Arizona, New Mexico & the Grand Canyon Trips (Lonely Planet, 1st Edition) - Aaron Anderson [129]
Nambe Pueblo
Set in a dramatic mountain location just 18 miles north of Santa Fe. 505-455-2036; www.nambefalls.com; Hwy 503, Nambe Pueblo
Taos Mountain Casino
One of the coziest casinos in New Mexico. 505-737-0777; www.taosmountaincasino.com; Taos Pueblo Rd, Taos Pueblo; 8am-1am Sun-Wed, 8am-2am Thu-Sat
Taos Pueblo
It’s been lived in since 1450 and is the biggest and most famous pueblo in the state. 505-758-1028; www.taospueblo.com; Taos Pueblo Rd, Taos Pueblo; adult/child $10/5, photography or video permit $5; 8am-4pm, closed for 10 weeks starting in Mar
Taos Pueblo Powwow
Rare public access to dances and workshops. 505-758-1028; www.taospueblopowwow.com; Taos Pueblo Rd, Taos Pueblo; admission $5; 2nd week in Jul
Tony Reyna Indian Shop
Big collection of arts and crafts from around New Mexico. 505-758-3835; Taos Pueblo Rd, Taos Pueblo; 8am-noon & 1-6pm
Zuni Pueblo
Information and photography permits available from the tourist office. 505-782-7238; Halona Plaza, Zuni Pueblo; 8am-5:30pm
SLEEP & EAT
Inn at Halona
Room service is provided by a grocery store in the back. 505-782-4547, 800-752-3278; www.halona.com; 1 Shalaka Dr, Zuni Pueblo; r from $79
Inn at Loretto
Modeled after the Taos Pueblo, this gorgeous old hotel has wi-fi and a great spa. 505-988-5531; www.hotelloretto.com; 211 Old Santa Fe Trail, Santa Fe; r from $250
Tewa Kitchen
Excellent Native American cooking. 505-751-1020; Taos Pueblo Rd, Taos Pueblo; mains $6-13; 11am-5pm Wed-Mon, to 7pm Jun-Aug
USEFUL WEBSITES
www.indianpueblo.org
www.nativewiki.org
LINK YOUR TRIP www.lonelyplanet.com/trip-planner
TRIP
40 Ice Caves & Wolf Dens on Highway 53
46 On Location in New Mexico
47 Take the High Road…and the Low Road
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Return to beginning of chapter
Out of This World
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WHY GO Whether you go in a spaceship, the mother ship or atop a mushroom cloud, New Mexico is fully devoted to blasting you off planet earth. The birthplace of the atomic bomb, alien mania and intergalactic space travel lures X-files fanatics and nuclear-fission junkies lusting to uncover occult Americana’s soul.
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TIME
5 days
DISTANCE
605 miles
BEST TIME TO GO
Apr – Jun
START
Carlsbad Caverns National Park, NM
END
White Sands National Monument, NM
ALSO GOOD FOR
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This trip begins with a serenade of bats in New Mexico’s wild south. Follow the two-lane highway across a bleached and blinding desert to Carlsbad Caverns National Park. The only caverns in the state are also some of the world’s biggest and the home of a quarter-million-strong population of Mexican-free tail bats. Take the 2-mile subterraneous walk 829ft down to the Big Room. The 1800ft-long, 255ft-high chamber is capable of dropping even the most clenched jaws. Be above ground at sunset, when hundreds of members of Carlsbad’s healthy bat population swarm out of the caves and hunt for dinner. It’s a wacky way to start your out-of-this-world adventure.
After you’ve seen the bats, start thinking about visitors from another planet, because you’ll be jumping on the “extraterrestrial highway” (Hwy 285) heading north to Roswell next. In the heady post-WWII baby-making summer of 1947 an unidentified flying object fell out of the sky here and America’s fascination with little green men from outer space went mainstream. Believers are convinced the UFO was an alien spaceship, while the government swears it was a top-secret weather balloon. At this point the truth doesn’t matter. Roswell has become the mother ship of the USA’s alien subculture. Visit the International UFO Museum & Research Center for the full scoop.
Crash in Roswell for the night. It’s not the most interesting city to sleep, filled with a slew of generic chains, but your next destination, Los Alamos, is a 250-mile drive northwest and is best reached in daylight. The birthplace of the atomic bomb, Los Alamos sits in a pretty 7400ft mesa-top