Enchanted Circle Scenic Byway
New Mexico Scenic & Historic Byway 84 mi in New Mexico.
About the Enchanted Circle Scenic Byway
It links the oldest continuously occupied residence in New Mexico, Taos Pueblo , the United States' first memorial to Vietnam War veterans, and stunning scenery recognizable from such films as “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” and “Easy Rider”. The byway features wonderful hiking and camping places , beautiful, high alpine scenery, skiing and fishing . The Rio Grande Gorge Bridge, twelve miles northwest of Taos on US 64, is a must-see side trip!
The Byway begins in Taos on NM 522, where you will find Taos Pueblo's beautiful multi-story skyline. Head nine miles north of Taos on NM 522 to Arroyo Hondo. It grew out of an 1815 Spanish land grant, and was the home of the fabled New Buffalo commune. The next stop is Questa , situated among wonderful hiking and camping places, including Cabresto Lake, Mallette Canyon, and Midnight Meadows. Travel east on NM 38 from Questa toward Red River , settled by miners from Elizabethtown in the late 1800s. The mines petered out, and the town is now known for its beautiful, high alpine scenery, skiing, fishing, and switchback roads through old mining country. The route then runs through Bobcat Pass and descends into the high alpine Moreno Valley, bounded by some of the most spectacular peaks in New Mexico. The circle closes in Taos, entering town on tree-lined Kit Carson Road.
New Mexico Tourism Department's own description, in its words. Byway page on newmexico.org.
Designations: New Mexico Scenic & Historic Byway, National Forest Scenic Byway.
Camping along the byway
- Mile 17 · on the roadLas Petacas Campground · Forest Service
- Mile 20 · on the roadLa Sombra Campground · Forest Service
- Mile 41 · 0.6 mi offEagle Nest Lake State Park · State park · 19 sites · reservable
- Mile 43 · 2.8 mi offCimarron Canyon State Park · State park · 94 sites · reservable
- Mile 62 · on the roadJunebug Campground · Forest Service
- Mile 63 · on the roadElephant Rock Campground · Forest Service · 21 sites · reservable
- Mile 63 · on the roadFawn Lakes Campground · Forest Service · 19 sites · reservable
- Mile 64 · on the roadLa Bobita Campground · Forest Service
- Mile 65 · 3.4 mi offCabresto Lake Campground · Forest Service
- Mile 67 · on the roadColumbine Campground (Nm) · Forest Service · 27 sites · reservable
- Mile 68 · on the roadGoat Hill Campground · Forest Service
- Mile 75 · 2.5 mi offEl Aguaje Campground Shelter · Bureau of Land Management
- Mile 75 · 3.0 mi offBig Arsenic Springs · Bureau of Land Management
- Mile 78 · 2.5 mi offEl Aguaje Campground · Bureau of Land Management
- Mile 78 · 2.7 mi offLa Junta Campground · Bureau of Land Management
- Mile 78 · 2.8 mi offMontoso Campground · Bureau of Land Management
- Mile 78 · 2.9 mi offLittle Arsenic Springs Campground · Bureau of Land Management · 2 sites
- Mile 78 · 3.1 mi offCamp Stie · Bureau of Land Management
- Mile 80 · 2.6 mi offCebolla Mesa · Forest Service
Public campgrounds within 5 miles of the road as the crow flies, in order along the byway; each one's page has its facts, season and weather by month.
About this page's facts
The line is the Federal Highway Administration's scenic byways layer (HEPGIS, a snapshot of 2022-06-24, a US government work), cut at the state line and simplified for the map; the length is the line's. The designation is the program's own: the national tiers from FHWA's America's Byways roster, the rest from the layer's designation field. Road conditions, closures and seasonal gates change: check the agency's own page and the state's road conditions before you go.