Photos and story by Mark and Susan Wing
Link to Enchanted Loop Tour Day 1
Link to Enchanted Loop Tour Day 2
This second day of touring began with breakfast at the lodge and a driver’s meeting. This day would be different as the route would be clockwise beginning with a stop a couple of blocks away from the Riverside Lodge for a photo shoot by Larry in front of an old school, then an immediate steep drive up Bobcat Pass (6.3%) followed by a 6.8% decent to Eagles Nest, then eastward to Cimarron, NM. Cimarron, located on the eastern slopes of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, has a number of historical buildings and is now best known for the Philmont Scout Ranch. Our visit to the Scout Ranch was followed by lunch at the historical St. James Hotel and then back to Red River.
The tour was capped off with a banquet dinner at Brett’s Bistro, a short walk from the Riverside Lodge followed by an ice cream social back at the lodge.
The Philmont Scout Ranch began as a ranch owned by the oil tycoon Waite Phillips (Phillips 66) who donated the ranch and a huge tract of land in 1938 (eventually covering 140,177 acres) for use as a Boy Scouts of America location for wilderness expeditions and other outdoor activities. Today the ranch is still in operation with herds of cattle horses, burros, and bison. Approximately 22,000 Scouts and adult leaders use the ranch during the warm weather months for scout training and backpacking adventures.
Villa Phillmonte, as Waite Phillips named it, was built in 1926 in a Mission and Spanish Colonial style and is approximately 28,000 sq ft. It is operated by the Boy Scouts as a museum and includes many of the furnishings and personal items used by the Phillips family. The collection also items also includes two electric-powered Model T’s and a 1906 Model N Ford.
After the Philmont Scout Ranch, we drove 4 miles to downtown Cimarron for lunch at the St. James Hotel. The building was constructed in 1872 and is now on the National Register of Historic Places. In addition to being a nicely preserved grand building, a lot of its fame is due to its reputation for being haunted by the spirits of men killed there during New Mexico’s “wild west” days. 26 people were killed at the hotel in its heyday and some of the bullet holes are still visible in the main dining room. Well known 19th century personalities such as Wyatt Earp, Jesse James, Buffalo Bill Cody, and Annie Oakley had stayed at this hotel. It is still an active hotel and includes an excellent bar and dining area. Our lunches at the St. James were among the best food we experienced on the tour!
Return to Red River
Our banquet dinner for Saturday evening was at Brett’s Bistro, a short walk from the Riverside Lodge. Brett Lewis, owner and chef has been in business over 30 years and had a nice room at his restaurant to accommodate us all. In addition to the excellent food, the evening was also unique as the power throughout Red River went our mid-way through the banquet. Luckily, chef Brett and his staff managed to finish preparing the food and there was still some daylight outside that illuminated the dining area.
At this dinner, Larry Azevedo announced the winner of the “rubber chicken award”, in this case a mini version of a chicken from Mark Dominguez, to a tour participant who had the most dramatic or interesting breakdown while on the tour. The winner this time was John Burnett (Socorro, NM) who broke a valve head off. With luck, John will repair his Model T quickly and be on the road again.
Our heartfelt thanks to Larry and Lorna Azevedo and Kirk and Susan Peterson for expertly organizing a very memorable and successful tour in one of the most scenic and historically interesting regions in New Mexico!