For eastbound travelers, La Junta (pop. 7,568), a busy railroad town on the banks of the Arkansas River, is where we begin tracing the historic Santa Fe Trail. The name La Junta, which means “the junction,” is apt, since the town has long been a key crossroads, first on the Santa Fe Trail and now as the division between the main line and the Denver branch of the Santa Fe Railroad, and as the junction of US-50 and US-350. Besides gas stations and a good range of places to eat (Mexican restaurants are a particular strength), a two-screen movie theater, and an ancient-looking barber shop, La Junta also offers the excellent Koshare Indian Museum (daily; $2), on the campus of Otero Junior College on the south side of town. Sleep cheap at the Mid-Town Motel ($40; 719/384-7741), 215 E. 3rd Street.
La Junta also marks the spot where the “Mountain Branch” of the Santa Fe Trail finally cuts away to the south, following what’s now US-350 through the Comanche National Grassland and continuing over Raton Pass into New Mexico and on to Santa Fe. Eastbound travelers are in luck, as we follow this historic route all the way to the other side of Kansas City.
