For years it has sat on the side of State Road 68, just south of Taos. At times it has tempted passers-by with its promise of relaxation on the banks of the Río Grande, at other times it has sat vacant, a tribute to better days.
It was the Embudo Station Restaurant. Now it is simply a 5 1/2-acre property with five residential structures and three apartments, river access, a concrete bridge over the Río Grande, a mountain of old signs (“For Sale” and otherwise) at its entrance, and a heap of potential. But that has always been the case for the picturesque property with its on-again-off-again history as a restaurant and commercial property.
The history of the station property and the surrounding community is long, but quiet. Embudo was founded in 1881 as a station along the old Chili Line railroad from Santa Fe to Antonito, Colorado. Later, it became the site of the first United States Geological Survey (USGS) stream-gauging station. It also became the first USGC hydrographer training center.
In 1979, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places.
Over its nearly 150-year history, the property has fluctuated between a bustling town center (relatively) with a popular restaurant nestled on the banks of the Río Grande, to a vacant set of forgotten buildings littering the side of the highway. BUT, there are a number of interesting points about this particular area, according to property owner, Preston Cox.
“Embudo Station is near the bottom of the ‘wild and scenic’ section of the Río Grande,” Cox says in an email. “This means that the possibility of future river development is certainly limited by the Federal government. Even the mine in Questa would have a hard time opening because of strict standards. The property behind Embudo Station is all [Bureau of Land Management]. The prospect of future development is virtually none.”
More to that point, the riparian zone – or the area along the banks of a river – of the Río Grande is one of the most protected riparian zones in the country due to its importance as a migration spot for endangered birds. That means commercial development along the Río Grande in New Mexico is rare. But Embudo Station is different.
It is privately owned and grandfathered-in as a restaurant and commercial property.
All of this jargon is to say, Embudo Station exists much as it did when it was first founded over a century ago. And, if the federal and state protections succeed in their purpose, it will be likely to stay the same for many years to come. It is a property locked in time.
So, what does the future hold for this “restaurant that was?”
It’s currently for sale again (listed by Sothebys) and it is touting the Station’s history along with its access to summertime river sports. The pandemic has hit it a bit hard though and it has been for sale since late 2019.
The hope for the surrounding community is that the new owner will revive the restaurant once again and bring back the lifeblood of Embudo.
As of now, the Embudo Station sits empty, the occasional car or truck pulling into its dusty driveway; visitors looking to explore or potential buyers discussing bright plans for the future.
Three cheap white deck chairs sit on the West Bank of the Río Grande, just down the hill from the old restaurant with it’s large front windows. They are dirty and have seen better days, but they still function and with a little TLC, they may become chairs that people want to sit on again. Because these chairs and the property they represent sit on the streaming shores of the “Grand River,” and that means someone will always be willing to fix them up.
“The river will change you,” says Cox. “If you listen, you will have a lot to learn.”
- The nearby Embudo Historic District was founded in 1881.
- “Embudo” is Spanish for “funnel.”
- Embudo Station was once a part of Dixon.
- The land surrounding the station is protected by the Bureau of Land Management.
- It was the site of the first USGS stream-gauge station.
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