Courtesy of Steve Goatley (2005 route w/revisions by Doc Reid 2007).
1.- Once again it’s all about choices, and today you’ll have a few to make. If you only want to ride the Enchanted Circle, skip ahead to # x. If you want to ride over to Chama, read on.
1. - You'll leave Taos on Hwy 64, heading NW at the light once you've left the village of Prado. This will take you over the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge, the highest suspension bridge in North America and a popular suicide destination for the disturbed. Worth a stop.
1a. Continue on and you'll see the Earthships settlement on your right in a few miles. You're riding in a valley now to Tres Piedras. That's where the fun really begins. The road from Tres Piedras to Tierra Amarilla on Hwy 64 has been ranked as one of the 10 best sports car roads by magazines for years. The scenery is incredibly beautiful, the road an endless set of sweepers, and most of it is near or above treeline. And no traffic. What more could you ask for?
2. - At Tierra Amarilla, turn right on 84 for the short ride up to Chama. At Los Ojos you can take a side ride over to Lake Heron, a reservoir lake with good fishing and sailing. In Chama we'll stop at the Cumbres Toltec narrow gauge railway station. The train leaves at 10am so we'll get a chance to see it off.
3.- From Chama there are two routes back to Taos. The way we just came (my favorite) and the route that goes North ( Steve's favorite).
3a.- Here's Steve's recommendation: Another spectacular route and my recommendation would be to take Hiway 17 north out of Chama and prepare yourself for some spectacular scenery as well as a challenging piece of tarmac. This route will wind up to the top of Cumbres Pass criss-crossing the route of the narrow gauge railroad. Bring your camera and be prepared to stop for photo ops of both the train and the majestic Colorado panoramas. Careful, as gawking while riding these semi-technical roads could be hazardous to your health! You’ll eventually wind up in the town of Antonito, the other end of the Cumbres/Toltec Railroad. Turn right (south) onto 285 and aim your FJR down this gun barrel straight bit of pavement to Tres Piedres.
2.- From Tres Piedres, you’ll want to take 64 east back to Taos. This will take you , and will eventually wind up on the north end of Taos. This intersection is also where the road to Taos Ski Valley (hiway 150) is. I’d recommend staying on 64, which will take you south through the city of Taos. You may wish to stop, take in some galleries, hang out with the “touristas”, and try to catch a glance of Julia Roberts. You should have time to take a look, but rather ride? I thought so. Not that Taos isn’t worth the stop, but isn’t this weekend about riding? On the other hand if your pillon needs a break this is a great place to wander through the art galleries.
From here there are 2 circular routes that will take you through the mountains and end you back up in Taos. The shorter route is 3a, the longer route is 3b. Both have spectacular scenery.
3a. – Stay on 64 and once you’ve navigated thru most of the city, you’ll notice 64 turns south. The sign should also say something about Angel Fire. That’s a good thing as that’s where you’ll be going. This is a great road, but sometimes a bit crowded with both vehicles, and wildlife. Keep your eyes open! This will take you by Angel Fire Resort, the Viet Nam Veterans Memorial (very moving and worth a look), by Eagle Nest Lake and into the town of Eagle Nest. This whole time you’ve been on hiway 64, but now you’ll want to turn north on hiway 38. This will take you to Red River. Red River is a great little resort town that is host to a yearly “mini-Sturgis” event, and also hosted a BMW national meet in 03’. Very motorcycle friendly! If you haven’t already replenished your food stocks since breakfast, then this is a good place to stop for chow. There are also good restaurants in Angel Fire and Eagle Nest.
3b. – (the longer way and my personal favorite) Again, stay on 64 but go a bit further thru town to the intersection of 64 and 518. Turn south and stay on 518 all the way to the town of Mora. This is a great road with a lot of big sweepers and elevation changes. You’ll run by the little ski resort of Sipapu (pronounced See-pa poo) which is the site of a regional Beemer fest every fall, and was also home to a national Moto Guzzi Rally a few years back. Once you’ve made it to Mora, keep your eyes peeled for the road to Black Lake/Angel Fire. The turn off is to your left and is St. Rd. 38/434. It’s in the middle of town and poorly marked, but it is there and it’s OK to turn around if you miss it the first time (don’t ask me how I know this) This is not much more than a county lane and is narrow, twisty, and fun! You’ll wind up in Angel Fire and back on track (Hiway 38) to Eagle Nest and Red River.
Either 3a or 3b will end you up in Red River. Now back to Taos. The road out of Red River (Hiway 38) is lots of fun, and will eventually deadhead into hiway 522 in the little village of Questa. Turn left (south) on 522. This will return you to a familiar intersection just North of Taos. Time permitting, you may want to check out Taos. Be advised that many of the stores and galleries in Taos are not open Sunday morning so if you want to browse, Saturday’s the day to do it.
We apologize in advance if our directions are unclear or worse yet, GET YOU LOST!!
Mileage to major destinations:
Taos to Chama 17/64 – 110 mi.
Chama to Taos via 84/64 – 95 mi.
Taos to Angel Fire (via 64) – 25 mi.
Taos to Angel Fire (via 518) – 112 mi
Angel Fire to Eagle Nest – 12mi.
Eagle Nest to Red River - 18 mi.
Red River to Taos – 35 mi.
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