There are two way to get from Santa Fe, New Mexico, to Taos: the High Road and the Low Road. I read in a guidebook that the High Road could take from four to seven hours, so we took the Low Road to get to our hotel before dark.
Scenery just outside Santa Fe. Reminds me of the Badlands in South Dakota.
The golden cottonwoods and blue skies went on for miles. It was wonderful.
I loved seeing snow on the mountains.
Then the terrain changed:
The river you’re looking at is the Rio Grande. The Low Road follows it for quite a while. We were told it’s a great place for rafting in the spring after all the snow melts.
This was at a little road stop.
Just outside Taos. You can almost see the town in the distance.
The Plaza in Taos is not quite as impressive as the one in Santa Fe, but the clouds were pretty amazing:
There were touches of that beautiful blue too.
I liked this little place for its architecture and the way its colors contrast with the vivid blue skies.
We were lucky enough to be in Taos when the hot air balloon fest was held. I’ll post those photos on Friday if all goes well. Christmas baking and shopping are making things just a litle bit more hectic.
Hope your week’s going well so far.
{carole}
Pearls & Prose 
Just amazing landscapes….I’ve seen them since childhood, in Westerns….this is the first time I’ve seen them without Clint Eastwood in the foreground:)
You made me laugh with that one. Thank you. 🙂
I’m really regretting that I never went there during the fall. Stunning sky and leaves.
We were so lucky!
Some of these shots reminded me of the one or the other Western I’ve seen.
Those cottonwoods are so beautiful.
I was a tiny bit obsessed with the cottonwoods. More to come. 🙂
The colors are stunning. Every post make me want to visit even more!
Oh, that’s nice to hear! Definitely worth a visit.
Ah so beautiful, awakens the Wanderlust in me.
Thank you. I know what you mean–every time I see photos of Europe I want to go.
For an east coast person, it’s so cool to have autumn leaves and desert scrub in the same frame. Do you happen to know the altitude?
I love unusual juxtapositions like that too, Jackie. The elevation of Taos is 6,967 feet (2,124 m). Santa Fe, at 7,199 feet (2134 m) is the highest state capital in the U.S., according to Wikipedia.
What fantastic colors – that brilliant blue forming a backdrop for the yellow leaves – pure art!
Thank you for the visit and nice comment!