Following the Arkansas River downstream toward the Kansas border, US-50 runs along what was known as the “Mountain Branch” of the Santa Fe Trail, a longer but safer alternative to the main route along the Cimarron Cut-Off. There’s little to see here apart from acres and acres of irrigated farmlands, feedlots, and cattle ranches, though the region’s main town, Lamar (pop. 8,869), is worth a quick stop. Very good Mexican-American food is available all day long at the Main Cafe, at 114 S. Main Street in the center of town. A block away, the handy state-run Welcome Center (719/336-3483) in the old Santa Fe depot on the east side of Main Street (US-50) has reams of information on the area and the rest of Colorado.
At the heart of town, next to the old depot, a stately Madonna of the Trail stands as a reminder of the indefatigable spirit of the pioneers. Standing nearly 20 feet tall atop an engraved plinth, this statue is one of 12 identical memorials erected in the 1920s by the Daughters of the American Revolution (D.A.R.). From Bethesda, Maryland, to Upland, California, the memorials were placed along the original National Old Trails Highway, which followed the National Road (US-40) and later Route 66 on the westward path of Manifest Destiny.
