Taos, NM

Neither of us had been to Taos before and so it was interesting to see, even if it didn't match our preconceptions of it. Generally speaking, the town had rougher edges than we thought it would. Our first stop however, lunch at Doc Martin's in the Historic Taos Inn, met my expectations, as it oozed that New Mexico character that one normally associates with Santa Fe.

 

 

the oldest town in Colorado

We weren't planning on it, but due to the weather we decided to head directly south, away from the snowstorm that had much of Colorado in its grip. Along the way we passed through San Luis, the oldest town in Colorado, and miles and miles of "open range" for wild horses, as the sign below suggests (although we didn't see any).

Great Sand Dunes National Park, part 2

Great Sand Dunes National Park

I had wanted to come here for a long time. I never imagined that when I finally did, it would be during a snowstorm. Furthermore, it was COLD. Did I mention that it was cold? This made taking photographs difficult, but still worthwhile. The snow and sand make for an intriguing combination - sort of like yogurt with almond butter - but I would like to come back here in a warmer season and trek all over the dunes.

Alamosa, CO

Sometimes the Fairfield Inn that you stay at in Alamosa, CO has a Chips Ahoy truck parked behind it.

Antonito, CO

Antonito, CO - a small town in the San Luis Valley that we passed through on the way to Alamosa, CO - and the map that took us there. This area is the earliest settled part of Colorado, dating to when the Spanish spread north from New Mexico.

Chili Line Depot

The light at the end of the tunnel that was US-64 was the Chili Line Depot, where I enjoyed cole slaw and a grilled cheese sandwich.

US-64: theory and practice

Realizing I didn't want to drive over one of Colorado's famous 10,000+ foot mountain passes in a snowstorm, I found an alternate route in New Mexico (US-64, above) that sounded less treacherous. I'm very glad we went that way, but it was still a challenge getting through the storm - even without the drop-offs (below). For approximately 50 miles we crawled across the snowy, icy, and at times barely visible Carson National Forest. They don't call it the Continental Divide for nothing!

Pagosa Springs, CO

I was curious to see Pagosa Springs - a delightfully obscure small town in southwest Colorado. In addition to seeing the town and the hot springs, we spent a comfortable night at the Motel SOCO. The morning brought us snow, deer, snowmen and more deer.

 

Durango, CO part 4

Seen here is the old Durango Train Depot which has played an important role in the city's history. Below that, the Strater Hotel seen from the window of The Living Tree, where we had lunch. Below that, Animas Chocolate, where we had a very fine mocha.

Durango, CO part 3

This path along the Animas River was a highlight: a combo of fall foliage, kayakers and crisp air.