By Mark Henderson and Rachel Preston Prinz
Summary
The Cañada de Apodaca is a distinct topographic and
geographic segment of the historic commercial goods pack trail and livestock
driveway that connected settlements and Spanish Colonial towns in the Espanola
Valley to the agrarian “plazuelas” in the Taos Valley and on to markets in “Nuevo
Mexico” and beyond, during the Spanish Colonial, Mexican Territorial and early
US Territorial periods. The corridor, established in the 1720s, followed
aboriginal foot paths (Blumenschein 1968) along the Rio Grande and then
followed those paths to turn slightly eastward to avoid the fragoso, or rugged, Rio Grande Gorge. The “high road” – Camino Alto or “Summer Route” – passed through the mountain
Colonial settlements of Chimayo, Truchas, Ojo Sarco, Las Trampas, and Chamisal
as well as Picuris Pueblo, which were placed alongside pre-Columbian aboriginal
settlements and trade routes.
The Apodaca trail occurs on the “low road” alignment
– the Camino Abajo or “Winter Route”
– one of two major routes between Santa Fe and Taos before, during and
after the Old Spanish Trail period of significance of 1829-1848. Roque Madrid wrote in 1705 of
the passage through the area, though it is unclear which route he took.
Catholic Friar Francisco Atanasio Dominguez (Adams and Chavez 1975:101-113)
wrote specifically about each of the two routes in his account of 1776. As a
wintertime connector between Santa Fe and Taos, the Apodaca trailis
associated with the “North Branch” as
well as the “Main Route”
of the Old Spanish Trail. Taos was the information center where guides could be
hired to navigate the trails from Abiquiu in New Mexico
through vastly varied and often complicated terrain, as well as establish
positive relationships with the many different tribes along the trail to California. The “low
road” between Taos and Santa
Fe fell into disuse with the completion of a US military road
in 1876 in the Rio Grande Gorge (Ruffner 1876:9). By the early 20th
century, the Cañada de Apodaca route was relegated to “historic trail” when the
route to the Harding and Copper Hill Mines and the modern highway from Dixon to Penasco was
developed on a bypass to the south. Subsequent use of the Cañada as “commons”
for pasturage, woodcutting and – in the lower portions – refuse dumping,
continues today. The contributing site
is a largely intact historical landscape which includes a contributing
structure of braided trail that features an intact packtrail alignment.
Non-contributing features include portions of intact improved grades constructed
after the period of significance. The Cañada de Apodaca segment of the “North
Branch” of the Old Spanish Trail provides visitors with the opportunity to experience the setting which has changed little since its
original travelers transported goods, services, and people to markets near and
far.
The “Apodaca Trail” segment leaves
riparian irrigated lands at Embudo Creek on its south end at the community of
Apodaca at 6100 feet elevation. Heading northeast, it ascends the normally
waterless Cañada de Apodaca for approximately 3 miles, where the trail crests
at 7150 feet on an upland mesa and follows piñon-wooded cejas, or ridges, and
ponderosa, or parkland, for another 3 miles above and paralleling Cañada del
Barro just outside the boundaries of the nomination. From this ridge, the trail
heads northerly and descends into the floor of Agua Caliente Canyon to the
north of the town formerly known as Cieneguilla and now called Pilar at 6150
feet elevation, and heads northward for another 3 miles. Here, the trail
parallels the modern Highway 68 up the Rito Cieneguilla to the Rio Vista hill,
with its commanding view of the Llano de Taos, or Taos Plain, before descending
into the Arroyo Hondo drainage. Ascending from Arroyo Hondo, the trace proceeds
northeast for about a mile where it bifurcates on the boundary of the Gijosa
Land Grant and the Cristbol de la Serna Land Grant: the right fork heading
across the sagebrush-dominated Llano de Taos for 8 miles toward Ranchos Plaza;
the left fork, known as the Los Cordovas Trail, passing Plaza de Ranchitos de
Taos after 3 miles, and heading for the
Plaza de Los Cordovas 5 miles further on the Rio Pueblo de Taos. A mile after
passing Plaza de Ranchitos de Taos, the Los Cordovas Trail intersects the
Camino del Medio road leading to Taos Plaza 7 miles further north.
Trail
Setting: Named Features in Foreground
The central watershed through which the
historic trail traverses and for which it is named is the Cañada de Apodaca. At
some time, a grade was constructed, cross-cutting the slopes to the south of
the pack trail to provide improved travel conditions. Beyond this is the Cañada
de Piedra Lumbre, a “canyon passage of shiny rock,” a broad and flat drainage
in which modern State Route 75 traverses past the site.
At entrance to the Cañada to the south
are Cerro de Arriba and Cerro Abajo, upper and lower hills, respectively, with
Mesa de la Cejita, a dark-colored volcanic basalt-capped mesa beyond. Around
the corner of the upper and lower hills just beyond view of the trail is a
natural pillar from the Santa Fe Formation which was a landmark for travelers.
To the west is the once-impassable Caja
del Rio, or Rio Grande Gorge, with its deep canyon walls leading down to the
Rio Grande River, and an Embudo, or choke, which caused the trail to be located
through the Cañada.
Non-Contributing
Cultural Landscapes on the Margins of the Trail Corridor
The margins of the Old Spanish Trail
landscape are formed by distinct cultural environments associated with historic
periods both relating to and not at all related to the Mexican territorial use
of the trail. These landscapes have evolved over and are indicative of various
historical periods representing more than 200 years of use.
To the north, east and southeast are
the mining sites of Glen-Woody, Copper Hill and the Harding Mine, whose primary
activity occurred in the first quarter of the 20th century, with intermittent
activity up to the present.
The cultural landscapes to the south
and southwest include the ditches, fields, orchards, farms and residences of
the neighborhoods of Apodaca and Dixon (formerly Embudo) along Embudo Creek,
and Rinconada along the Rio Grande. Agrarian settlements along in this area
were likely established in the late 1830s. Fredrick Ruxton, a key figure on the
passage of this section of the Old Spanish Trail, overnighted at the house of a
“Canadian trapper” and his Mexican wife in 1847 in one of these communities,
characterized by residences clustered around central plazas (and a chapel at
Dixon and Apodaca) and farmsteads dotting the valley along irrigation ditches
on each side of Embudo Creek. Orchards, plowed fields and the narrow fenced
long lots, or lineas, perpendicular to the drainage illustrate the typical
pattern of Northern New Mexico farming settlements. The importance of the
irrigation ditches, or acequias in the community organization is indicated by
their naming, as indicated by the La Plaza and El Llano acequias on the south
side of Embudo Creek. The Apodaca Cemetery is situated on high ground above the
flood plain on the eastern margin of the Cañada de Apodaca, about a tenth of a
mile north of the settlement of Apodaca near the southern boundary.
Within the southern and eastern
boundary of the trail corridor is the current paved alignment of State Highway
75 to Peñasco and Picuris.
Also within the trail landscape is the
Old State Highway which follows the Cañada de Piedra Lumbre until the drainage
is constrained by narrow sinuous cliffs where the highway ascends up a steep
ridge through a series of switchbacks.
Horizon
Landmarks (Background/Horizon/External)
Visible from the upper eastern end of
the Cañada de Apodaca are a number of natural landmarks and features which have
distinctive forms on the horizon: To the southwest, Pedernal, one of the most
distinctive natural landmarks in New Mexico, a distinctive flat-topped peak
visible for long distances . To the west, Cerro Azul, a cluster of hills of
pre-Cambrian rock, and Tres Orejas, a hill with three pinnacles, both of which
emerge from the volcanic tablelands of the Taos Plateau. Still looking west,
but more southwards, are the Jemez Mountains, volcanic peaks on the north
margin of the Valles Caldera.
To the northwest, the ridge of the
Tusas Range, and towards the east,
Picuris Peak, the landmark the comes into view only at the upper reach
of the trail. To the southeast are Trampas Peak and the Truchas Peaks, the
second highest pinnacles of the Sangre de Cristo Range in New Mexico.
The Cañada de Apodaca route segment
evolved from a footpath in prehistoric times to travel between communities in
the Tewa Basin, or Española Valley, and the Taos Valley. The route may have
been used in the historic period as early as the original Spanish entrada to
Taos Pueblo in 1541. In his account of
the Missions of New Mexico in 1776, Father Dominguez reports that the “best
highway leads through” the “Cañada de Apodaca” to Taos. In 1779, Governor Anza, returned from the
campaign against the Comanche via the “Camino Real” to Embudo along thie
nominated segmentThe route likely continued as the main travelway between Taos
and the southern settlements and Santa Fe during the period of significance as
was described in detail by Ruxton in 1847.
The route and its landmark features, including its natural pillar
formation, are described in detail by Davis in 1856. Portions of the route apparently were
improved, possibly for light wagon traffic sometime after Davis’ account, but
the “Apodaca Trail” was effectively abandoned with the completion of the
Military Road through the Rio Grande Gorge in 1876.
In 1847, Fredrick Ruxton passed through
the area, leaving an account that, while does not focus on the commercial
network and trade relationships between New Mexico and California, does provide
a vivid account of the multi-ethnic lifeways and economic relationships in the
period of caravan trade to California.
Ruxton observed and wrote about the conditions in New Mexico, and of the
Cañada de Apodaca route segment in particular, in a period of political and
economic turmoil - a period characteristic of several decades of Spanish and
Mexican government efforts to develop commercial production of a weaving
industry for domestic and international trade, and the later expansion of US
commercial interests in the Indian trade for animal products (particularly
beaver pelts and buffalo hides).
The complicated topography of the
Cañada de Apodaca illuminates the rugged frontier outpost landscape at the Taos
trade center. It was during this period
that Taos Valley settlements developed from “primitive” trade centers into
commercial enclaves for Americano and Mexicano traders and frontier people.
The trail alignment is the “anchor” for
the Cañada de Apodaca nomination, following the
almost always vertical ascents, as opposed to switchbacks, that one
would traverse by foot or mule.
Vernacular trails such as these lack constructed elements and have often
evolved into ‘improved’ constructed grades. When this happens, the original
‘pilot’ tread is usually obliterated by construction, or natural erosion where
the route crosses drainages, steep natural grades or erodible features. For
this reason, ad hoc footpaths, pack trails and wheeled vehicle roads are
difficult to detect because they rarely leave a physical imprint due to their
ephemeral nature.
The braided segment of single-track
trail of approximately 36” wide and portions of double-track improved grade of
approximately 7 feet wide is approximately four miles long and is divided into
two areas ascending the Cañada from west to east:
1)
Cañada floor (1.2 mi long, 6160-6400 ft, 4% avg. grade). This section of
packtrail alignment starts at the north boundary of the settlement of Apodaca.
The alignment follows the Cañada de Apodaca drainage, which is about 500 feet
wide at its southern end. It is unlikely that any discernable trail would be
detected in this active wash, and possible the modern highway is constructed on
top of or alongside the trace, obliterating it entirely, as has occurred in
many segments along the length of the Old Spanish Trail.
At the junction of the Cañada de
Apodaca and Cañada de Piedra Lumbre, the alignment of the historic pack trail
veered to north, while the modern highway continues slightly eastward up the
Cañada de Piedra Lumbre. The active wash of Cañada de Apodaca narrows to 25-50’
wide updrainage from the confluence of the Piedra Lumbre. As the alignment
ascends the drainage to the north, the woodland closes in on the gently sloping
U-shaped drainage floor.
Undisturbed landforms and vegetation
dominate the setting, which is evocative of the land form, color – including
Santa Fe Group pinkish tones in moderate orange pink to grayish orange pink, and
texture – including dense shrub understory and woodland, of the historic period
of the use of the trail. Side views of the alignment are limited to the
interior of bowl of the drainage, no more than 0.5 miles across, until the
drainage is fully ascended when vistas can reach for 50 miles or more to the
west. Views are limited to the adjacent mountains on the eastern boundary.
Views updrainage are limited to the mesa top segment where a pinkish Santa Fe
Group cliff feature as tall as 70 feet high looms above, which Helen
Blumenschein described as the “Fire Leap,” approximately 1.5 miles north and
eastward along the alignment.
Downstream, or southward, is the community of
Apodaca, the irrigated fields of the Embudo Valley floor and the slopes and
crest of “Mesa de la Cejita” approximately 5 miles to the southwest.
Non-contributing elements: A modern
highway extending along the southern 1/4 mile of the trail,
four-wheel-drive/ATV trails and numerous dump piles are located along the
southernmost 1/2 mile segment of the trail corridor.
2)
Spur ridge (1.6 mi long, 6400-7150 ft, 9% average grade). This segment
of intact and very difficult to traverse contributing packtrail alignment
ascends the steep dissected terrain at the headwaters of the Cañada de Apodaca.
The average grade is 9% on this section though what appear to be intact pack
segments rise to a 40% grade where the trail ascends up a steep narrow crest of
the spur ridge. About a tenth of a mile below the mesa top, this single-track
path intersects the constructed grade below the “Fire Leap” cliff. At the
intersection of the single-track trail and the constructed grade is a cairn of
nine rounded quartzite cobbles, each less than thirty centimeters in dimension.
The characteristics of the Segment 2
that allow it to be identified as a relatively unaltered alignment are the
narrow width of the tread (less than 24”-36”), braided nature of alternate
sinuous pathways and compaction of the surface on gentler slopes, gullying and
cobble displacement on the steeper surfaces.
There has likely been some continued use of the alignment for livestock
and equestrian travel, but the fact that the traces are disappearing on level
surfaces supports the assertion that the alignment is in fact, an intact pack
trail used in the historic period.
The alignment of the original steep
pack trail, so notable to Ruxton in 1847 and Davis in 1854 was replaced
sometime subsequently with a constructed (and designed) non-contributing grade.
This grade was built along an adjoining drainage from the pack trail on the
divide between the Cañada de Apodaca and Cañada de Piedra Lumbre. This
constructed alignment was designed with an even grade of about 9%, traversing
hill slopes except where it entered a short narrow canyon, or choke, where a
dry laid masonry water control structure, or causeway, was built (date-unknown)
and boulders cleared which could accommodate wheeled vehicles up to 60” in
width. Though the age and function of the grade constructed subsequent to the
equestrian route is only inferred at this time, it illustrates the contrasting
design criteria for a route limited to pedestrian and equestrian transport with
one suited to wheeled vehicle travel.
The “Spur Ridge” trail is currently the
best preserved and longest route segment of pack trail on the entire Old
Spanish National Historic Trail not substantially altered by later wheeled
vehicle use or grade construction. Other
“intact” route segments, including Virgin Hill in Nevada and Big Bend of the
Virgin River in Arizona are shorter, have been highly compromised by later
wagon use, have continued to be used as livestock trails and have no specific
documentary narrative describing their condition before the wheeled vehicle
route improvements.
The overall shape, color and texture of
the landforms and composition of the vegetation of the Cañada de Apodaca remain
substantially unaltered, and appear today as described by Ruxton and Davis
described in 1847 and 1856, respectively, though the lowest segment of trail
has been obliterated by flooding, erosion and deposition of alluvium in the
watercourse. The current jeep trail may not be on precise alignments in use
between 1829 and 1848, but does not contrast dramatically with the appearance
of a braided pack trail. The
single-track trail up the spur ridge, because it has not been used heavily as a
pack trail in the last century, is less distinct than it was when it was the
main route to Taos. The upper mesa top
portion of the route segment has also taken on an even two-track alignment but
has not been mechanically graded, and if four wheeled vehicle traffic was
stopped, would likely take on the appearance of the braided travelway.
Mid-distance landscape and vegetation
(outside the site boundaries) also appear much as they would have during the
trail use. The slopes of the Cañada as
well as the Cerro Puntagudo, Cerro de las Marqueñas and Cerro de Arriba are not
altered with visible scars to natural form or vegetation. Landscape features
such as the Rio Grande Gorge, Taos Plateau, Cerro Azul and Tres Orejas also
appear unaltered, though residential and farming structures and roadside
development along the paved highways and the bases of these features are
noticeable. Distant landmarks such as Pedernal, Jemez Range, Tusas Range and
Truchas Peaks appear unaltered.
Trail Alignment Integrity – The Apodaca
Trail from modern Dixon and Apodaca to Pilar includes several segments that
appear to be substantially intact and unused since the Military Road was
completed along the Rio Grande River in 1876. It is unlikely that any segments
can be detected that were not also used after 1848, when the traffic was likely
to have increased dramatically with the development of Taos as a US frontier
commercial and administrative center. A steep 0.75 mile section at the head of
the Cañada de Apodaca retains the characteristics of a pack trail and is mostly
undisturbed by recent ATV use.
Setting and Landscape Integrity – As
with the trail tread, there are large sections of the Apodaca Trail setting
where contemporary intrusions are negligible. From many viewpoints along the
alignment, the foreground passes in drainages or ridges that have little or no
visible evidence of modern roadways, buildings or industrially altered
landscapes. In contrast, there are other segments where modern intrusions are
noticeable. Visual Resource Management contrast ratings applied to the “high
potential route segment” criteria of the National Trail System Act and National
Register criteria for rural historic landscapes can help to determine what sections
of these settings are contributing and non-contributing.
The “Apodaca Trail” was first
recognized and described by Helen Blumenschein (1968) as a significant aspect
of the history in the Taos region.
Subsequently, John Ramsey and collaborators (2002) have mapped and
documented the trail from Velarde to Dixon and on to Pilar, producing a site
record (LA140063) on file with the Museum of New Mexico. Ramsey has completed
extensive archival research on the trail at the New Mexico History Museum. Charles
Hawk has spent more than two decades mapping and documenting historic trails in
Taos County, including the Apodaca Trail, in partnership with the Taos Field
Office of the BLM and the Taos County Historical Society (TCHS). Hawk published
a paper (2009) summarizing some of his work, and has supplied his manuscript
records to the BLM and TCHS. Land Grant
records, General Land Office (GLO) survey records, aerial photographs, land use
permits and resource inventory records at the BLM have been consulted by Hawk
and the preparers of this nomination.
Field records, GPS-derived alignments and archaeological documentation
of associated artifacts produced in various studies by Ramsay, Hawk and
preparers of this nomination have been provided to the BLM Taos Field Office
and the Museum of New Mexico.