High Road To TAOS- Explore Chimayó New Mexico
I need to tell you guys that I’ve never felt so open and free in my life, and it’s amazing what starts to happen when you are living so in flow. I feel like life started to dance through me and became a string of synchronistic and serendipitous moments. New Mexico really changes you when you are here for a period of time. I’m doing everything I can to embody this feeling and bring elements of this life back home with me end September. One thing I have really been practicing (and it is that, a practice!) is being fully present with whatever task I am doing.
My heart is just drawn to unique destinations and experiences, seeking a deeper understanding of the world we inhabit and the people we walk behind! And that’s why I begged Lin for a day trip on the High Road To Taos. Not that he is not fond of it but we have done it a million and one times on the BMW motorcycle-never by car.
Therefore I could never get the photos I wanted or get off the bike as often as I wanted to explore and we had never eaten on The High Road which really puzzled me.
I just wanted to drive around just exploring and taking whatever off- road looked interesting! So we loaded the pups and off we went!
The High Road to Taos Scenic Byway takes the traveler through an authentic remnant of Old Spain, still evident in the religion, architecture, topography, history, and people along the route.
The byway travels through Chimayo, a community known for the beautiful Santuario de Chimayo and the El Posito, a hole in the floor of a side chapel filled with healing earth. Along N.M. 76, the byway follows through the creased and crinkled badlands, polka-dotted with scrubby pinon and juniper, with the Jemez Mountains enormous on the horizon.
HAVE LUNCH AT RANCHO DE CHIMAYÓ
The restaurant serves world-class, authentic New Mexican cuisine from recipes passed down for generations. Here’s a tip: It is known for its Carne Adovada—pork that has been stewed to tenderness in Chimayó red chile. Grown from original seeds passed down generations, Chimayó heirloom chile has a unique, rich, and earthy flavor.
Another menu suggestion: the Combinación Picante—a tamale, rolled cheese enchilada, beans, posole, and the signature carne adovada. Use your sopaipilla (the puffy fry bread) to soak up the chile from your plate, but save some to douse in honey! That’s a true Northern New Mexican culinary tradition!
Be sure to stop in their gift shop too, especially if you love pistachios like me!
STOP AT EL SANTUARIO DE CHIMAYÓ
Considered to be an important Catholic pilgrimage center, El Santuario de Chimayó, is known for its side chapel where the dirt floor is reputed to have healing powers. You’ll want to see el pocito, the small pit of holy dirt many people claim possesses remarkable curative powers. During Holy Week alone, and in particular on Good Friday, tens of thousands of pilgrims make their way from Santa Fe to what is also called Lourdes of the Southwest. The santuario is open to visitors 9 am to 5 pm daily.
