Best of the Old West
On a road trip through towns where desperados once ruled and pastels are not prominent, Jane Jeffries finds a sparkling treasure trove
Once referred to as the “Old West,” the State of New Mexico is relatively undiscovered as a tourist destination. Knowing little about it we decided to do a roadie and found it to be a treasure trove, rich in culture, history, art, architecture and friendly locals.
The name, the “Old West”, came about predominantly because it attracted many vagrants from the east in the 1880s. Billy the Kid, Jesse James, Doc Holliday and his girlfriend, Big Nose Kate and others, turning towns such as Las Vegas, New Mexico, into lawless hell-holes.
As historian Ralph Twitchell once said, “Without exception, there was no town which harboured a more disreputable gang of desperadoes and outlaws than did Las Vegas.”
But it’s also called the “Old West” because its striking wilderness dominates the landscape. Miles of parched desert plains supporting the odd cattle beast make up a large portion of New Mexico.
However, this should be no surprise as the state is the fifth largest in the USA. Bordering Arizona and Texas, with Colorado to the north and Mexico to the south, its land mass is approximately 20 per cent bigger than New Zealand and but with half the inhabitants.
We flew into Albuquerque, the workhorse of the state. With a population of 800,000, more than a third of the state, the city is thriving.
Taking a city tour we learned about its history and how the Spanish, Mexicans and Native Americans have blended through the years to GETTING THERE WHERE TO STAY blueswallow motel.com lafondasantafe.com produce a diverse and rich conglomerate of cultures.
But the true highlight of the tour was to see the “Mother Road”, the section of Route 66 that passes through Albuquerque.
In its heyday the route was lined with diners, motels, gas stations and alive with neon lights but many of the motels, in particular, have fallen into disrepair.
The city is working hard to bring back some of its former glory. It was recently announced by mayor of Albuquerque Richard Berry, that El Valo, the famous 1937 adobe-style motel, will get a US$16 million makeover. The city council is working to restore the historic route and it is hoped other motels, including the Sundowner Motel, where Bill Gates and Paul Allen lived while launching Microsoft, will be redeveloped too.
On our tour we also visited several locations from the Breaking Bad television series filmed in Albuquerque. As our tour guide, Ali, said, Albuquerque has become as big a personality as some of the series’ characters, including Jesse Pinkman, whose house we visited.
Leaving Albuquerque, we pulled into the Central Grill diner, packed with locals, eating oversized burritos and pork carne for breakfast. Zander, our delightful and hospitable waiter, took it upon himself to educate us on the local fare including the New Mexican staple, green chile stew.
Cruising down the highway as we listened to the Rolling Stones’ rendition of Route 66, the landscape was infinite. The towns are few and far between and we stopped at Carrizozo for a drink. Like many small settlements reliant on the railway, it was abandoned in the 1950s so many of the doors are boarded up and the people gone.
Whereas the beauty in the south lies in its arid emptiness, the north has the jewels of the state.
Santa Fe, population 80,000, was recently voted “the best little city in America” and it’s not Clockwise, from left: Albuquerque; Route 66, the Mother Road; Canyon Rd in Santa Fe. difficult to see why. It’s vibrant and buzzy with a phenomenal art scene.
From humble beginnings in the early 1990s, when painters came to capture the famed light on the southwestern landscape, Santa Fe has grown into the third largest art market in the USA after New York and Los Angeles.
Within a small radius of the city plaza are more than 20 museums, many of them of art, including the Georgia O’Keefe Museum. Art is everywhere, including sculptures, street art and even an exhibition of Dr Seuss’ Rare Editions but the diamond of the town is Canyon Rd.
This colourful street is lined with old adobe buildings. They were the homes of the original painters and now house more than 100 galleries exhibiting local and international works.
The unique adobe architecture has also become part of this arty town. It was the brilliance and foresight of the city folk in the early 1910s, who stipulated that all new structures must be modelled on the local Indian pueblos. This decision ensured a consistent and now famous Santa Fe architectural style, the earthy shapes of which blend into the parched environment.
Back on the road we headed further north to Taos to see the oldest inhabited pueblo, inscribed by Unesco on to the World Heritage List.
The compound, with no running water or electricity, houses about 150 people permanently with many other families coming for the annual festivities.
The Taos Pueblo is one of about 19 remaining in the state and is approximately 1000 years old. Its most prominent architectural feature is the reddish brown, multi-storeyed residential adobe complex.
New Mexico may not be your classic American tourist destination but if you’re seeking a combination of spectacular desert landscape, a variety of cultures and one of the strongest international art scenes in “the best small city in America”, go and take a look.