Eagle Nest:Enjoying Family and Cool Mountain Air

I just got back from a great family vacation in the beautiful mountains of Eagle Nest, New Mexico.

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This area has a history that dates back to the Klondike Goldmine, in the 1800s Indian Tribes would roam around the area and dig for gold, copper and silver, in 1920 Fred Montague of Canute, Kansas came to dig three holes in the mountain where mining would take place, one of those holes became the Klondike goldmine. What I find interesting about this piece of Idlewild community is the elevation it stands at which is close to the elevation of Bobcat Pass, at 9,820 feet, this mine is at 9,101 feet roughly which is higher than the city of Eagle Nest itself, at an elevation in the 8,000s above sea level. A picture of the mine is below, along with a picture of the old mill, which was torn down in early 2011. To me it's very sad for this piece of history because it had an iconic appeal to visitors with an an interest in land markers.

Something else I did was tour the Enchanted Circle, we started at Eagle Nest and went through Angel Fire, if you stop here I recommend going to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, it's got memorabilia of all the different people who fought in the Vietnam War. I might pay money and go there sometime since history inspires me, after Angel Fire we went to Taos and took the route through the mountains, lots of twists and turns and elevation changes. When we got into town we drove around main street and I saw this taco place called Clean Tacos, which made me laugh and wonder who came up with that name for a restaurant, then we decided to go to the farmers market and get some fresh fruit to take back with us.

On the way back we dropped by Walmart to get a few things before heading to Red River, when we got there we got out to see a beautiful river, I'm not sure if it was the Red River but it definitely had a relaxing sound to it, so I went to sit down for roughly 15 minutes before going back to Eagle Nest. Here is a picture I took of the view.

The Scenic byway stretches for 84 miles and goes around Wheeler Peak, the highest point in New Mexico at 13,451 feet, a businessman known by the name of John Dunn brought freight across the area on highway 64 between Cimmaron and Eagle Nest at a little community called Ute Park, which is located in the mountains and Carson National Forest. This wasn't my first time going as I did the circle last year and then one time when we stayed in Red River at Best Western hotel, I invite anyone who hasn't been on this route to try it, it's definitely worth it.

I hope I get to go back sometime in the future, had a great time and made lasting memories, it's a great way to get out of the heat.

Until next time!

-Tristan