Canadian River Canyon
Colfax County New Mexico
Photo by Michael E. Pitel
Flowing SE from the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, the Canadian River cut a 600' deep gorge 37 mi. through sedimentary strata in the high plains. Kiowa National Grasslands attracts campers and fishermen to Mills Canyon, 10 miles SW of the hamlet of Mills.
In the bottom of the Canadian River Canyon are the remains of a stone mansion, cisterns and bunk houses of rancher Melvin W. Mills. He planted 14,000 trees: peaches, apples, pears, cherries, plums, apricots, walnuts, almonds, and chestnuts. Additionally, he grew an assortment of vegetables. He hauled produce to Springer for shipment to Harvey Houses along the Santa Fe Railroad. In 1904 a flood ended it all by destroying Mills' orchard.
Location Information
- View the Google Map for this site (lat-long decimal degrees, NAD27) 36.04594 -104.37250
Contact Information
- Raton Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development Council
- PO Box 1211
- Raton, NM 87740
- 505-445-3689
- 800-368-6161
- Fax:505-445-3680
- ratonchamber@bacavalley.com
- www.raton.info
