Albuquerque - Day 1 (January 2013)






Two Guns zoo ruins

Today we have a full day of driving to Albuquerque which is about 7 hours away from Phoenix. We plan to break up the drive by a few small stops and the first one is at Bloody Basin Road. We drive a bit towards Crown King and then we hike along the powerline road for about 1/2 mile for some good views.

Leafcutter ant moundBloody Basin area view
Unfortunately trash is sometimes commonView of interstate from powerline road
Our initial plan also called for a stop near Flagstaff however there is snow everywhere and most dirt roads are closed so we take a few pictures and then continue on I40 towards Albuquerque.

Snowy Mt. HumphreySnow is everywhere near Flagstaff
After descending a bit the snow retreats so we decide to stop at Two Guns ruins, an interesting location along old route 66. THere are quite a few ruins to explore including one of the old zoo where the animal pens are still visible.

Historic route 66 bridgeNot anymore :)
Ruins of the old tourist stopClose up of ruins
Next stop is in Winslow, AZ immortalized in the well known song by the Eagles, Take it Easy. We stop close to the corner that has been arranged to match the description from the song and walk around - to our surprise there aren't a lot of people in the area and after taking a few pictures we have to move on.

Well, I'm a standing on a corner in Winslow, Arizona ...Historic route 66 stop
A song by the Eagles led to the creation of this tourist sightThe obligatory souvenir shop
While exiting Winslow we stop once more this time for the La Posada Hotel which is one of the last great railway hotels. It looks interesting with lots of statues and a nice park - we might stop here if we have to stay a night in Winslow in the future.

La Posada Hotel is one of the last great railway hotelsWhimsical statues are everywhere
After Winslow as it is getting late already we don't make any further stops and arrive to our hotel, Fairfield Inn and Suites, which is quite nice and has a well equipped kitchen that we use to make dinner and then crash for the night.

Our hotelRoom
KitchenWell appointed kitchen




Entrance to San Lorenzo Canyon

Our visit to the Albuquerque area starts with a short drive through downtown where we plan to stop in the University of New Mexico (UNM) Campus and the Old Town area. After that we plan to drive to a nearby wildlife refuge and canyon.

Unexpected elk in AlbuquerqueDowntown Albuquerque
First we stop at the campus and given that it is Sunday it is relatively empty and the parking is free. The architecture is Mesa Indian and Old Colonial style and quite distinctive and interesting.

UNM - Interesting buildingUNM - Scholes Hall
UNM - Student Health CenterUNM - Alumni Memorial Chapel
Of course given our interest in birds we are attracted to the Central Lake which is 9/10ths frozen but has a large population of ducks on the ice free part that likely are keeping the water from freezing over completely.

Central LakeWater Fountain in the ice
Ducks are resting on the iceClose up of fountain
Besides mallards there are quite a few American Wigeons that we haven't seen for a while so we enjoy taking pictures of them as they rest or swim in the water.

Overall view of ducksClose up of ducks
American WigeonsWigeons exploring the ice
Next we drive to the Albuquerque Old Town, it takes a bit to find a parking space and it is a prepaid one so we pay for 2 hours and then start towards the nearby Old Town. The area is small but interesting with a few old houses, a couple old churches and some souvenir shops and restaurants.

Albuquerque Old Town PlaqueOld Town Sidewalk
Cannon in the central squareFountain in a shopping plaza
The main church is San Felipe de Neri which surprisingly we can visit, it is not as embellished as other Catholic Churches but is still interesting with solid walls almost us if to protect from invasions (more likely to protect from the heat in summer).

Info about the nearby churchSan Felipe de Neri Church
Interior of San FelipeWindow detail of San Felipe
The most interesting sight on our tour is a quirky sculpture/chapel in a tree next to the chapel especially as it is unexpected and in a parking lot.

A quirky tree chapelAngels are everywhere
There are quite a few small stores with artwork and sculptures. We enter in a few of them but many others are closed, overall it is quite interesting to explore the sidestreets of the main roads.

Stores in old townThe not so golden goose
Small storeInteresting store entrance
There is even an art museum near the Old Town and we enter its grounds and look at the outside sculptures and artwork but do not enter as we have only limited time.

Near art museumStatues near the art museum
Another historic building in the area that we pass by is the High Noon Restaurant. It looks interesting but we are late already and have to leave for the Wildlife Preserve and San Lorenzo Canyon.

High Noon informationHigh Noon Restaurant
We are not sure whether to stop at the San Lorenzo Canyon as it is already 2:30 PM and we went to get before sundown to the Wildlife Refuge. However we do not want to get to early so in the end we decide to stop and see if the Canyon can even be accessed as the information is contradictory. The road to our surprise and delight appears to be newly graded so we arrive fast at the canyon entrance from which the road continues to weave through the canyon.

San Lorenzo Canyon InfoWell maintained dirt road to the canyon


Cave entrance in the distanceClose up of cave
The canyon is narrow and the road follows the wash as it winds through the canyon. There are some interesting rock formations that we admire however we have to be careful as there are other visitors in the area that drive quite fast even though the visibility is not that great.

Entrance to San Lorenzo CanyonInteresting rock formation
Rock outcroppingLonely mesa
When we decide to turn around we find a parking spot nearby and take a short hike through a side canyon. It is almost eerie - very quiet and it becomes narrow quite fast until we hit an obstruction in the trail and turn around.

Hiking trail through a washObstruction on the trail


Road going through the canyonImpressive rock formations
After San Lorenzo it is a short drive to Bosque del Apache NWR our most important goal for the trip. And of course we are drawn here by the birds in the thousands that either migrate through or winter in the area especially geese and cranes. Almost immediately after exiting the interstate we start seeing cranes everywhere which is quite exciting.

First cranes on our tripAlert cranes
After entering the NWR there are a few parking areas before the visitor center and the turnoff to the Loop Drive through the Preserve. We stop at a couple of these parking area that overlook lakes and again notice some cranes and a few ducks. Still we didn't come here for a few cranes...where are the thousands that were promised?

Bosque del Apache NWR interpretative signLake with cranes in the distance
Crane absorbed by eatingWatchful cranes
The visitor center is full of birders and they all talk about the huge numbers of birds in the interior lakes. We even see quite a few flocks of birds coming in and starting to set on a nearby lake so the hunt is on. We climb in our car enter the loop drive and at the first lake we already have to stop as it is almost covered by Snow and Ross geese, very exciting for us. We even make a short video to remember the cacophony of sounds and then move on to the next lake.

Geese are coming in for the nightLanding is a bit difficult in the congested area
Ross and Snow GeeseShoveler duck lost between the geese



Still it is winter and it is cold outside as evidenced by the ice we find on multiple lakes. The views however are magnificent with the lightning enhanced by the setting sun.

Boardwalk with iceScenic view of the lake
View of the marshMarsh with mountains in the distance
There are even reeds on a few lakes which we haven't seen for some time and so are excited about it. But there are not that many birds on these lakes so we move on to the next ones.

Nice view of the marshy areaClose up of reeds
As we stop from viewpoint to viewpoint we find different birds - even though they are not in the thousands they are varied and keep us busy us we try to identify them.

Female shoveler duckHidden lonely heron
KilldeerBirds coming in for the night
At the next viewpoint we hear a familiar call. We take a careful look and notice that there are quite a few birds on the nearby field...all of them Canada Geese. They are far away but the call is really distinctive and we remember it clearly from our time in Michigan.

Canada geese on a field far far awayClose up of canada geese
The road starts to loop back but the views of the marshy area are still beautiful with the setting sun illumminating everything perfectly.

Loop road through the NWRBeautiful sunset colors
And there are birds after almost every corner - however where are our cranes?

Coot searching for foodEagle surveying the area
Just as we were thinking that the cranes might be retreating to a lake out of sight we arrive at the next viewpoint and hear the distinctive call of the sandhill cranes. And lo and behold there they are enjoying the water and the area with more and more joining them for the night.

Cranes are on almost every lakeNew cranes are coming in
Another lake full of cranesClose up of the many cranes



From here we are less hurried and we can enjoy the views better. There are supposedly even mountain lions around and we know that we have seen one on a nearby mountain so we are carefully looking through the brush at every exit.

We actually previously met a mountain lion in the nearby mountainsBridge over troubled water
Trees in the sunsetDucks are floating away
The largest mammal we see is a buck that is very intently looking away from us until he suddenly notices us and bolts away.

Buck looking intently in the wrong directionIs there something behind me?
And cranes are flying overhead constantly now. There are of course also geese and other ducks mixed in but cranes seem to predominate.

Cranes flying towards the lakesUFO formation
As we close the loop at the initial lake where we saw the geese we are surprised at the huge number of geese that have accumulated on the lake - it seemed that there were a lot before but there are even more now. There are also a lot of other birders on the shore taking pictures of this awesome spectacle.

Geese are concentrated on a lakeFlocks of geese coming from the fields
Geese as far as the eye can seeMix of geese settling for the night
After spending some time near the lake we are getting cold so we move a bit further away and while the lake is more empty here it still has a haunting beauty with trees jutting from the water and a lonely duck passing through them.

Lonely duck in the sunsetBeautiful sunset
Lake at sunsetQuiet lake with tree
And then it is back to Albuquerque where we decide to celebrate the full day with dinner at a nearby Applebee's. Full and tired we then crash for the night as tomorrow we have the drive back to Phoenix.

Steak at Applebee'sRibs at Applebee's




Kasha-Katuwe view

Before returning to Phoenix we plan on visiting a National Monument, Kasha-Katuwe, close to Albuquerque that we couldn't visit before as it always is too hot in summer when we usually visit New Mexico. Now in winter we hope the weather is better and we start the short drive north towards the National Monument. It is on Indian Lands so we pass through a few pueblos as the road twists and turns towards its destination.

Houses near Santo Domingo Pueblo with interesting grillsPeña Blanca house
Store in Peña BlancaOur Lady of Guadalupe Church in Peña Blanca
To our surprise there are quite a few other visitors but as we start on the trails we meet less and less the further from the parking lot we go even though it is by no means secluded at any time. The major reason to come to the NM as far as we are aware are the rock tents and we see quite a few as we start to meander through the area.

Kasha-Katuwe interpretative signWe though they are real....
The ones on top have to be realTent like formations near the trail
The Cave Trail that we start on is a loop trail and it is easy walking. A bit unexpectedly we start to see snow on the side of the trail but we there are only a few patches so we are not worried as we continue to enjoy the views and the rock tents that are seemingly everywhere.

Slope full of rock formationsWhite mountain
Snow near the trailMountains in the snow
After about a mile we veer of on the Canyon Trail which looks easy in the beginning as it starts to follow a narrow canyon. There are old, large trees in the canyon and there is more and more snow the farther we go.

Start of canyon trailTrail looks easy enough
Old pine tree in the canyonIs that snow ahead?
And suddenly the canyon becomes a slot canyon and it becomes covered by snow which in turn is covered by ice. The going is slow as we try to ensure that we do not fall on the hard ice.

Yep it isTrail starting to get lost in the snow
This is slipperyAliens must have done it
The more we advance the deeper the snow becomes sometimes we just jump from a hole in the snow to another one left by previous hikers. And then as suddenly as it started it ends and the snow disappears as the canyon becomes larger again.

Slot canyon in the snowIcy path through the canyon
This is the most difficult partExit from the canyon
The trail soon starts climbing and it starts again to pass near some interesting tent rock formations. It is quite beautiful even though again snow patches start to appear and we have to be careful to avoid them.

Rock formation near the trailPinnacles are everywhere
Snow on red rocksTent like formation
And then we pass the most impressive formation a group of about 5 rock tents that we can observe from different vantage points as we climb towards the summit. The snow is heavy again here and we are happy that we have our hiking stick with us.

Most impressive rock formation on the trailGetting closer....
And closer....Beautiful close up view of the spires
As we finally finish the exhausting climb and reach the top of the mesa we are greeted with a nice view of two rock pillars that jut out from the valley floor. A raven on top of the pillar is unhappy with us and makes a few sounds of indignation but gives up in the end and flies away.

Pillars near the top of the mountainClose up of the pillars
The trail ends just a bit further , the views of the area and the valley are great so we stop and have a short lunch at the top enjoying the birds and the views before our return to the car and Phoenix.

View from the topDifferent view from the top
Close up of rock formationsJay on top of a pillar
The trail down seems a bit more difficult as again we have to avoid falling down the icy trail and it seems more difficult when going down. When arriving at the Cave Trail we continue on to finish the loop and notice that there are quite a few of formations near this trail also.

Another view of the formations from Cave TrailUnreal rock formations
And of course it has to have a cave given the name - it is more of a grotto and relatively shallow. Even from the outside there is visible soot on the ceiling of the cave so it likely was used as a shelter by previous inhabitants of the area.

Cave for which the trail is namedSoot on the top of the cave
As the trail starts to loop back towards the parking lot the views are still great and there are tent rock formations almost everywhere.

There are quite a few tent like formations on this trailA side canyon that looks interesting
And the largest rock tent field is actually quite close to the parking lot and it extends almost as far the eye can see up in the mountains. And then we arrive at the car and start the long drive back to Phoenix after a long weekend filled with birds, snow and interesting rock formations.

Tent like rock fieldLooking toward the mountain
It looks almost sculptedLast view of the tent mountain




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