19 December 2012 - 10:34Turning Left at Albuquerque

Actually, I didnt.

"Look Ma! A Fwaggle!!"

I turned right and headed east, but not before I spent some time enjoying some of what New Mexico has to offer and visiting with my “big sister” who I rarely get to see. I spent 7 hours in the drivers seat of the Big Kitty on Thanksgiving day, my goal, to make dinner and football. I was welcomes with delicious local brews, a feast, and some maple Crown Royal – it’s awesome. We even caught a gorgeous ABQ sunset, although we missed the Sandias light up.

sundown

The next day, was spent learning some of my new tasks, the lessons taught by my big sis, who also works remotely for EHB. This was after an amazing breakfast burrito from Lotta Burger, smothered in red chile sauce. You gotta have a good meal to fuel you through a whole day of work.

I was going to hightail it out of town on Saturday and head up to Colorado, but I chose to stay and do some sight seeing. From my bike. I rode Otero Canyon, which links up to a massive network of trails. I only rode for about an hour or so, because we were to head up to Santa Fe and be tourists for a while later in the day. Somehow, I managed to leave my camera behind for the ride, which is too bad, because there is lots to see out there. The Moment was a much better choice of bike for this terrain, but I would have appreciated a little more top tube. The bike climbs amazingly well, Ellsworth’s ICT suspension design is a performer, and I was able to easily scramble up the ledgy techy spots on my way to the top of the trail. On the way down though… 160mm of travel and a dropped seat… giggity.

Santa Fe is gorgeous. I love the place, even if it is a tourist trap. We spent the afternoon checking out the old churches, milling about the town square, and most importantly, hitting the local breweries. Solid.

the Rio Grande

cottonwoods down by the river

I stayed on through Sunday, taking it easy, and making sure I had everything I needed for the crossing home. This included a run to the grocery and beer stores, there is just some stuff you cant get outside of the southwest. I also managed a visit to local Ellsworth dealer, Fat Tire Cycles. A great bunch of guys, and a very cool shop. We took a little time to goof off on the rec path down by the Rio Grande, snap some pics and enjoy the beautiful sunshine. The leaves on the Cottonwoods were the most amazing shade of brown, and contrast against that western blue sky in the most wonderful way. This place must be something else when the leaves are green, or even in the fall for that matter. Can’t wait to visit again. It was nice to just be outside, and not have too much of an agenda.

birdies

The days that followed were not going to quite as much fun.