Taos, New Mexico - Days One and Two

 Hi all -- Dianne here. 


 We arrived in Taos, New Mexico mid-day on September 9 and set up camp at Taos Monte Bello RV Park, just outside town.  More great views from our windows, and another friendly, well-managed RV park.  This park is an Escapees park, which gave us a 15% discount.  The friendly owner checked Roger in and gave him many detailed, good ideas for activities and places we might enjoy while here.

The first thing we did was take the boys on a trail right from the campground, where we saw a family of scaled quail darting in and out among the scrub.  This is an area of intense sunshine and vast expanses -- you can see for miles.

After our hike, we took one of the campground owner's suggestions and enjoyed a fabulous New Mexico-style dinner at Orlando's.  We don't often go out for dinner, but when we visit an area known for unique cuisine, we splurge.  Our meals were even more delicious than they appear in these photos!  

Orlando's has both indoor and outside seating.  The outdoor seating is on a patio surrounded by quaking aspen trees. 

 The "official New Mexico question" is "Green or Red?," referring to the green and red chiles they are known for.  I had a chicken burrito, and Roger had a trio of enchiladas named "colores":  chicken (with green chile on top), beef (with red chile on top), and cheese (with a third kind that I can't think of the name).

After we left Orlando's, we drove on into Taos, parked, and walked to the central plaza.  Taos is an old, old town.  The earliest building includes walls which were built in the 1600s! The architecture is Spanish adobe all over town; many residences, too.

 Thursday evenings in the summer feature live music performances on the plaza.  We were lucky enough to arrive in time to see the final Thursday evening concert.

You can do some serious people watching in Taos!  Lots of diversity and free spirits here!  My one-minute video is not very polished, but it might give you a snippet of what we enjoyed:



We accomplished all of this on our first half-day in town!

We began Day Two by taking the boys on a hike near the Rio Grande Gorge.  Yes, this is the same Rio Grande River that flows all the way to our new home in Mission, Texas and beyond, to the Gulf of Mexico.

Along the trail we found this circle.  Don't know if it is Native American, Wiccan, New Age, or just what its origins are -- From our people watching, we know it could have been any of those.

After our hike, we took the boys back to the motor home for their nap, while Roger and I drove the 89-mile "Enchanted Circle" route. 


 The "Enchanted Circle" is a scenic drive which winds through the Carson National Forest and through small mountain towns such as Red River, which is especially popular during Taos' winter skiiing season.  In the summer, we hear that many Texans beat the heat by coming north to Red River.

The roads were twisty-curvy-hilly, so we were glad we were in the Matrix and not the motor home.

Check back soon, as our final day in Taos took us on quite an adventure -- so much so, that it deserves a blog all its own!