Back to the Days when Cattle was King : 126 miles round-trip

Travelers heading west on the Santa Fe Trail who hadn't seen a town for 600 miles were mighty glad to get to Las Vegas, New Mexico. The legacy of those days remains. Las Vegas is the quintessential western town, a rich blend of Spanish/Mexican ranchers, Teddy Roosevelt's Rough Riders, Wyatt Earp and Tom Mix. This diversity is evidenced in the eclectic architecture you'll find in the Bridge Street Historic District, the Las Vegas Museum, the Rough Rider Memorial, and the Montezuma Castle, a railroad era hotel. Also don't miss the breathtaking variety of bird life at Las Vegas National Wildlife Sanctuary and nearby McAllister Lake.

Long a popular crossroads in Eastern New Mexico, a trip to nearby Fort Sumner is another historically rich journey, also marking the intersection of the Civil War and Manifest Destiny. Here, the Bosque Redondo Memorial, scheduled for groundbreaking in early spring 2003, commemorates and interprets the tragic history of "The Long Walk." Under Colonel Kit Carson, the Navajo, or Dine', walked nearly 400 miles to their internment in this area. The name of the beautiful Bosque Redondo recalls the circular grove of cottonwoods on the Pecos.

The fort is also famous for Billy the Kid, whose lawlessness ended in a trip to the old government cemetery, where he lies between two of his bandit buddies behind what is now the Old Fort Sumner Museum. A tendency to steal his tombstone has resulted in a unique event: During a festival held in second weekend in June, you can participate in the race to steal-and toss-an 80-pound replica of the tombstone. Win $2000! Or, more sedately, view the collection of antique cars, wagons, buggies, and other artifacts from 1850 on, at the Billy Kid Museum.

Take the shorter loops or do it all and drive through parts of Guadalupe, Quay, and San Miguel counties back to an era when dinosaurs roamed. The great plateau of El Llano Estacador, or the "staked plains," alone covers about 32,000 square miles. Encounter deep time as you drive through colored bands of geologic history. Though you'll expect to see a dinosaur around every mysterious sandstone pinnacle, you're more likely to encounter pronghorn elk, mule deer, Canadian and snow geese, prairie grouse, and other wildlife. If you get to Texas, you've gone too far!