ABQ, NM - Hiking in Sandia Mountains

I was so close to the trailheads but somehow I only hiked a few trails. One reason is that there was a walking trail along the side of the road leading to my rental, so even driving 15 minutes was less convenient than just walking outside. I noticed as I travel from place to place that the availability of easy and safe walking is essential for my mental health. I need to do something in the morning, whether it is a short walk or a trip to the gym.

The view of Sandia Mountains from the walking trail

With that said, I did do several hikes:

1) Tree Spring Trail was spectacular. Not too difficult at just 4.5 miles with over 1,000 ft elevation gain, the trail offered the views of ABQ from the west side of Sandia Mountains. It was a pleasant hike with some cardio. Even ABQ, while more desert-like compared to Santa Fe, had mountains with deep forests - such a pleasant surprise.

2) Faulty, Canoncity and Cenega was the closest trail I could find on Alltrails that represented the route I took with a Meetup group. I really thought I was in a pretty good shape after Colorado and weekend hiking in Santa Fe, so when the group mentioned that it is a hard hike, I decided to just go for it. It was  a HARD hike, and not because of the elevation gain, but the speed of the group. We completed 9.63 miles with 2,762 ft elevation gain in 4 hours and 8 minutes. I did a similar hike in Santa Fe with 8.79 miles and 2,710 ft elevation gain in 4 hours and 6 minutes. While an extra mile does not seem like a lot it adds to the speed quite a bit. Sadly, since I had to keep up with the group, I had very little time to stop and take pictures, although the views were nice, but I didn't enjoy them as much as I hoped I would.

3) Rinconada Canyon Trail was brutal as I did it in the full afternoon sun with no shade. Luckily, it was a short loop for just under 2 miles with minimal elevation gain. The trail is part of Petroglyph National Park displaying petroglyphs from hundreds of years ago. I planned to do two more trails in the park but decided not to due to the heat. History is great when the temperatures are reasonable.

4) 10K Trail (North Section) was the last trail I hiked in ABQ. I enjoyed it early in the morning the weekend before I left the city. It is also in Sandia Mountains and is an relatively easy trail at just over 5 miles with around 1,000 ft elevation gain. The views were nice, but I think I enjoyed the forest itself and the shade. 

Sadly, this was it for ABQ.

ABQ Botanical Gardens and Aquarium

I like to explore the local attractions that are typically visited by tourists. One of them in ABQ (short for Albuquerque) is the Botanic Gardens & Aquarium. While the park also has a zoo, I didn't want to visit poor animals locked up in cages for no reason. The gardens were very nice, even in the desert climate.

Children's gardens with everything oversized

The gigantic pot was taller that I am

The cave-like structure had an underground feel

The pond attracted a bunch of ducks who lounged peacefully in the early morning hours on the edge

There were lots of cacti, but this one was by far the largest one

Some flowers were very bright and insect-inviting, although most of them were in covered greenhouses

The variety of species was incredible

After walking around an hour or so at the gardens, I headed to the butterfly enclosure. Sadly, there were very few butterflies due to little rain, but I did find boxes where butterflies were in different stages of life.

The next stop was the bug exhibit with live creatures living in enclosed environments. 

Look closely!

Gigantic beetles

Cool spider

Finally, my trip to the aquarium did not disappoint either. Although the presence of screaming children made my visit short.

Albuquerque, NM - First impressions

Just an hour and a half away, my new place was in Sandia Park, a suburb of Albuquerque. I was communicating with the host before the move in date, and she allowed me to come a few hours before the check in time. She was away taking care of her mother in Mexico. I've rented several Airbnbs with an absentee host, so that was actually a pro for me. I arrived around 11 AM and was able to quickly check in. The place was clean and comfortable with lots of windows, beautiful views and, wait for it, air conditioning!

Eating area

View of the kitchen from the entrance

Kitchen

Laundry

Bedroom

Bathroom

Living room

Lots of couches in the living room

View from the side window

There was a fenced-in outdoor area with beautiful views where I captured a few sunsets.

View from the bedroom window

View from the outdoor area

Another beautiful sunset

I rarely sleep well in a new place, and this one was not an exception. Except for the reasons why...

Kitty was fascinated by something under the stove when I got up for a drink the first night. He was in a hunting mode. I knew that if he caught it, he would most likely bring it to bed, you know, to show it off. What could it be? A mouse? A scorpion? A lizard? Hard to tell. The rest of the night I could not sleep thinking that at any moment Kitty would jump on the bed with something alive in his mouth. When I got up in the morning, I started to move things around to see if I can find any signs of an invader. Indeed, behind one of the three couches (yes, three!) in the living room I noticed mouse droppings. I had a mouse in the house. I knew that as soon as I let the host know, an exterminator would be called in to kill... I didn't want any deaths. Luckily, I had a humane mouse trap that I bought back in Napa when I had mice in my car. I set it up at night hoping to catch someone. Sadly, the mouse was either too scared being harassed by the cat or too smart to get into the trap. The second night went the same way - Kitty watching something intensely, this time near the couch, and me, not sleeping. I thought this was going to continue on night 3, but somehow there was no action. Kitty slept soundly with me. 

The mouse was safely (I think...) evicted or voluntarily left the house. The trap stayed in the same spot for days with no results, and there was no disruption in the sleep for that reason again. I guess having a cat around has its pros!

I also realized that I now lived only 15 minutes to several trails in the mountains. The very first weekend I went hiking Tree Spring Trail, a short hike in Cibola National Forest with the views of ABQ.

More car issues, Kitty adventures and leaving Santa Fe

How could there be a week/month without a car trouble? About 2 months ago, I started noticing a rumbling sound coming from the rear of my car (that was still back in Co. Springs). Since I had my car in for the brake booster issue so many times, including for a full inspection at the Honda dealership and to replace my front axles, AND I asked the mechanic about the noise, I assumed it was a loose metal plate somewhere and didn't have to worry about it. Wrong!

On my way to the gym one day, I was getting on the highway when I heard a familiar noise coming from my exhaust system. The noise was familiar because it happened about 7 years ago when I had to replace my exhaust system. "Darn," I thought to myself. "Must be broken again!" I continued with my drive to Santa Fe and I was pulling into the parking lot that had  several "sleeping policeman" aka road hump on the road I heard a metal clanking noise. I thought, "What could there be in my trunk to make this noise?" After parking, I looked under my car and was petrified seeing my muffler almost dragging on the ground. IT CRACKED OFF and was hanging by the metal thing. My heart dropped. As I collected myself, I went to the gym, and after looking at which mechanic opens the soonest and which has the best reviews, I headed to the shop that was nearby. But not before I took my trusted duct tape and taped the hanging muffler to the body of the car. This would work. 

The mechanic was open 30 minutes after I got there and was willing to take a look at my problem without an appointment. I headed to the coffee shop to wait. Luckily, I had my work laptop with me as I was planning to work from another coffee shop that day. After a few hours, the mechanic reassured me that he would just need to reweld the pipe as there was no damage to the muffler. $85 later and with no noise anymore coming from the rear of my car, I was a happy camper. Initially, I thought about my horrible luck, but after assessing how the situation turned out, I don't think there could have been a better outcome. Well, besides the muffler not rusting off the pipe...

Now onto Kitty... He really enjoyed his stay in Santa Fe. It was so peaceful and quiet that after our last night in Denver and non-stop fireworks on July 4th, he was at ease at the new place.

He also enjoyed the local wildlife. Deer would come so close to the house that I could take tons of pictures.

And let's not forget about those promised pesky scorpions in the bathtub. After a month in the casita, I caught two baby scorpions, safely grabbed them with the tongues provided by the host and released into the wild...

My trip in Santa Fe was coming to an end, and I was determined to hike my favorite trail in the back just one last time. Leaving this place was emotional. I am not sure why I connected to it so much given several issues with insects, hot weather, terrible water pressure and no espresso machine (or toaster, for that matter), but this place I will remember for a while.

Last hike on my favorite trail

Last sunset in Santa Fe