Description of a trip that lasted two weeks in the middle of July 2020 (during Covid).
The Enchanted Circle consists of the towns of Eagle Nest, Taos, Angel Fire, and Questa.
Looking to escape the heat of Texas we headed out in early July toward Eagle Nest, NM. We set up camp at the Golden Eagle Campground in Eagle Nest. This would be our home base for the next two weeks.
Day 1 We spent this day settling in and realizing we would be spending most of our time keeping our distance from others since the Governor wanted visitors to quarantine for 14 days. We had already been doing that during our travel days to get here.
Day 2 We took a drive along the Cimarron River taking pictures.
Day 3 We drove to Angel Fire and had lunch at Enchanted Circle Brewery. We enjoyed the beer and burgers here. Then we went back to camp and watched a guy with a chainsaw carving a life sized bigfoot.
Day 4 One of our fellow campers was doing free tours (we donated $ to him anyway). The way it works is that he loans you a walkie talkie and you drive your own car and you can listen to him narrate what you are seeing along the way from his car. On this day we went to the Schuler Theater in Raton. It's a beautiful theater inside. Then we went to the historic Van Houten Coal Mine community behind the Whittington NRA Center. There is some signage and partial buildings to see there. We found out you can stay in the campground at the NRA without being a member.
Day 5 All we did today was go to the grocery store in Angel Fire which is only about 17 minutes from Eagle Nest.
Day 6 Today we drove the 25 minutes to Red River. We walked the town and visited some shops and had lunch at Red River Brewery and Distillery and had some good food and interesting drinks.
Day 7 Today we drove about an hour to go see the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge. The bridge and gorge were beautiful and we enjoyed taking pictures here. We saw big horn sheep along the way. We wanted to visit the mothership of the Taos Mesa Brewery but unfortunately it had burned. So we finished driving the Enchanted Circle and walked around downtown Eagle Nest. We ate at a restaurant called Kaw Lija's. It was really good and we were sad to hear that 2020 would probably be their last year in business.
Day 8 This was a Saturday and so we stayed at camp thinking that any of the towns might have some crowds there. We would have liked to visit a state park or two but the Governor of New Mexico said that out of state visitors were not allowed to visit the state parks.
Day 9 We went to Angel Fire to do laundry and went to their True Value for some screws and bolts for the trailer.
Day 10 We drove the Enchanted circle again stopping in Taos this time. I like art so it was a little bit of a disappointment since things like museums are closed. Some shops were open but they had capacity limitations so you had to wait outside until someone came out.
Day 11 We did another car tour today with the walkie talkies. This time we went to see San Jose De Gracia Catholic Church in Trampas built in 1760. The we went to a really good restaurant called Rancho de Chimayo. Nice ambiance, pretty place to sit outside also. Afterward we went to Santuario De Chimayo which is another Catholic Church. Very beautiful. We went inside. They are famous for the holy dirt you can see in a hole in the floor. That was the end of our tour. Then we stopped at a Walmart on the way back to buy a hummingbird feeder. There are so many hummingbirds in this area and many other campers have feeders.
Day 12 Stayed at camp today.
Day 13 We went to Angel Fire and rode the chair lift up to the top today. We sat up there awhile enjoying the view. We walked the 3/4 mile trail around the top and then rode back down. The restaurant up there was closed. Then we went back to Eagle Nest and ate at the Laguna Vista Saloon. Then we read some of the signs around town describing the history and other subjects. One of them was about a burro named Bosco so we went to visit him. so cute. A white burro that comes to see you when you park by the fence. There's a cooler with snacks for him and a brush for him. I left a donation and enjoyed visiting with him.
Day 14 This is our last full day here in Eagle Nest. I drove over to visit Bosco again while my husband stayed home and worked on adjusting one of our slides with Nathan at the campground. Nathan is an RV Tech who helps you with your rig when he can. We went back to the Kaw Lija restaurant and after dinner went to Commanche Brewing in Eagle Nest which has the best view of any brewery I've seen. And the Tiramisu Porter was great.
Summary: We stayed 2 weeks and had a great time. But it could be done in less time. I would spend at least one day in Red River and one day in Taos and you could split another day visiting Eagle Nest and any other towns around the Enchanted Circle.
During a time when travel is not restricted I could see staying in this area for a month.