Traveling to Taos
Río Grande del Norte National Monument: John Dunn's bridges and the Denver & Rio Grande Chili Line
Part 1: A Tale of Two Bridges
Many folks first come to the John Dunn Bridge, seen here and above, to experience the class IV white-water thrills of the Lower Taos Box. Butterflies fill the stomach as one rolls up to the put-in to organize one's gear or to meet one's guide.
By the time rafters have reached this majestic spot under the Taos Gorge Bridge (U.S. Hwy 64) they will be a well-coordinated paddling team ready for the intense white-water that lies ahead, and, if guided by a commercial outfitter, they will most likely have learned about the colorful character of Long John Dunn.
Long John Dunn
John Dunn was a visitor to, then member of, the Taos community from 1889 until his death in 1953. His gravestone in Kit Carson Memorial Park puts his age at 96. Called "Long" because at 6'4" he towered above most folks.
His biography, Long John Dunn of Taos: From Texas Outlaw to New Mexican Hero, written by Max Evans, details the harrowing exploits of a young man trying to stay alive, protect his family, and make a living in the truly wild west. He had several run-ins with the law and ended up fleeing to Mexico after killing his abusive brother-in-law. Many useful skills were learned in the freewheeling border towns, as well as on cattle drives. "John was one of the best gunfighters, gamblers, bronc riders, trail-herd drivers, saloon keepers, outlaws, and ironically, hard-headed businessman."
“A feller learned to use a rope,” John reminisced, “for more reasons than one. Sometimes it would save miles of hard riding after a steer … and it was handy to drag firewood to the cook, tie up a bronc or even hang a man. … Out of necessity the man, the horse, the rope, and the gun became inseparable.”
John Dunn also learned that the best way to make money in the mining towns of the West was not to dig, but to open a saloon and gambling hall. He owned four of them from Nevada to New Mexico.
The hard-headed businessman came to Taos and bought two bridges. It is said that upon entering the valley he instantly recognized that Taos had limited access points and so transportation to and from the bustling town would be easy to monopolize.
He bought his first bridge, shown here in a photo from the early 1900s, near the junction of the Taos Pueblo River with the Rio Grande.
And then he bought his second bridge, seen here in a photo from the early 1900s, upstream of the confluence with Arroyo Hondo.
With these two bridges Dunn controlled all commerce to and from Taos to the newly built Denver & Rio Grande rail line. He charged a toll for every human and stock animal to cross his bridges, and he ran a stage line to and from the train stations at Taos Junction and Servilleta. He built a hotel near this bridge and scheduled his last train run so that passengers would have to spend the night.
In 1921, the Rio Grande flooded at an estimated 14,000 cubic feet per second (cfs) and washed away both of his bridges. At this point, Dunn abandoned the washed out bridge location at Taos Junction and just rebuilt this one at Arroyo Hondo.
River runners can still see the logs of his bridges high up on the gorge's scree slopes.
John Dunn's stagecoach and later his taxi; Dunn being the first person to have an automobile in Taos, was vital to the burgeoning Taos art community. The founding members of the Taos Society of Artists, seen here in a photo from the 1920s, relied on Dunn's mail service to bring in their art supplies and carry out their paintings to meet the train and their international audience.
From left to right: Bert Phillips, W. Herbert Dunton, Joseph Henry Sharp, Oscar E. Berninghaus, E. Irving Couse, Ernest L. Blumenschein.
Star Road and White Sun, painting by Ernest L. Blumenschein, Taos 1920. Albuquerque Museum.
This 1913 U.S. survey plat shows a small square labeled J. Dunn where the Arroyo Hondo meets the Rio Grande Gorge. This likely represents the location of his hotel. Dunn bought the bridge from Albert Miller and Gerson Gusdorf, two Taos merchants who had taken an existing footpath, widened it, and built the bridge to collect tolls. It was Gusdorf's great-grandson, Weimer, who sold the surrounding land to the U.S. government under the Wild & Scenic River Act of 1968, land that is now part of the Río Grande del Norte National Monument.
New Mexico Meridian T. 27 N., R. 12 E., sec 31.
Today, all that is left of John Dunn's hotel are the stones seen on the right of the main photo. The photo below is of the 90+ year old John Dunn pointing to the remains of his hotel.
Photo: Max Evans, Courtesy of the Max Evans Family.
The current bridge, known as the John Dunn Bridge, was built in the 1930s after Dunn had sold the location to local authorities.
John Dunn's road is still in use and can be seen winding it's way up the westside of the gorge in this photograph. Can you spot the R.V. making it's way down? Doable, but not recommended when crowded or wet, and, as the road is susceptible to rock falls and road closures, please contact the Taos Field Office before incorporating this road in your travel plans.
And let us not forget ... our intrepid river runners made it through 16 miles of class IV rapids at 4,000 cfs! Adrenaline pumping, they take off the river just upstream of this "new" 1930s Taos Junction Bridge. This bridge over the Rio Grande marks the beginning of the Orilla Verde Recreation Area of the Río Grande del Norte National Monument, and a 6 mile stretch of relatively calm, class II, water for fishing and floating. River flow in the main photo is only 200 cfs.
Last rapid of the run and just before getting hit by a monster face-smashing wave.
Part 2: The Denver & Rio Grande Chili Line
The southernmost spur of this system, from Antonito, CO to Santa Fe, NM was known as the Chili Line.
In July of 1871 construction began on a narrow gauge (3 ft. wide) railroad out of Denver. The plan was to build the line to Santa Fe, south to El Paso and then link up with the Mexican National Railroad to Mexico City. Practicalities, fights between railroad companies for rights-of-way, as well as internal pressures changed the dream to what is shown in the map above. In 1878, the rail reached Alamosa, Colo. and construction was begun south to Santa Fe. Financial considerations meant the track was never routed towards Taos. By 1880 the train was connected through to Española, N.M., and in 1908, slowed by many issues, it finally reached Santa Fe. It was nicknamed, The Chili Line.
Besides being a passenger train, the Chili Line was routed to take stock, produce, lumber, and mineral product to distant markets; the railroad making a percentage on every load. The Chili Line had a good run but was decommissioned in 1941. The tracks were removed from the rights-of-way by 1942. The few remaining sights of the Chili Line can be viewed while driving around the Río Grande del Norte National Monument.
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Brigadier General William J. Palmer
The Denver & Rio Grande Rail System was the brainchild of Brigadier General William J. Palmer. Trained in his early years in railroading and coal mining, he was one of the first to power trains using coal. After the Civil War, he set his sights on the West. He was the founder of Colorado Springs.
Palmer was part of Union General George Stoneman's last campaign immortalized in The Band's song, The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down.
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Antonito, Colorado
This list also represents many communities that sprung up due to the railroad and that no longer exist except as traces on the landscape.
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The Taos Plateau
Driving along the western edge of Río Grande del Norte National Monument on U.S. Hwy 285, one will experience grand views of the Taos Plateau and numerous volcanic features such as San Antonio Mountain and Ute Mountain. One may also notice slightly-elevated linear features paralleling the highway or crossing water-courses. These are the abandoned track ways of the Chili Line.
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Tres Piedras
This water tower is all that remains of the Chili Line in Tres Piedras. The "Chili Line Depot" is a great place to check one's hydration and to learn more about the area's history.
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Taos Junction
Travelers along US Hwy 285 may wonder about the name of this closed cafe; it is 30 miles from Taos, at least, and there is no direct route from here to there. Why is this called Taos Junction?
This cafe is located near the Chili Line's Taos Junction train stop; once the nearest stop to Taos by way of the Taos Junction bridge. A poignant memory is all that's left of the Chili Line at this site. "Each morning, the engineer would pick up a bone at the butcher shop in Alamosa, to reward a particularly loyal newspaper delivery dog, Minnie, at the Taos Junction stop."
Taos Junction was the junction of a spur line that headed west to La Madera. U.S. Hwy 285 follows the spur, Nat'l Forest Road 557 follows the main rail line, and State Hwy 567 goes to the bridge.
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Barranca means canyon
From Taos Junction the old railroad grade can be traced by following Forest Road #557 to Barranca and Barranca Tank. High clearance and dry roads are recommended to get to the stock tank. From this spot, the track took the plunge down Barranca Hill to the Rio Grande. There are no marked trails from the tank.
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Barranca Hill
One can see the scar of the abandoned railroad grade descending/ascending the canyon wall, in this map, and at river level upstream from Embudo. Double retainers were needed and set for braking on this 4% grade.
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Embudo Station
Embudo Station offered a break for both passengers and engines. Passengers off-loaded to enjoy their picnics along the banks of the Rio Grande. Engines were switched out; water and coal tanks were refilled. The water tower and some of the original buildings remain, but are privately owned.
From here the train followed the Rio Grande on the river's right, or west bank, through the Española Valley. It crossed over the Rio Grande at Otowi Bridge (U.S. Hwy 502) and steamed into Santa Fe.
This map tour is now going upriver.
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Rio Grande Gorge Visitor Center at Orilla Verde Recreation Area
Learn about all the camping, fishing, rafting, hiking, climbing, wildlife watching, and petroglyph viewing opportunities within Río Grande del Norte National Monument at this Bureau of Land Management visitor center . U.S. Hwy 68 at the village of Pilar.
Bighorn sheep were successfully reintroduced to the Rio Grande Gorge by the Taos Pueblo in 2006.
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Taos Junction Bridge
What was named after what? Was Taos Junction Bridge named because it was located at the junction of the Rio Pueblo de Taos with the Rio Grande? Or was it named because it was where one could cross the river to get to the Taos Junction railroad station?
Either way, if one crosses this bridge one can drive up dirt switchbacks and connect to Hwy 567 back to Taos Junction on U.S. Hwy 285, or go north on the West Rim Road out to U.S. Hwy 64. Both roads are paved. There are hiking trail access points along the West Rim.
Staying on Hwy 570 and driving into the campground allows one to access the trail along the discontinued Hwy 570 and the lower Taos Pueblo River canyon.
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Taos Gorge Bridge
This beautiful, award-winning bridge must be experienced! It was built between 1963 - 1965. It spans 1280 ft. across the Rio Grande Gorge and is 600 ft. above the river. Hike along the West Rim trail for more views and, with binoculars, a chance at spotting Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep.
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John Dunn Bridge & Road
At times rock-fall will cause the zig-zagging section of the John Dunn Bridge Road to be closed to vehicle traffic. Please contact the Taos Field Office for the current status before including this stretch of road in your travel plans.
Inspiring views of New Mexico's tallest mountain, Wheeler Peak (13,167'- 4013 m.) await the traveler who ventures to the west-side of the Rio Grande Gorge via the John Dunn Bridge (JDB) road. There is no camping below the gorge rim at JDB.
The eastern branch of the JDB road offers much easier access to the river where one can enjoy water play, both cold and hot; 6 am to 10 pm. Please note that this location accesses the Lower Taos Box section of the Rio Grande , for advanced, class IV paddlers only.
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Taos Pueblo
Traveling to Taos - it was once very difficult. Let us appreciate that fact and the fact that the Taos Pueblo has been enjoying the beauty and protection of their location for over 1000 years!
" Taos Pueblo is the only living Native American community designated both a World Heritage Site by UNESCO and a National Historic Landmark."
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Santa Fe Depot
The Chili Line may no longer run down Guadalupe Street to the railyards but the area is still a favorite for Santa Fe locals and tourists alike. The red brick station built in 1904 still stands and is currently the home of a restaurant where one can experience chile with an "e"!
Enjoy taking a ride on the Chili Line with these ghostly passengers from the 1930s.
A Trip on The Chili Line: Mid-1930's Narrated by Richard Dorman, captions by Ernie Barney, narrow gauge enthusiast.
Transportation made the West, not blazing guns as is so often preached. It was those sweat-stained horses and tireless mules, those worn saddles and creaking wagons and the men and women who were riding them across muddy rivers, rocky ridges, and up those long dusty trails. ~ Long John Dunn
