Description
The 18-mile Santa Fe Rail Trail follows the old Atchinson, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway line, beginning in the Railyard park in town and continuing along the tracks to Highway 285 through El Dorado to Lamy, incorporating urban, suburban and rural characteristics. Beyond the capital city, it runs along hilly, red-dirt terrain among a countryside of yucca and green junipers. The trail is one of the few rails with trail, since active tracks of Santa Fe Southern Railway are never far away.
The Santa Fe Rail-Trail offers a flat, if jolty, journey. It's paved and accessible between the Railyard and Rabbit Road. Beyond that it's unimproved. A few steep climbs, arroyos (dried creek beds) from rain run-off cutting gulches across the surface and "goathead" sandspurs lurking in the soil produce plenty of hang-on-to-your-britches moments. Some stretches, like near Rabbit Road, are particularly bumpy, making it mostly used by mountain bikers. Be warned, however, a little rain can change the trail in minutes and make for a soupy ride if you're caught in it.
Trail managers do have plans to re-align segments and resurface some areas of the Santa Fe Rail-Trail to reduce erosion and make the trail safer.
Parking and Trail Access
See our website.
Asphalt surface of Santa Fe Trail
By
twirlymaker
in
May, 2009
While taking a picture of the Trail Head off Rabbit Rd ( N35.62771 W105.96681 ) I was informed that starting 0.2 miles north the trail is asphalt for 3.6 miles into town. I found an excellent trail with some at grade street crossings. Up and down to cross ...
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Great walk on a snowy day
By
runhard
in
November, 2007
My wife and I walked a portion of the Santa Fe Trail on the day after Thanksgiving in 2007. There was an inch or two of fresh snow that had fallen during the night which made it a beautiful but somewhat slippery walk. The Rabbit Road trailhead is easy ...
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Local Rider
By
in
November, 2004
"I live in Eldorado (at Santa Fe), a half mile from the approximate mid-point of the Santa Fe to Lamy ride. While the rail tracks (still in use) do go all the way to the village of Lamy, the trail in fact does not.
If riding from Santa Fe or points ...
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