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MiniTour

“Ancient Roads” Less Traveled
On Los Caminos Antiguos Scenic and Historic Byway, travelers discover a landscape rich in scenery, history and lore.

By Rose Muenker

In south central Colorado, winds blow sand across the San Luis Valley, forming massive dunes at the base of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. Shimmering wetlands create pockets of lush habitat that attract migratory waterfowl to the high desert terrain. Acres of farms and ranches surround small Hispanic towns. And the blending of nature and human endeavors creates a fascinating region perfect for road trip exploration.

This month's Mini Tour traverses this captivating landscape via Los Caminos Antiguos Scenic and Historic Byway—the “Ancient Roads.” The 129-mile drive through the southern San Luis Valley meanders along routes used since the Stone Age, while it links settlements and natural sites between the Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve to the north and the Cumbres Pass on the Colorado/New Mexico border to the south.

The northern gateway of the route is Alamosa, a former bustling hub of the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad. On the outskirts of town, the Rio Grande flows beside the Alamosa National Wildlife Refuge, whose protective cover and plentiful food sustains countless birds. Among them are American avocets, ibis and marsh hawks. In spring and fall, thousands of sandhill cranes and a few rare whooping cranes migrate to the San Luis Valley. The refuge's prime viewing spot is Bluff Overlook, the starting point of a 3.5-mile self-guided auto tour for those who want to see refuge inhabitants up close.

Because the region is so arid, wildlife concentrates in pockets of wetlands that dot the landscape. As the byway heads north from Alamosa to Mosca and then east to the Great Sand Dunes, several oases create a birder's delight. The Blanca Wetlands, for example, attract rare snowy plovers. Even the Colorado Gator Farm (County Road 9 North in Mosca) draws great blue herons, snowy egrets and other migrants to brave the full-grown alligators in its thermal waters.

To the east, North America's tallest dunes—some of them 700 feet high—rise into view. At Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve, you can scale sandy crests, slide into troughs and even wear out your old skis and snowboards on golden summer slopes. As light plays on the ridges, their colors shift from brown to pink, gray and cream.

South of the national park, Medano-Zapata Ranch occupies an area which, over time, has been a Stone Age bison kill site, prehistoric Native American camp and historic cattle ranch. Both cattle and bison are now raised there. In summer the Nature Conservancy conducts free ranch tours, nature hikes and weekend workshops. While visitors walk under towering cottonwoods, along wet meadows and on dry uplands, they learn about the area's unique species, such as the slender spider flower and the giant sand treader camel cricket.

Back on Colorado 150, travelers can enjoy a sweeping view of the San Luis Valley by taking the turnoff to the Zapata Falls Trailhead Overlook. Below, the valley stretches 100 miles. Wetlands reflect like mirrors on the flat terrain. While peaks of the San Juan Range pierce the western sky, the Sangre de Cristo Mountains tower above the dunes to the northeast. A short, steep hike leads to the falls, whose volume changes with the seasons.

At U.S. Hwy. 160, the route turns east toward Mount Blanca and the town bearing its name. The quaint general store — shelves crammed with every necessity—epitomizes rural life.

Leaving Blanca, the byway turns south at Fort Garland. In 1858, a garrison was established here to protect settlers from Native American resistance. Fort Garland Museum re-creates the outpost during the time of Kit Carson, who negotiated with the local Ute people to bring relative peace to the valley. The famed Buffalo Soldiers, members of the black cavalry regiments formed after the Civil War, were stationed here. The museum's summer programs include costumed docents and reenactments that bring history to life. From May 27 – 30, the Fort Garland Memorial Regiment will hold its annual Memorial Day encampment and cavalry events at the museum.

The next stop is San Luis, Colorado's oldest continuously inhabited community. The town's architecture, cuisine and religious artifacts reflect the traditions of the Hispanic settlers who established it in 1851. On the path up San Pedro Mesa, a series of evocative bronze sculptures by Huberto Maestas depicts the Stations of the Cross. From the mesa top, All Saints Chapel captures panoramic views of the valley.

From San Luis, the byway travels west on Colorado 142 through the high desert—brightened by green irrigated fields—and crosses the Rio Grande. While today's river doesn't seem to live up to its name, researchers believe that in the late 1800s, before irrigation, the “Big River” was as much as 10 feet deep and 250 feet wide.

At Manassa, a statue of the great boxer Jack Dempsey stands in the town park. A log cabin museum chronicles the Manassa Mauler's life.

The route now jogs south to Conejos, home to Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, the oldest parish in Colorado. John Lamy, the first bishop of Santa Fe, oversaw its construction in the 1850s. Inside, sunlight tinted by stained glass windows bathes the sanctuary.

The neighboring town of Antonito boasts the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad depot. On a self-guided walking tour of the rail yard, visitors roam among restored vintage steam-powered locomotives, wooden passenger cars and freight cars.

The line was constructed in 1880 as part of the Rio Grande Railroad's San Juan extension to serve the silver mines of southwestern Colorado. Steam-powered locomotives chugged on narrow-gauge rails set three feet apart, instead of the standard 4 feet 8.5 inches.

The original locomotives and rail cars now carry vacationers on a spectacular 64-mile scenic ride between Antonito and Chama, New Mexico. As the train twists and turns through the San Juan Mountains, it crosses the state border 11 times. Awesome sights highlight the excursion, among them Windy Point, Phantom Curve and Toltec Gorge.

If you choose to stay on the road (Colorado 17) instead of riding the rails, the byway reveals a landscape of equal beauty as it weaves through the Conejos River Canyon. This area sustains diverse species, including bald eagles, Western tanagers and bighorn sheep. Leaving a high desert valley studded with piñon pines, the road climbs into the San Juan National Forest to La Manga Pass. A scenic pullout overlooks broad meadows on which early homesteaders raised sheep. Aspens dapple sub-alpine forests with bright green in spring and summer, and multiple hues of orange and gold in autumn.

The road continues climbing through high mountain meadows fringed with forests and rugged gray rock. At 10,022-foot Cumbres Pass, Los Caminos Antiguos Scenic and Historic Byway reaches its culmination, crowned with exhilarating views.

As the road converges again with the railway, you may be lucky enough to see a shining black vintage steam locomotive puffing its way through the vista of mountains, meadows and woods—a view almost unchanged from 125 years ago. Though voices from the more distant past are now silent, it's easy to imagine our Stone Age ancestors gazing with equal awe at the beauty of the Ancient Roads.

Rose and David Muenker traveled throughout Colorado researching their two guidebooks, Colorado Front Range History Explorer and Colorado Front Range Scenic and Historic Byways.

The Muenkers also specialize in UNESCO World Heritage Sites.