RV Winter Rambling 2006-07

'Taos' means 'red willow' in the Tiwa language.


Taos, 63 miles north of Santa Fe has a totally different vibe. While it’s still an artist’s colony, it’s also a ski destination and it sits beside the famous 1,000-year-old Taos Pueblo. The residents are younger, rougher and it has a bit of a ‘hippie’ environment. It’s about 1.000 feet higher than Santa Fe at 7,900 feet elevation, so it gets more snow and is much colder in the winter. This day that we visited – March 13/07 – the snow had disappeared from town but the mountains ringing the town were still cloaked in white. As in Santa Fe, all buildings are constructed in adobe, Pueblo-style by city ordinance. So the city hall, convention centre, hotels … don’t stand out – the style remains consistent.


The author of Lady Chatterley’s Lover, DH Lawrence made Taos his home. Dennis Hopper bought a property in Taos after making “Easy Rider” some of which was shot here. He doesn’t live here any more but I can imagine while he was here, it was party central. Julia Roberts also made her home here for a while.


After we rambled through the obligatory “Historic Old Town Walk”, we took the 87 mile ‘Enchanted Circle’ drive, north out of Taos, up and through the high mountains and alpine meadows, past ski resorts where skiers shushed down the slopes in shirt sleeves – it was over 70 degrees F.

posted by O'Leary @ 8:55 PM