Santa Fe Trail Scenic and Historic Byway
Santa Fe Trail Scenic and Historic Byway is a National Scenic Byway in Colorado. Within Colorado it covers roughly 220 miles. The map below shows its route. Use “Plan a drive” to open it in the Road Sorties route planner — already routing along Santa Fe Trail Scenic and Historic Byway with scenic roads turned on, ready to add your own stops.
Santa Fe Trail Scenic and Historic Byway is a 188-mile National Scenic Byway across southeastern Colorado. It traces the historic Mountain Branch of the Santa Fe Trail from the Kansas border to New Mexico. The route enters the state just east of Holly and follows the Arkansas River west to Bent's Old Fort, a reconstructed 1830s adobe trading post that anchored trade between Mexico and the United States along the original trail. From there the byway picks up US Highways 50 and 350, running through Lamar and La Junta before climbing to Trinidad and crossing Raton Pass into New Mexico, the same route wagon trains used more than 150 years ago. Suggested travel time is four to five hours, giving room to stop at the historic sites and small farming towns strung along the Arkansas River valley. As both a National Scenic Byway and Colorado Scenic and Historic Byway, it's one of the state's most historically dense long-distance drives, following commerce and trade routes rather than a scenic detour built for its own sake.
- Kansas border to Raton Pass (NM)
- 188 miles
- National Scenic Byway
- Bent's Old Fort
- Arkansas River
- Mountain Branch of the Santa Fe Trail
Designated for its historic qualities
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Places to stop along Santa Fe Trail Scenic and Historic Byway
John Martin Reservoir State Park
A plains reservoir on the Arkansas with camping, birding, and a trail to preserved Santa Fe Trail wagon ruts.
WebsiteBent's Old Fort National Historic Site
A full-scale reconstruction of the 1833 adobe trading post where Cheyenne, Arapaho, traders, and trappers met, with costumed interpreters.
WebsiteRaton Pass
The 7,834-foot pass on the New Mexico line, the hardest climb on the trail's Mountain Branch, where Uncle Dick Wootton once charged tolls on his road.
Where to Stay along Santa Fe Trail Scenic and Historic Byway
No campgrounds are listed close to Santa Fe Trail Scenic and Historic Byway yet, but there are rooms near the route.
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Photos of Santa Fe Trail Scenic and Historic Byway
What is a National Scenic Byway?
National Scenic Byways are roads recognized at the federal level for at least one outstanding quality — scenic, natural, historic, cultural, archaeological or recreational — that gives travelers a reason to seek them out rather than just pass through.