This lush riparian area allows visitors to experience to see where some of San Antonio's most famous structures got their start.

In 1598, when 50-year-old Juan de Oñate took on the task of colonizing New Spain’s northern frontier for the Spanish Crown, he was given a peculiar order to survey New Mexico’s harbors and coastlines. As soon as he set foot on New Mexican soil, he realized the only waterway in sight was the Rio Grande. It was plentiful but not exactly oceanic. Still he followed the river’s northerly course to extend El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro parallel to the riverbank, assuring abundant water for his fellow travelers and their livestock.

Traversing nearly 3.8 miles of the Jornada del Muerto, the Yost Draw section of El Camino Real today is one of the best-preserved portions of the trail. A short climb east on the interpretive trail brings hikers to an overlook from where the trail’s south-north path comes into view. This trail is managed by the Las Cruces Field Office of the Bureau of Land Management.

This hill is a natural landmark that has served El Camino Real travelers for centuries. Various petroglyphs are located on the hill. A 17th century road ran along the western base of the hill. After the river changed its course during the early 18th century and the founding of Tomé village, the main road shifted to go along the valley and by the village plaza.

Because of its remote and rugged locale, La Bajada Mesa is among the best preserved and historically significant sections of El Camino Real today, with well-worn tracks, swales and other reminders of travelers past etched permanently into the landscape. By far, the mesa’s most defining feature is at its southwest edge, where the volcanic escarpment upon which the mesa sits towers 600 feet high over the plains below.