The Galisteo Basin in north-central New Mexico is a drainage basin centered on the Galisteo River, which runs from the eastern highlands northwest across the basin floor to the Rio Grande near Santo Domingo Pueblo. Bounded by divides with the Santa Fe and Pecos basins and by ranges including the Sangre de Cristo, Sandia, and Ortiz Mountains, it is formed by three main river forks and numerous tributary arroyos. Beyond its physical geography, the basin has deep human significance: it linked the upper Rio Grande Valley with the Great Plains, served as a trade route for Indigenous peoples and Spanish explorers, and contains major Pueblo archaeological sites, including San Cristobal Pueblo.