Santa Fe Hub & Spoke – Sampling the Southwest
“Some eight-thousand feet above sea level on the Old Santa Fe Trail we look out over the high desert peaks in complete silence. The climb was punctuated by short, winding downhill sections that gave us plenty of chances to catch our breath, but by the end of it we still felt we’d accomplished something monumental. The mountains spread out before us rampant with color and the sky closes us in with its fantastic gradient of yellows and blues. It’s a spectacular landscape, our lack of words the perfect description of its beauty. With the City Different behind us and more riding to do, we mount our bikes and start our descent toward Canada de los Alamos.”
When you walk through historic Downtown Santa Fe you quickly realize that it’s impossible to experience everything in only one day. Every other storefront is either an art gallery or a boutique featuring distinctive high-desert style. The restaurants are quirky, each a different take on New Mexican cuisine. It all culminates in the Santa Fe Plaza where you can sit and be a part of a city that truly slows down time. Thankfully, this tour is what we call a Hub & Spoke; meaning this fascinating city has become our base of operations for the next four days.
What is a Hub & Spoke tour?
On our Hub & Spoke tours we stay at the same lodging every night and ride to a new destination each day, allowing us to stay unpacked for the duration of the tour and really get to know an outstanding cycling locale. In Santa Fe, this means staying at the Inn of the Governors in Santa Fe’s historic plaza district and cycling to destinations in and around the city like the town of Agua Fria and the beautiful Tesuque Pueblo.
The Santa Fe Hub & Spoke tour is an Active tour but with a relatively low daily mileage. Each day provided ample time to unwind after the ride and explore more of the city. The Inn of the Governors is right at the entrance of Santa Fe’s plaza district; a two-minute walk will take you to some of the most popular restaurants and shops the city has to offer. Go any further and you’ll be met with quiet urban neighborhoods featuring contemporary adobe living spaces and the occasional home-turned-art-gallery.
The Ride
The riding on our Santa Fe Hub & Spoke tour averages about 19 miles per day with elevation gains between 800 and 1600 feet. The climbing we do on this tour is often broken up with short downhill sections that allow each stretch to be easily manageable no matter your skill level.
Overall, the crowd-favorite was day two. A 21.5 mile out-and-back on the Old Santa Fe Trail served to give us some of the most spectacular views of the high desert. The descent back to our lunch at Museum Hill was epic and a fitting reward for the 1600-foot climb.
A close second were the bike paths featured on day three. This 19.5 mile ride was easygoing with very few extended climbs along well-maintained bike paths. The paths dipped in and out of the city’s aqueducts and offered surprisingly stunning views of the surrounding mountain ranges framed by the low skyline of the city.
I, like many others, was concerned at the prospect of cycling in New Mexico this time of year. September is still a hot month in the southwest; however, the midday highs only last for a few hours before things start to cool off again. Each morning we started our ride around a pleasant 50°F and by the time we finished we’d hit the day’s high, usually just below 80°F. At that time we’d be safely back at the inn and taking a rest before going out and exploring for the evening.
Santa Fe is a beautiful cycling destination, and the heat shouldn’t deter anyone from visiting for a tour like this. Staying hydrated before, during, and after each ride is key, even more so at this altitude. It’s also a good idea to bring some long-sleeved jerseys or other lightweight outdoor gear that will protect your arms and legs from the sun’s rays. As long as you’re prepared for it the bike scene in the City Different is the perfect place to be.
The Experience
The first night on this tour features a really unique and interactive experience. The Santa Fe School of Cooking has been around since 1989 with the intent of promoting the intricacies of New Mexican cuisine to anyone willing to learn. Our chef for the evening, Mica Chavez, started by giving us a brief history of the region’s culinary profile which primed us for what we were about to cook: beer battered chile rellenos with carne adovada and calabacitas, served with pinto beans and handmade flour tortillas.
Over the next few hours we chopped, sliced, grilled, and fried what might have been the most delicious meal of the entire trip. After we ate and began our walk home we all agreed that the experience given to us by Chef Mica and The Santa Fe School of Cooking made us all feel truly welcome in Santa Fe.
After our ride on day two we embark on a short walking tour of the city. Our guide is Sita, a small English woman with a personality uncharacteristic of her size. She leads us around the famous plaza and to some of the more notable historic sites around the city, including the oldest standing capital building, Oppenheimer’s coffee shop, and the Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi. Sita tells us of the early beginnings with the native tribes and the eight pueblos north of Santa Fe. Then everything from the 16th century Spanish conquerors to the acquisition of the state by the U.S. in 1912 and finally of the thriving art scene that is Santa Fe today.
Her colorful narrative and binder full of historic photographs and paintings give each of us a new perspective on the city of Santa Fe and leave us to explore the city with this newfound appreciation for all that it has endured.
On day three we’re given the entire afternoon to explore before our final dinner together. This was arguably the most difficult moment of the trip: deciding where to go next. There’s the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum just a few minutes’ walk from our inn. In the other direction is Canyon Road, a half-mile stretch of road with over a hundred art galleries, boutiques, and restaurants (if you go there do yourself a favor and go to The Teahouse). There’s also some exceptional shopping to be done in the plaza district as well as a truly elegant wine tasting venue at Hervé Wine Bar featuring New Mexican wine from Lescombes Winery.
Santa Fe is considered a “grounding city” by the many people who live and visit there. The buildings are low, there are no high rises, and the brown color of the adobe buildings with blue accents around windows and doors serve to represent the earth and they sky. This concept of the natural world being a part of everything in the city is what creates that sense of oneness with the land and with each other. No matter what you choose to fill your downtime with on this tour you’ll undoubtedly feel that welcoming atmosphere that comes with immersing yourself in the city of Santa Fe.
Want more insight? Check out all our bike tour trip reviews here!