I recently took a flaming orange Triumph Triple on a solo ride through New Mexico and Colorado. One of my goals on such trips is to sample several roads I have not ridden before. I am also perpetually seeking what the great poet Robert Frost called the road “less traveled by.”
I found just such a road in New Mexico's State Route 64 in the extreme northern region of the state. The portion of the highway that I sampled started in the amazing little pueblo city of Taos, NM. Taos is an eccentric arts and tourist town that sits on the high-desert mesa at the foot of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. It’s a must visit town if you are in this part of the Southwest.
State Route 64 leaves Taos to the north. After only 10 miles you will reach the impressive Rio Grande Gorge Bridge. The cantilever truss bridge spans the gorge at 650 feet above the Rio Grande. You need to park the bike and walk across the bridge to take in the amazing views in both directions. The rust-colored cliffs that spire from the waters of the legendary Rio Grande are worth of your best attempts at photography.
After the Gorge Bridge, SR 64 is relatively straight for about 20 miles, but the high desert scenery will keep you occupied. However, after that 20-mile jaunt, the twisties begin. The road winds its way beautifully toward the mountains of southern Colorado. The blacktop is smooth and well banked and the views are spectacular. The best thing is that this really is the road “less traveled by.” I encountered only a half dozen other vehicles in more than 50 miles. You will spend most of your ride concentrating on the turns and the scenery rather than negotiating traffic.
After about 100 miles, you will have the same dilemma Robert Frost had when he found that “Two roads diverged in a wood.” If you stay on SR 64, you’ll be heading toward Farmington, NM. If you take Highway 84, you will be heading into southern Colorado. You’ll find great things no matter which way you go.
The 100 miles I have described of Highway 64 is only a small portion of U.S. Route 64 that runs for 2,326 miles from eastern North Carolina to just southwest of the Four Corners region of northeast Arizona. I will venture to say that this stretch contains some of the best motorcycling that the highway has to offer.
