On Monday, I chose to drive the "Turquoise Trail" & Sandia Crest". Both byways are east of Albuquerque and not too many miles...unless you do things the way I do...start too late (about 11 am) & go too slow!
I decided to drive north on I-25, toward Santa Fe to start the Turquoise Trail from the north end and then catch Sandia Crest near the south end of the Turquoise Trail. The direction of the drive was ideal as I had the sun "in my favor" most of the time. The only thing that would have made it better would have been to get to Sandia Crest earlier so I could have hiked more!....starting earlier would have solved that!
Driving south on the Turquoise Trail (Hwy 14), one of the first things I saw of interested to me was a couple of donkeys....too cute to pass up taking a picture of one of them! Now doesn't he/she look cuddly?!...:)
I continued on to the historic village of Cerrillos. I found this little village interesting for two reasons....animals....and animals! (For those of you historic "buffs"....sorry!) There was a small "petting zoo" i Cerrillos where you are invited to buy food to feed the llama, goats, chickens, etc! I enjoy watching animals (and sometimes the interaction of people with the animals), so I watched!
When all the food was gone, the animals were no longer interested in the people, so the people left. I watched for a while longer and decided to go take a look at the rest of the village!
until I came to the entrance of the Cerrillos Hills Historic Park. I continued to follow the road....slowly, so that I could look as much as I wanted!
When he was sure I had his picture, he continued on his way over the edge of the hill and out of sight. I then continued driving to the end of the road where there was a locked gate & a sign that said "Do Not Enter".....or maybe it said, "Private Property". Whatever it said, what it really meant was..."Turn around, we don't want you in here!" So I did...turn around that is!!
There are numerous switchbacks in the 13+ miles up to the top and the grad is 6-7%. It's not impossible to drive up with a big motorhome, but in my opinion, you would be driving....not enjoying the scenery! An alternative is a tram that you can take from Albuquerque if you are unable or unwilling to drive up the east side of the mountains!
The trail follows the rim of the mountain and is incredibly picturesque. Here are a few pictures....
When all the food was gone, the animals were no longer interested in the people, so the people left. I watched for a while longer and decided to go take a look at the rest of the village!After driving slowly through the village, I came across a dirt road that looked interesting to explore! After driving it a short distance, it began to curve & wind toward the Cerrillos Hills
until I came to the entrance of the Cerrillos Hills Historic Park. I continued to follow the road....slowly, so that I could look as much as I wanted!All of a sudden I saw something move up in the hills.....a coyote!! Now for those of you who aren't thrilled by finding your "own" wildlife in nature, you probably aren't going to understand why that ended up being the highlight of my day.....well, one of the better highlights! My friend, the coyote, even stopped long enough for me to take his picture!
When he was sure I had his picture, he continued on his way over the edge of the hill and out of sight. I then continued driving to the end of the road where there was a locked gate & a sign that said "Do Not Enter".....or maybe it said, "Private Property". Whatever it said, what it really meant was..."Turn around, we don't want you in here!" So I did...turn around that is!!Once back out on the Turquoise Trail byway, I continued on looking forward to the little village of Madrid. Once there, the only animals I saw were the two-legged variety, and it looked like a busy "ant hill"! I tried to find somewhere to park and take a look at what all the hustle & bustle was about, but, alas, it wasn't meant to be!....so, I continued on!
The remainder of the drive to Sandia Crest Byway, was spent enjoying the scenery. I did not take any of the small dirt roads off the highway due to time. I may have missed a "goldmine" by not taking the time to drive a few of these roads, but Sandia was waiting!
Sandia Crest Byway (Hwy 536) takes you zig-zagging up to 10,678 ft. The drive is spectacular and once at the top, leaves you breathless! The view you have is an overlook of Albuquerque from a northeasterly view!
There are numerous switchbacks in the 13+ miles up to the top and the grad is 6-7%. It's not impossible to drive up with a big motorhome, but in my opinion, you would be driving....not enjoying the scenery! An alternative is a tram that you can take from Albuquerque if you are unable or unwilling to drive up the east side of the mountains!Not far from the observation & gift shop at the top, there is a trail that appears a "flip-flop" trail, so I decided that I could handle that will my Merrill sandals!
The trail follows the rim of the mountain and is incredibly picturesque. Here are a few pictures.... The trail eventually went from a "flip-flop" trail to this.....
then a trail between rock ledges and a natural stone staircase. But as you can see below, they did have a handrail for those of us who don't follow the guidelines for hiking on trails in the mountains!
The trail made it's way back to the parking lot through the woods...snow furnished for free!!
The drive down and back to Albuquerque was a race against the sun going down. I didn't have to drive fast, but I didn't have the leisure to stop along the way too often anymore. However I did manage to get a photo with some fall "colors".......in New Mexico!
SNOW!!....not quite enough for skiing, but it was early yet as there is a ski resort on this mountain!
On the way down the Sandia Byway, I stopped to take a picture of what I had seen on the way up, but didn't mention.....:)
SNOW!!....not quite enough for skiing, but it was early yet as there is a ski resort on this mountain!Once back in Albuquerque, I took a look to see where it was that I had been! See those toothpicks at the top of the mountain...that's where I had been!!
Till next time....
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