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Warm light from the setting sun gives an orange glow to a rock bluff overlooking a grassland. Photo: NPS Photo

Santa Fe National Historic Trail

National Historic Trail · Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, New Mexico, Oklahoma

You can almost hear the whoops and cries of "All's set!" as trail hands hitched their oxen to freight wagons carrying cargo between western Missouri and Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Plan your visit Directions
  • LocationSanta Fe, NM
  • Entrance No fee listed
  • HoursOpen 24 hours, daily
  • Weather now69°F Thundery outbreaks in nearby
  • Alerts No active alerts

Follow the Santa Fe National Historic Trail through five states and you'll find adventure and evidence of past travelers who made this remarkable trip before you!

Topics
  • Architecture and Building
  • Arts
  • Civil War
  • Colonization and Settlement
  • Commerce
  • Explorers and Expeditions
  • Forts
  • Grasslands
12 more topics
  • Indian and Frontier Wars
  • Military
  • Native American Heritage
  • Photography
  • Rock Landscapes and Features
  • Scenic Views
  • Spanish-American War
  • Trade
  • Tragic Events
  • Trails
  • Wars and Conflicts
  • Westward Expansion
A wide river with green grass parks on the side.
The Neosho River in Council Grove was an important crossing on the trail. — NPS Photo

Things to Do

9 activities. Pick one to find other parks that offer it.

emigrant wagons pulled by oxen and horses cross the prairie with people walking alongside
After spending weeks crossing hundreds of miles of lonely and desolate prairie, a trading post appeared: a welcome respite where travelers could repair their wagon and trade for coffee, sugar, blankets, and ammunition. — NPS

Plan Your Visit

Hours

Open 24 hours, daily · Santa Fe National Historic Trail

Hours details
  • Santa Fe National Historic TrailOpen 24 hours, daily

    There are many places of history and commemoration on the Santa Fe National Historic Trail to visit. Museums, interpretive centers, and historic sites provide information and interpretation. Please contact each site before you go to obtain current information on closures, changes in hours, and fees.

Entrance fees

No entrance fees listed.

Weather

69°F
Thundery outbreaks in nearby · feels like 64°
  • Today 69° 54°
    Light rain shower
    91% rain
  • Tomorrow 66° 47°
    Sunny
    6% rain
  • Saturday 75° 51°
    Sunny
    5% rain

Updated 4 hr ago

What to expect by season

Due to the length of the Santa Fe National Historic Trail, be sure to consult local weather sources for the region you'll be visiting. Check out the forecast with the National Weather Service and search for the area you'd like to visit: weather.gov

Contact the park

Photos

  • desert landscape with a mountain that looks like a wagon from a distance, verdant green grasses
    Wagon Mound was a landmark on the Santa Fe Trail. Coming from Raton, New Mexico, travelers looked for this wagon-like hill to know that they were close to Santa Fe. Leave Interstate 25 at the village of Wagon Mound in Mora County to find this landmark. — NPS
  • A stone path leads into the distance next to adobe ruins.

Getting There

National Trails Office Regions 6, 7, & 8, Santa Fe National Historic Trail
Santa Fe, NM 87505

You can visit many sites of the Santa Fe National Historic Trail over the 900-mile historic route that crosses five states.

Get directions NPS directions Official NPS site

Mailing address: National Trails Office Regions 6, 7, & 8, Santa Fe, NM 87505

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