The history of the Randall Davey Audubon Center & Sanctuary, located at the terminus of an unpaved portion of Upper Canyon Road leading away from the city, is as interesting as its mission is important. Originally the site of a sawmill built to support the construction of fortifications during the Mexican-American War, it was acquired in 1920 by the modern realist artist from New York, Randall Davey, who said of this property, “I wouldn’t trade my life here where I can hunt, shoot, ride, for all the committee-going and boot-licking you’ve got to do in a city for anything. An artist might starve for food here, but he’ll starve spiritually in a place like New York.” Here are some different options of how to enjoy the site:- Docent-led tours of Davey’s house and studio are offered at 2pm every Friday ($5).- Guided bird walks take place on Saturdays @ 8:30am (free, donations accepted, binoculars available to borrow). 190 bird species have been spotted on the trails that crisscross the 135-acre property.- An unexpected feature is the Nature Discovery Center (free, donations accepted) which includes a giant pinecone, an oversized acorn, a treehouse, and rope tunnels for families to explore.- A “Haiku Trail,” featuring poems in a 5-7-5 syllable pattern, stamped into ceramic plaques, opened in May 2022. Open Monday-Saturday (except holidays), 8am-4pm.

We spent an afternoon here during a one week vacation in NM. The trails are lovely, and the visitor center let us borrow binoculars since we hadn’t packed ours. We saw several different birds and enjoyed the Haiku garden as well. They even had gooseberry bushes, which reminded me of my Gran’s garden in Ireland. The drive was enjoyable as well, for us East coasters. It was fun to see the difference styled homes along the unpaved road on our way. We enjoyed the change of pace from being a tourist that week too. Perfect way to spend an afternoon, getting to see birds of the southwest!

...you should make you way here during your stay in Santa Fe. A lovely location just 15 minutes drive outside of central SF and adjacent to SF Canyon Preserve that will give you a sense of the natural beauty of the area. Turn off your phone. Talk to the very friendly folks in the office,leave a donation, get a map, plant yourself next to the hummingbird feeders. Check out the literature on local species.And then remember what its like to. Just. Breathe.Ample parking onsite. A few tips..Terrific guided tours are available on the website...as is the case in any part of natural habitat in the SW, always wear sunscreen and a hat, closed toe shoes, have water with you and be aware of your location and surroundings. This is not Disney.

There really aren't a lot of trails, nor are they long. But it is a nice area. The visitor center was closed when we were there.

Nestled in just the foot hills 15 minutes from the plaza. What a fun experience to see live turkeys humingbirds and talk to the staff who BTW may be older but are sharp as a tack! Recommend this one highly!