Taos, NM

Hot…and cool…

My lovely ice cream eating buddy above (I share) started me off with a stop at Tractor Supply on the way out of Santa Fe. I learned not all TS stores have dog wash stations. 😐

Non-dog owners ignore the next bit…

My poor buddy was smelling a bit “poopy” and need some cleaning up. I bought some heavy paper shop towels, grabbed a bottle of water, and we (well, just me) got him all ready for the day, sitting in the TS parking lot. Sometimes we all have a “problem”.

Back on the road, we headed on up to Taos. I was actually more interested to see how this looked v Santa Fe. My memories of Taos were stronger.

An hour later we rolled into town and headed first for the local Forest Service office. The door was locked, and no one was answering the phone, so I drove around back. Just as I pulled up so did a man I assumed was a some sort of supervisor. He let me in, set me up with an excellent little map of nearby camping areas, and in turn I filled him in on the strung-out tweaker just outside his facility front door. That guy could have been in a remake of “The Exorcist” with all his body contortions.

Taos

Thankfully there is dedicated RV parking nearby. No hunting like last time

The original town square was still here, plus some shop areas had definitely expanded beyond the square. The one shop I really wanted to see again, Andrew Smith Galleries (fine photography) was here no more. So I looked up online to find it’s… now in Tucson. 🙄

What surprised me most was the lack of people. Most of the square area looked like the picture above. Inquiring of a few local shopkeepers, I was told by all that when the kids go back to school, everything slows down. I was also told it was a bit slower than usual with one telling me that since Covid they felt things had never really recovered to the days before then. I should note this is not as upscale as Santa Fe, with far less to see around here.

After walking around a bit, Harry & I shared a chili cheese dog. Then it was time to go!

X marks the spot!

I’ve marked Taos with an X. I’ll likely spend the night at one of 14-17 to the right of it. I expect zero internet tonight.

Tomorrow I’ll likely do the whole circle above in orange. Then I’ll head up to where Bruce & Jill suggested I go in a previous comment. It’s nice having no plans and no deadlines!