A ROAD TRIP THROUGH THE MOUNTAIN STATES

A vacation with friends may mean that reading and writing get short shrift.

A short hike to Adams Falls and the meadow beyond. East Inlet Trail at Grand Lake, Colorado.

My husband and I decided to take some time off this week to go on a road trip. Thanks to the activities we had planned during this trip, I never finished reading the book that I had assigned myself for this week. I have just photographs to share this week of a part of a drive through the United States.

The panoramic view from Colorado’s Alpine Visitor Center (11,796 feet) on Trail Ridge Drive, We were among the peaks in Rocky Mountain National Park and dazzled by the beauty of the scene.

Last year we visited several national parks in Utah. During that road trip, we decided we must visit Yellowstone National Park in 2022. Our friends from Canada decided to join us and the four of us have tried to have as much fun as we possibly could while trying to imbibe a bit of the history and the geography of these vast open spaces. We’re passing through the "Mountain States", chasing the Rocky Mountains that run through portions of the states of Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, and New Mexico.

At Colorado Springs, we had a view of Pikes Peak, the 31st highest peak out of 54 Colorado peaks. The view from Pikes Peak inspired Katharine Lee Bates’ poem “America The Beautiful” which was first published on the Fourth of July in 1895, I took this photograph at the entry to the restroom of the visitor information center of the Garden of the Gods.

Two days ago, we ended up as far south as Raton, New Mexico, an important stop on the mountain branch of the Santa Fe Trail. From 1821 until 1846, the Santa Fe Trail was a two-way international commercial highway used by both Mexican and American traders and by the middle of the 19th century, the thoroughfare became a national road connecting the more settled parts of the United States to the new southwest territories.

The Raton Museum is a terrific stop for anyone passing Raton, New Mexico. I learned not just about the Santa Fe Trail itself, but also about the way of life in 19th century America. Created by the Raton Historical Society in 1939, this museum features regional artifacts associated with ranching, coal mining, railroads, and pioneer life, with many original works by New Mexico artists.

At Raton, we were astonished by the sincerity of Roger Sanchez, the 74-year-old curator of the Raton Museum, an unforgettable throwback to the last 200 years of life in these United States. For over a hundred years, the town of Raton was booming with coal mines, horse-racing venues and ranches. Where houses, mom-and-pop stores, factories, schools, social halls, and even a hospital once stood, today very little remains.

Roger Sanchez pointed to the many shuttered shops on the main road on which the museum stood. “We had three saw mills, two lumber yards, and a flour mill. And everything is gone,” he said.

An exquisite collection of dolls that are around 200 years old were one of the highlights of this museum. Mr. Sanchez hopes to retire one day. But he worries about who will take on the enormous task of managing this museum when he retires. In a town of some 600 people, many of whom are aging, the choices are not many.

A safe from 1891 with very sophisticated features on display at Raton Museum

When he graduated from high school in 1967, Sanchez was one of about 180 graduating seniors. He told me that the young people who graduated from the same local high school (50 students this year) would not even find jobs in the town. By the turn of the 21st century, the city’s fortunes dwindled even as the eight coal mines closed and manufacturing moved to China and other parts of the world.

In my view, Raton seemed to be a poster child for the fleeting nature of power. Places will be powerful only as long as they’re industrious and agile.

Round bales of hay dotting the landscape on our drive through Wyoming.