From Taos Junction, over the Mesa to Rio Grande Gorge Bridge, Taos, and Taos Pueblo

---

---

August 24 – Sunday – Morning - This morning after having my banana and peanut butter sandwiches for breakfast I made sure the reservoir for my radiator was full as well as the radiator full, and headed off over the top of the mesa. I had no problem getting up and over the mesa and then back down again, on Hwy567 to where it veered off towards Carson. At this point I continued on straight to where the road connected with Hwy 64 near the rest area at the Rio Grande Gorge bridge. I invested an hour of so checking out the canyon from the Rest Area and the overlook in the middle of the bridge. Quite awesome.

Note: From my campground I could have just went back on 570 to Pilar and then taken Hwy 68 into Taos, but I wanted to check out the views from the mesa and the Gorge of the Rio Grande Bridge again.

It’s a gorgeous day here with low humidity. The temperature shows to be 60 but I am comfortable in just a T-shirt.

From the rest area on Hwy 64 you can walk over to the bridge and check out the Rio Grande Gorge. I did so and although I have been here before (I have overnighted free here before in the rest area) it was still worth taking another look. Then after getting a good look and taking a few pictures I headed into Taos. I knew from going there before that the tourist information center in Taos had some tables with plugs for free Internet access.

I checked my water levels again but the stop leak didn’t seem to have fixed the problem, and so I added some more antifreeze before leaving.

Around noon - I’m at the tourist area in Taos having a free seriously stout cup of coffee while accessing their free Wi-Fi access. They have tables with plugs available.

I happened to arrive at the visitor center in Taos just at the same time that a tour bus unloaded so the center was packed. I made my way to one of the tables and got on the Internet, figuring I would go to the desk when the tour bus left. http://taos.org/

After a bit they headed out the door….about 15 grandmas and only 3 grandpa’s…..So guys take a hint from that and do what you can while you still can…..

Hopefully I will be able to go to Taos Pueblo today. Last time I was here all the Indians had left on a pilgrimage, so the Pueblo was closed. It’s hard to imagine how you can just “close off” an entire town like that. I can hardly imagine the uproar if College Station, Texas just decided to “close” for a week.

I lost my cell phone , hopefully somewhere in my truck and for some reason I haven’t been able to use MacDonalds free wifi. My computer connects to their “Macdonalds free wifi” and my network and sharing center even shows connected to the internet. But internet explorer nor AOL won’t open up??!!. Also my wireless MiFi which works almost everywhere else couldn’t get a signal at my campsite last night in the canyon of the Rio Grande George. Now …..how does that happen…everything at once…..gee.

I just talked to the lady at the desk and she said the Taos Pueblo is open today but would be closed for 5 days after that for some ceremonies. So I guess I will be sure to go today.

Sunday afternoon – I went to a Mexican Grill in Taos and had some Chille Rellinos. I had to make an emergency walk to the counter to request an immediate glass of milk. You would think I would learn to always order milk with Mexican Food. Other than that they were darn good and very big. I ordered “Christmas” on the side which is both red and green sauce. They always show water to deal with hot food on TV….water does nothing….milk helps.

Taos Pueblo – Voluntary simplicity at its extreme – Coming into Taos Pueblo I was directed to parking by an Indian. I parked in the parking lot and walked into the pueblo after paying the $16 entry fee.

The first thing I came to as I went into the Pueblo was the St Jerome Church, or St Geronimo church if you prefer. It was a beautiful church both inside and out and actually was a replacement for the original church that had been built by the cemetery.

The original church was built in 1619 and destroyed in Pueblo revolts and rebuilt. It was once again destroyed by the US army in the Mexican war and apparently they did a good job of it that time as it was not rebuilt again.

http://www.taospueblo.com/about - info on Taos Pueblo

Walking into the Pueblo I took some pictures as I went and then sat on a bench by the stream to relax. The stream is the water source for the Taos Pueblo and the people haul water to their homes by buckets. I guess they use port a potties as I have seen at other pueblo’s but they must be out back out of sight, which is nice. Another pueblo I had went to had port a potties all over the place and it sort of ruined the views.

In any case the Indians don’t have running water or electricity in their homes. Voluntary Simplicity in its extreme.

I enjoyed the view from the bench by the stream for a bit and then walked around the pueblo some and went into a couple of the buildings that were stores selling stuff. I went in more to see how they looked inside and if they were cool than anything else. Then I eased back to my truck after checking out the cemetery and old church.

And I headed to Colorado.

---

Photos

Heading up and over the mesa
Whenever you head off on one of these roads , you never know how bad it may get, but you just keep on going.

The top of the mesa
When you reach the top of the mesa then you head across the mesa, then down the other side.....brake check.

Bridge over the Rio Grand Gorge
The bridge over the Rio Grande Gorge by the rest area on Hwy 64