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Hiking

Hike in Taos and enjoy some of the most beautiful trails in the world.

To the south and west of Taos, a vast plain covered with sagebrush and conifers, riven by an immense chasm, spreads out as far as the eye can see. To the north and east, majestic mountains rise from the mesa, beckoning with their cool woods and lofty peaks. Hiking in Taos can take you from canyon bottoms, across mesas, and up mountains, each trail with its own distinctive and unmatched beauty.  

It’s easy to feel truly tiny while walking along with the rim of the Rio Grande Gorge on one side and a sea of sagebrush on the other: like you’ve walked out of your life and into another century. You might come across ancient petroglyphs or encounter a herd of bighorn sheep grazing on the lip of the canyon. To descend into the gorge is an otherworldly experience of its own. Millions of years of geology are on display as you pick your way down to the river where you can bask in the shade of a lonely cottonwood tree before starting the trek back up.

Hiking in the mountains around Taos takes you up slopes shrouded in conifers and aspens, across trickling mountain streams, past high-mountain glacial lakes, and through alpine meadows full of wildflowers. It can even take you to the highest peak in New Mexico with 360° views of the surrounding wilderness. You’ll feel like you’re on top of the world.