You can still find Santa Fe Trail wagon ruts in southern Baca County

Between 1821 and 1880, freight wagons hauled goods between Missouri and Santa Fe along what became the Santa Fe Trail. Most people picture that story in New Mexico or Kansas, but a piece of it ran right through the bottom of Baca County. The county says the trail’s Cimarron Route crossed about 14 miles here, through what is now the Carrizo Unit of the Comanche National Grassland.

What makes it worth a drive is that the trail did not vanish. On that public grassland you can still find wagon ruts pressed into the ground, along with stone markers and the rubble of old homesteads left behind after the wagons stopped rolling. Local history points to the Aubry Cutoff, a shortcut a few miles southeast of Campo, as one of the spots where the wheel ruts are still readable in the grass.

Be honest with yourself about the setting first. This is open, faint country with few signs, and the ruts are easy to walk past if you do not know what you are looking for. Bring a good map, plenty of water, and check in with the Forest Service grassland office in Springfield before you head out. Start with the National Park Service Santa Fe National Historic Trail site at nps.gov/safe.