This New Mexico mountain town has a 1,000-year-old pueblo and homes built from old tires

Taos sits where three cultures collide

Taos, New Mexico, sits at 7,000 feet in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, and the town pulls from roots that go back over a millennium.

Native American, Spanish colonial, and American traditions all left their mark here, and you can still feel every one of them. The name itself comes from a Tiwa phrase meaning “place of the red willows.”

More than 80 galleries and several museums line the streets now, but the history runs deeper than the art. What you find here took centuries to build.

A pueblo where 150 people still live without electricity

Taos Pueblo has had people living in it for over 1,000 years.

About 150 residents still call the multi-story adobe buildings home, and none of them have electricity or running water inside.

The pueblo holds status as both a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a National Historic Landmark, the only one in the country recognized for traditional Native American living culture.

Tribal members lead guided tours, and you can buy handmade pottery, jewelry, and traditional foods from resident-run shops. Respect the photography rules and stay out of closed areas.

Stand 600 feet above the Rio Grande on this steel bridge

The Rio Grande Gorge Bridge drops you 600 feet above the river on U.S. Route 64, about 10 miles northwest of town. The steel deck arch spans 1,280 feet across and ranks as one of the highest bridges in the country.

When crews finished it in 1965, funding ran out to continue the road on the other side, so locals called it the “Bridge to Nowhere.”

A walking trail runs along the gorge rim from the west-side parking lot, where you can browse work from local artists and vendors.

Two painters broke a wagon wheel and started an art colony

In 1898, painters Bert Geer Phillips and Ernest Blumenschein rolled into Taos and never left. The landscape and cultures pulled them in, and by 1915, the Taos Society of Artists had formed.

Mabel Dodge Luhan, a New York arts patron, moved to town and invited Georgia O’Keeffe, Ansel Adams, D.H. Lawrence, and Nicolai Fechin to create work here.

You can still walk through the studios of two founding Society members at the Couse-Sharp Historic Site in the historic district.

An adobe church so perfect that O’Keeffe painted it

San Francisco de Asis Mission Church in Ranchos de Taos went up between 1772 and 1816. The massive “beehive” buttresses on the back wall made it one of the most photographed churches in the country.

Both Georgia O’Keeffe and Ansel Adams created famous works of it.

Every June, community members re-plaster the entire building by hand with adobe mud in a tradition called “the Enjarre.”

Inside the parish hall, you can see “The Shadow of the Cross,” an 18th-century painting that appears to glow and shift in the dark.

6,000 pieces of Southwestern art under one roof

Millicent Rogers, granddaughter of a Standard Oil founder, moved to Taos in 1947 and started collecting Native American jewelry, pottery, and weavings.

Her family opened a museum in 1956, and it now holds over 6,000 objects.

You can see a top-tier collection of pottery and tools from Maria Martinez, the celebrated potter of San Ildefonso Pueblo.

The museum also keeps one of the Southwest’s largest collections of Hispanic folk art, including hand-carved santos from the 1700s. It sits about four miles northwest of Taos Plaza and opens daily except Wednesdays.

Climb New Mexico’s highest point at 13,100 feet

Wheeler Peak tops out above 13,100 feet, the highest point in New Mexico.

The most popular route, the Williams Lake Trail, covers about eight miles round trip with roughly 3,000 feet of elevation gain.

You hike through thick forest, pass Williams Lake, and then push above the treeline for a steep final stretch to the summit. Late June through early October gives you the best shot at snow-free trails.

From the top, the Sangre de Cristo range and high desert spread out in every direction.

People live in houses made from old tires and glass bottles

Architect Michael Reynolds started building Earthships in Taos in the early 1970s, and now over 100 of them dot the area. These off-grid homes use earth-packed tires, cans, and glass bottles for walls.

They harvest rainwater, run on solar and wind power, grow food in indoor greenhouses, and hold interior temperatures around 70 degrees year-round with no furnace or air conditioner.

The Earthship Biotecture Visitor Center near the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge lets you walk through a fully functioning one. You can also book a night in an Earthship rental.

Drive 84 miles in a loop around Wheeler Peak

The Enchanted Circle Scenic Byway starts and ends in Taos, looping 84 miles around Wheeler Peak through some of northern New Mexico’s most dramatic country.

You pass through Questa, Red River, Eagle Nest, and Angel Fire, all small mountain towns with their own feel. Ancient rock formations along the route hold quartz and feldspar dating back two billion years.

Eagle Nest Lake has trout and salmon fishing, and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial State Park sits at the south end of the Moreno Valley. Plan a full day.

The plaza at the center of town dates to 1796

Taos Plaza started as adobe fortifications in 1796, and it still anchors downtown. Adobe-style buildings ring the square, packed with galleries, shops, and restaurants.

An American flag flies 24 hours a day here in honor of Civil War-era events.

Walk a few blocks and you reach the Kit Carson Home and Museum, a National Historic Landmark built in 1825.

The Ernest L. Blumenschein Home and Museum sits just off the plaza, preserving the studio and art of the Taos Society co-founder from 1919 to 1960.

Raft Class V rapids and float over the gorge at sunrise

Whitewater rafting through the Rio Grande Gorge is a signature Taos experience. The 17-mile Lower Taos Box throws Class IV and V rapids at you.

Taos Ski Valley, about 30 minutes from town, draws skiers of all levels.

The Rio Grande del Norte National Monument protects volcanic plateaus, steep canyons, and the gorge itself. Hot air balloon rides at sunrise carry you over the gorge and high desert mesa.

The High Road to Taos, a scenic route between Santa Fe and Taos, winds through small villages, historic churches, and mountain country.

Adobe walls and red chile tie three cultures together

Taos is one of the few places in the country where Native American, Spanish colonial, and Anglo-American traditions live side by side every day.

The 19 pueblos of New Mexico stay culturally active, and Taos Pueblo holds ceremonial dances and feast days throughout the year.

Adobe architecture dominates the town, a building style passed down from both pueblo and Spanish colonial traditions.

Green and red chile anchor traditional New Mexican dishes, and the food here reflects every culture that built this place. The pace runs slow and deliberate, and the town feels like a living time capsule.

Visit Taos Pueblo in Taos, New Mexico

If you want to see the heart of Taos, start at the pueblo. Taos Pueblo sits just north of downtown at 120 Veterans Highway.

The pueblo opens daily from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., but closes for about 10 weeks each year for ceremonies and religious events. Guided tours leave about every 20 minutes and last around 30 minutes.

You can buy handmade pottery, jewelry, drums, moccasins, and traditional foods directly from tribal members. Check the official website before you go for current hours and closures.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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