Tracks Across Borders Scenic and Historic Byway
The Tracks Across Borders Scenic Byway has had many twists and turns, both literally and historically.
The bi-state Tracks Across Borders Scenic and Historic Byway travels 128 miles from Chama, New Mexico to Durango, Colorado. The Byway traces the historic right of way of the abandoned narrow gauge Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad, which was instrumental in the development of the region. The Byway celebrates other tracks as well – the tracks of the wildlife that inhabit the area, of Native American trails, of Spanish missionaries in the 1600s, of oxen on the Old Spanish Trail, and of the wagons of pioneers. In New Mexico, the Byway begins at the western terminus of the Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad in Chama, travels westward through the Jicarilla Apache Nation at Dulce, and the well-preserved railroad bridge and tank at Navajo. Continuing north, rock outcrops and tall pines loom down from either side through the beautiful canyon of the Navajo River to the Colorado border. This portion is not a road to drive in wet or snowy weather. Drive this backcountry Byway to step back in time and see the little-changed western landscape and learn about the deep, rich history of this part of the old American west.
