Monday, July 18, 2016

Day 16 - High on a Mountain Top

Lori and Alan have not had many visitors out here in New Mexico so with a pair of visitors in tow and a whole day at their disposal they gave us a whirlwind tour.  Using the Jeep to take us hiking in the morning and a regular car for sightseeing they took us sightseeing and out to a couple of great restaurants.  

After a healthy breakfast we squeezed into the back of Lori's Jeep which is a contortionist's training exercise they hauled us out to a trail through the scrub that allowed us to admire the stark beauty of the desert.  Between the scrub, the varied colored sand and the rock formations there was always something new to admire around the bend.  Quite a change from our hikes in the Appalachians but good training for coming hikes in the even starker areas of Utah that are coming in a couple of days.

Desert with mountains in the background
After a hearty lunch at a place that actually gave us a discount for ordering dessert at the start we set out for a tram ride up Sandia Mountain.  The tram was a bit crowded but the view was amazing and one you could get no other way.  Once at the top you could see miles in either direction so we hung out there for what turned out to be too long as all the galleries we were going to see in Madrid, NM were closed.  By then the rain gods who had apparently lost track of us, relocated us, so the plan to eat at an outside table was ruined too.  So we headed of to Sante Fe for a great Mexican dinner.  

We arrived back at the hacienda tired but not grouchy and trundled off to bed once more.

What a vista!  That is Albuquerque in the distance.



During the tram ride








Another view
















Origami horses running away from us.  We had origami apples for them but they were too skittish


Statistics Corner
States involved: Hobson rested again slowly sucking up electricity in the garage.  Connected to a 120 outlet the car charges about 80 times slower than a Tesla Supercharger but by sitting patiently still his batteries restored/  Actually being back in a garage especially one as neat as the one he is in might make it difficult to coax him out.  


Charging 
Lori and Alan's garage as noted above

Regular Features
Song of the Day: High on a Mountaintop by Loretta Lynn.  Though she was not talking of Western mountains the song fits the day.

Coolest Car of the day: The new tram cars just installed this year on Sandia Mountain

 


Church of the Day: Check out that rendition of Jesus carved from a tree.  This is in a very small town that contained rundown houses and trailers.  Down the street from the church were two bars: one that had lost its liquor license and the other that was "Coming Soon".  When even the bars are in trouble you know the town is.



Coolest Thing of the Day - Larry -  Another day that was hard to pick a favorite but the tram ride is not something one does everyday so it wins for me.

Coolest Thing of the Day -Michelle - The morning hike and the tram ride tie

2 comments:

  1. What a fun day - and we got to find a great new restaurant with you! The name of the town where the Church of the Day is located is Cerillos.

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  2. You're now in familiar territory (you can almost see our old house from the picture you took from the Sandias). If you can - stop by I Scream for Ice Cream on Carlisle and Indian School - you wont be disappointed if the proprietor is there - ask him about the 1910 Fruit Gum Company... Glad to see you're having great adventures and Hobson is taking you to places beyond our greatest imagination. When you find a good place to eat, you should stock up.

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