Taos Valley RV Park
Taos, New Mexico
FRIDAY MAY 23, 2025
Today I decided to take a road trip down the Low Road to Taos and back the High Road. I’d seen the Low Road on my way to the RV Park but you really can’t look while you are driving a big rig. So I decided to go the other way and stop at every possible place then turn around at Espanola and do the same on the High road coming back
My first stop was at the Rio Grande Recreation Area Visitor Center where I got lots of information from a full timer who was volunteering there 3 days a week and camp hosting at one of their 7 campgrounds.
From there I went to check out the campgrounds. Only two of them have sites for RVs with water and electric. But no dump station. $15 a night.
3 of them have no water and vault toilets. 1 has water and vault toilet, 1 has water and flush toilets.
A pull through site unoccupied. These are first come first served always a scary thing for me.
For the campgrounds with water and electric, the price is definitely right, $15 a day, walk in only. You are limited to a total of 14 days in the recreation area so you cannot hop from campground to campground.
The river is right on the other side of the road and there were trailheads like this one at both the campgrounds I checked. At $210 for 2 weeks you really can’t beat it. I would definitely like to return and hike the trails, but no time today if I want to get all the way around.
After that the low road took me along the river and I stopped at every historical marker and every point where I could get close to the river and out of the car.
This is Quartzite river access below. Parking lot is big enough for any size RV but I don’t think they allow overnight. This is the same spot where Jodee and I saw a group in a raft with “Bob” their mascot. You can see that post here if you like. We were checking out the low road to see if Winnona could handle it. Which of course she did but I’m grateful to Jodee for helping me make sure.
There were 3 kayakers launching when I arrived.
The third was definitely in a white water kayak so I guess the river will have some further down the way but it’s lovely and calm here.
He had gotten into the kayak on shore as you saw and used his hands to walk himself out into the water.
And then, he flipped himself over and turned upright. Guess he’s practicing his rolls for the really big rapids. Or he’s showing off for his companions.
The views of the river were beautiful at every spot where I stopped. Of course the skies and mountains don’t hurt.
As I drove along and stopped at viewing spots, I saw other kayakers
And I saw the group I’d seen launch. With others behind them in the distance.
The road itself is wonderful running at the base of the mountains right along the river.
As you can imagine from these pictures, I took many many more of the wonderful views and landscape. I don’t seem to be able not to. But I pay the price when trying to pick what to use for my posts.
I kept wondering if I could kayak the Rio Grande “next time”. I have what is known as a flat bottom kayak. Good for lakes, springs and some rivers. This one looked not to have too many rapids/riffles and I had kayaked part of the Battenkill River in Vermont.
But when I saw this spot, I wasn’t at all sure. Not at all sure I’d know how rough this narrow spot would be before I was already there. Now that I’m posting this I wish I had taken a kayak trip with an outfitter to see what it was like. For “next time” dontchaknow.
Most of the folks who had put in at Quartzite, the spot I first showed, were getting out here. It’s about 4.4 miles on the water. That’s easy to do if you have two cars with kayak racks.
My flowers for the day. So delicate looking coming from the hostile barbed spines.
With such a large ramp I’m wondering what size boats might launch or take out here. Probably this accommodates a large number of regular kayaks stopping at one time with an outfitter picking them up.
See a path, take it.
Right to the river. Nice place to experience it with no concrete. Possibly a fishing spot? No idea what kind of fish one might find here.
I was very happy to see that the river looked reasonably clean.
So clean that you can’t tell my hand is actually in the water. Perfect cool temperature. I’m surprised no one is swimming.
Last shot of the river as I head into Espanola and swing back north up the High Road.
There were not as many stops or historical markers on the High Road. But there were a lot of churches.
The first one I stumbled on was the most famous, a shrine totally unknown to me.
El Santuario De Chimayo, located in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains near the path of the Old Spanish Trail in Chimayo New Mexico, is an internationally known pilgrimage site where people come to ask for healing for themselves and others, and to offer prayers of petition and of thanksgiving for favors received. They say it is the most important Roman Catholic Pilgrimage site in the United States. Known as the Lourdes of the US. This photo is of the front of the main of 4 chapels but I began my wandering tour in the back courtyard where the parking lot is.
Built in 1813 the adobe chapel is known as a miraculous shrine and attracts over 300,000 pilgrims each year. Thousands walk here from Santa Fe and elsewhere during Holy Week to experience its six foot crucifix and healing dirt. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1970. Its history and lore is fascinating. Here’s a link to a short version of it. This link will take you to an interesting article from September 17, 2025 in the Taos News.
What an amazing entry way, a line of arches each with a cross in the middle and many with inscriptions on the stones.
All throughout the courtyard were statues and religious iconography.
This statue is called the Three Cultures Monument. Its information says that “it depicts a Native American, a white cowboy, and a Hispanic vaquero together under a figure of the Virgin Mary, symbolizing the rich cultural history of New Mexico. It was created to represent the meeting and co-existence of these three distinct groups under the shared umbrella of the Catholic faith.”
I’m not sure the history of the area bears out this peaceful co-existence.
They seem to be adding additional shrines. This one is pretty recent.
All along one outside wall were these alcoves of saints and crucifixes with people’s pictures asking for intercession covering the walls. There were 6 or more of them.
This door was one of the most beautiful things I saw here.
Other outdoor structures where one could light a candle and sit in contemplation and prayer.
The central focus here is the holy dirt found at the room known as the pocito (well). It is considered holy because in this spot the crucifix of Our Lord of Esquipulas was found in 1810. See above links for the story. I saw a few other people all around the grounds but once inside this door there was a line of people waiting with paper bags and shovels to scoop up some dirt. I read that they mix it with water and drink it or spread over their skin for healing.
I took a picture, no dirt, home with me.
The original chapel built 1813 – 1816. It has grown since then to a large complex.
From there I went to see the front of the grounds. This is the arch through the walls that surround the grounds
Leaving the shrine I drove further up the High Road surrounded by mountain scenery.
The architecture of Mother Nature is beautiful beyond belief.
She did this sculpture with water and wind.
I never seem to get enough of the snow capped mountains of Sangre de Cristo – IN MAY!
I’ll mention only one other church at which I stopped. It was on the edge of the village of Las Trampas. It was older, smaller, simpler and more beautiful to me.
The information sign told me it is also a National Historic Landmark and the community’s center where the agricultural cycle is still observed with religious ceremony and ritual. The parishioners periodically re-mud the adobe walls both of the church which are as much as 6 feet thick and the low walls surrounding it.
You can see some of the community homes in the background.
Though you cannot see it in this picture of the grounds around the church, on the opposite side of the walkway are the graves of parishioners.
Andreita Romero died and was buried here in 1940. I felt reluctant walk around and look at other markers. This one was right by the pathway to the church.
From here I headed straight back. The High Road was very windy and largely through two National Forests. My trip was 99 miles and took all day long with all the stops. To say I was tired was an understatement but it was so worth doing.
