Northern New Mexico Ramble

[SeldomSeen]

Just got back from a couple of weeks on the road visiting Northern New Mexico. One of my favorite areas ever since I visited Philmont as a Scout in '67. We left home without a fixed itinerary and a simple desire for green chili. We ended up visiting some old favorites and some new ones as well.

The bikes traveled well under the new Soft Topper. 5 minutes to get the bikes on the road, and the topper buttoned up.


Valles Caldera. Wow. It comes under control of the National Park Service at next month. We will be back. (Just hope they don't turn it in to the South Rim.)


Our campsite at Chaco Canyon backed right up to a cliff dwelling.


Biking is a great way to see Chaco


Jemez Falls (NFS)


Red River is a great little old fashioned vacation/ski town. Michael Martin Murphy plays there at his ranch during the summer. Cowboy music and a chuck wagon dinner, and a chance to wear my boots!


Sorry. You have to turn your monitor to see the little trailer in the center of this pic at Jacks Creek (NFS) near Pecos

[Greggo]

Excellant! Tips on Green Chile Cheeseburger joints? Make it down to Hatch for the Chile Festival?

[escape artist]

Hi: SeldomSeen... Sounds like a "Hot time in the old town at night". Alf
escape artist N.S. of Lake Erie

[SeldomSeen]

Well the guy grilling burgers in the visitor center parking lot at Bandelier National Monument claims to make the best chile cheeseburgers in all of New Mexico....unfortunately we packed salami and swiss sandwiches for the hike up Frijoles Canyon.

BUT the best green chiles rellenos are in Santa Fe at Tomasito's within walking distance of the REI store.

We missed the festival at Hatch and the Fiesta in Santa Fe. So little time. So much to do.

[FMLNM]

How was the road into Chaco? We've had so much rain this spring and summer that we figured it might be pretty rutted. Would appreciate a road review! Chaco is amazing!
Thanks!

[SeldomSeen]

Originally Posted by FMLNM

How was the road into Chaco? We've had so much rain this spring and summer that we figured it might be pretty rutted. Would appreciate a road review! Chaco is amazing!
Thanks!

We were at Chaco just over a week ago. The "good" part of the road was fine. The last four miles or so of un-maintained section was pretty bad washboard. But, not as bad as I had been lead to believe. We took the heavy stuff out of the fridge and moved it to a cooler in the truck and drove slow. The only problem we had was a ruptured pop can under the sink. We also shook out a bunch of loose sawdust, and one wood screw...probably lost during the build process. The table in the 19 stayed put, but we decided to drop it for the trip out.

I was watching the rain on the horizon as I was concerned about the one large wash that must be crossed.

It was our first trip there, and it was wonderful. We stayed three nights before moving on.

[FMLNM]

Tanks for the report! Sounds like you got lucky with conditions! Glad you got to see it!