As a visitor, New Mexico is one of those places – like New Orleans – that feels as if you are traveling to a foreign country – thanks to its local food, culture, and history. Add the mountains, the art, the natural hot springs and the options for adventure, and it’s a pretty idyllic spot.
On a recent trip there, we started our journey by making the ascent to the high altitude of Taos Ski Valley (TSV), nestled in the Sangre de Cristo mountains. TSV is run by the children and grandchildren of founder Ernie Blake, who came from Switzerland after WWII and was one of the West’s true ski pioneers. As first-time visitors to the valley, we were able to feel the sense of family and history throughout.
Though the altitude (9200 feet at the base; 12,800 at its peak) can take a couple of days to acclimate to, the upsides are the resulting ski conditions and terrain, one of the country’s most challenging. And don’t let the sign at the base (see above) frighten you, because there truly is terrain for skiers of all levels.
Both on and off the slopes, there is something very welcoming, very European, and very intriguing about Taos. For example, the legendary ski instructor, Jean Mayer, who came from France to join Ernie Blake in 1956, still doles out soup to customers at his St. Bernard Restaurant and Hotel, when he’s not instructing the mountain’s ski staff on the latest ski technique.
We had the good fortune of staying in the quaint and welcoming Bavarian Restaurant & Lodge, located at the base of Kachina Peak and steps from the #4 lift. Owned and run by German-born Thomas Schulze and his wife, Jamie, the Bavarian offers guests and skiers a true Bavarian experience with its beer – specially imported from the Spaten Brewery in Munich – food, concerts and weekly fondue night. The inn’s four rooms are decorated lovingly with pieces imported from Bavaria, where Thomas spent time as a child. The one thing the Bavarian needs desperately, which Thomas is well aware of, is the apres-ski hot tub – hopefully soon to come.
Taos faces a tough future, however, as it attempts to hold on to its traditions and charm while keeping up with the bells and whistles of other Western ski resorts. There are plans to redesign the base of the mountain, as well as add ski lift accessibility to some of the mountain’s famous high ridges, which skiers currently access via a 40 minute hike.
Leaving Taos was not easy – we were loving the snow conditions and the vibe – but a stop to soak in the hot spring at Ojo Caliente, en route to Santa Fe, was the perfect activity to lure us away. Deemed sacred by Northern Pueblo Tribes of New Mexico, Ojo Caliente Mineral Springs has been a gathering place and a source of healing for hundreds of years. Our muscles in dire need of a soothing soak, we spent a few hours at Ojo Caliente Mineral Springs Resort and Spa, trying out the the different pools – the Lithia, Iron, Soda and Arsenic – which vary in minerals, benefits and temperature. We also spent some family time in a private outdoor pool with a gorgeous kiva fireplace and the mountains just behind us.
Rejuvenated by all the minerals, we then headed to Santa Fe, where we spent the next few days doing little other than eating, shopping, looking at art, and taking part in a geocache adventure. We headed straight to our hotel, the recently-opened Hotel Chimayo de Santa Fe , which is conveniently located just one block from the historic Santa Fe Plaza. The hotel’s uniqueness lies in its connection to the village of Chimayo, an historic agricultural community 30 minutes north of Santa Fe (rumor has it that Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith skipped the Georgia O’Keeffe museum on a recent trip to Santa Fe to collect some sacred earth from Chimayo instead). More than 70 artists from Chimayo contributed to the hotel’s decor – large, colorful weavings adorn the lobby – and members of the Chimayo community crafted 500 hand-made crosses from found materials to accent the fireplace mantels in each hotel room.
It’s not typical for a hotel restaurant to be a highlight for me, but in this case it was, as the hotel’s Tia’s Cocina restaurant and its charming chef, Estevan Garcia, a Santa Fe native, created a memorable meal for our family. Throughout the meal, Chef Estevan, a former monk whose dishes celebrate northern New Mexico’s traditional cuisine, came out to explain the origins of the dishes (some he’d learned from his grandmother), such as a Chile Relleno and the Torta de Huevo. We also learned about the farmer in Chimayo, hired exclusively to produce and provide the restaurant with the famous Chimayo chile. In Santa Fe, “Red or green?” is as common a question as “How are you?” My official response is red.
Speaking of colors, a friend suggested I stop into Back at the Ranch, an alluring store selling handmade cowboy boots, in a myriad of colors, patterns and materials (ostrich was a personal favorite), ranging from about $900 and up. You can even have an image of your dog imprinted on a custom-made pair.
Lunch at the SantaCafé offered another great meal (chicken confit enchilada green chile, asadero cheese and calabacitas – yum) before a tour of the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum. In addition to the art – so connected to the terrain of New Mexico, which she made her permanent home in 1949 until she died in 1986 – O’Keeffe’s life, including her relationship with renowned photographer, Alfred Steiglitz, was captivating. She was deeply tied into the New Mexican culture, and never afraid to express it. Her quotes are legendary:
“When I was at Mabel [Dodge Luhan]’s at Taos… there was an alfalfa field like a large green saucer. On one side of the field was a path lined with flowers… one day walking down the path I picked a large blackish red hollyhock and some bright dark blue larkspur that immediately went into a painting – and then another painting”. – Georgia O’Keeffee, 1966
If traveling to Santa Fe, do not miss a meal at Maria’s of Santa Fe on Cordova. In addition to their delicious, down-home spicy New Mexican cooking (blue corn enchiladas and steak relleno), there are over 100 combinations of margaritas to choose from. (As the menu states: A margarita is “one that’s made with “Real” tequila, “Real” triple-sec and “Real” lemon or lime juice – we use fresh-squeezed lemon juice instead of lime, because of it’s year-round consistency). Each margarita has its own name and everyone that goes there has a reason why you should like theirs best.
After breakfast at the Teahouse at the top of Canyon Road, we ambled along, ducking in and out of a sampling of more than 100 art galleries and studios. We then made a stop to check out the Railyard, Santa Fe’s recent addition of shops, galleries, cafes and a farmers’ market.
Our last day in Santa Fe began with huevos rancheros and good coffee at Café Pasqual’s, where we sat at its long, oval communal table. We needed the energy for our final adventure – geocaching on snowshoes
Organized by Santa Fe Mountain Adventures and led by a guide named Rowlie, our “Trails to Treats Snowshoe Scavenger Hunt” (treats were key) began on a snow-covered trail system part way up to the Santa Fe ski mountain. Using GPS technology, we negotiated our way using clues based on the natural surroundings (trees, animals, etc) to help find a series of destination points – where the treasures lied – while navigating the trail system on snowshoes through several feet of fresh snow. It was an invigorating way to end our journey.
After all of our adventures – eating and otherwise – nothing proved a better way to cap off the week than an incredibly soothing massage in the traditional Japanese style at Ten Thousand Waves – a 15 minutes’ drive from downtown Santa Fe.
My last visit to Santa Fe was 17 years ago, when we had no choice other than to fly from New York to Albuquerque and then drive an hour north to Santa Fe. Now that you can fly directly into Santa Fe, the ease to travel there will bring me back soon. Skiing in Taos, visiting the museums and galleries of Santa Fe, and eating all those chile-laden dishes make it an entirely worthwhile trip, and you don’t even need a passport.
