.

Pilar is located on the southwestern edge of the Orilla Verde Recreation Area. The BLM managed recreation area is neslted along the banks of the Rio Grande and offers visitors a wide variety of recreation opportunities.

Truchas Peaks

Driving along the high road from Santa Fe to Taos, we climbed up into the mountains and into some forested areas that could have been in the Sierras.

Truchas Peaks
New Mexico Historical Marker
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This marker is located on Highway 76 near Truchas, New Mexico. The GPS coordinates for this location are N 36° 03.006 W 105° 48.625.

You can log your visit to this landmark at waymark.com.

Ice age glaciers carved these beautiful alpine peaks, among the highest in the New Mexico Rockies, rising to 13,101 feet. Precambrian quartzite, some of the oldest rock in New Mexico, forms the core of the Truchas (the Spanish word for trout) Peaks, part of the Pecos Wilderness that encompasses some of the most pristine mountain terrain in the state.

Cordova

On our trip from Santa Fe to Taos along the Kings Road, we drove down into Cordova and stopped at one of the woodcarving shops.

Cordova
New Mexico Historical Marker
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This marker is located on Highway 76 near Cordova, New Mexico. The GPS coordinates for this location are N 36° 00.356 W 105° 53.815.

You can log your visit to this landmark at waymark.com.

 

Originally named Pueblo Quemado, after an ancient burned-out Indian pueblo located nearby, Cordova was settled prior to 1748, but was abandoned due to Indian attacks. Permanently re-settled by 1750, the village was renamed Cordova after a prominent local family. The village chapel, San Antonio de Padua, is an outstanding example of Northern Mexico art and architecture. Cordova is home to a unique style of woodcarving begun by Jose Dolores Lopez (1868-1937).

 

Las Trampas

Although the guidebook trumpeted the San Jose de Gracia Church, Sharon was not impressed.

Las Trampas
New Mexico Historical Marker
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This marker is located on Highway 76 in Las Trampas, New Mexico. The GPS coordinates for this location are N 36° 07.865 W 105° 45.505.

You can log your visit to this landmark at waymark.com.

 

The village of Las Trampas was established in 1751 by 12 families from Santa Fe, led by Juan de Arguello, who received a land grant from Governor Tomas Velez Cachupin. The church of San Jose de Gracia is one of the finest surviving 18th-century churches in New Mexico.

 

 

Santuario de Chimayo

On the trip to Taos via the Kings Road, this is the stop that Sharon and Jack enjoyed the most! El Santuario has been called the "Lourdes of America".

Santuario de Chimayo
New Mexico Historical Marker
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This marker is located on Santuario Drive in Chimayo, New Mexico. The GPS coordinates for this location are N 35° 59.333 W 105° 55.937.

You can log your visit to this landmark at waymark.com.

 

In 1816, Bernardo Abeyta and the other residents of El Potrero, then a separate community, finished this massive adobe chapel honoring Nuestro Senor de Esquipulas. It is noted for its 6-foot crucifix and its tradition of healing the sick. The Santuario remained in the Abeyta family until the 1920s.