On the eve of our departure from Denver for Taos and Santa Fe, the forecast was for a blizzard with accumulating snow. Sure enough, it started to snow as soon as we picked up the rental car.
This scene greeted us in the morning along with reports of accidents and road closures on the high altitude Interstate 25. We had some flex in our schedule and little inclination to drive in poor conditions. We decided to skip Taos and defer our departure by 24 hours. (To their credit, the El Pueblo Lodge let us cancel our hotel booking without charge.)The skies cleared later in the afternoon.The next day we drove the 625km (388 miles) straight through to Santa Fe. Not such a long drive when the speed limit is 75 miles per hour. There was a fair amount of snow along the way but the roads were clear.
Santa Fe is nestled in the mountains at an altitude of 7,199 ft (2,194 m). After a few days in the “mile high” city of Denver (5,280 ft or 1,610 m) , I was somewhat acclimatised but was careful to drink lots of water to avoid light-headedness.
A true southwest sunset from our hotel.
In the daylight, we saw that our adobe view was of the swish Loretto spa hotel:
There are many museums in Santa Fe but, with the fair weather, we eschewed them in favour of strolling along Canyon Road which boasts over 100 galleries, boutiques and restaurants in one half mile. I particularly enjoyed the Waxlander Gallery that, amongst other artists, featured colourful works by Marshall Noice and woven copper works by Suzanne Donazetti that reminded me of the woven textiles by Catherine Porter.
There were lots of sculptures including glass works by Craig Mitchell Smith. When you are travelling, there are always those things that are so alluring but are faintly ridiculous if you take them home. I did not succumb. Brenda – 1 Cowboy boots – 0.
We ventured into the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi. The exterior is Romanesque but the interior has more of a New Mexico Mission style vibe.
The stations of the cross are painted in Santero style by Marie Romero Cash. I found them very appealing.
Heidi says
Hi Brenda. So nice to see your pictures. Fortunately, you could avoid the snow more or less.
I was in Santa Fe this May and it was wonderful. And I also bought cowboy boots. I love to wear them now (winter in Switzerland).
Gennine lives in Santa Fe (Geninne’s Art on FB). We could meet her.
Enjoy your traveling.
Heidi