Leaving our campground in Alamogordo, we headed north for 216 miles to our destination at the Albuquerque KOA Journey. The ride to Albuquerque was beautiful, the mountains surrounded us for the our entire three plus hours. The highways on the way to Albuquerque are nice and availability of gas stations are not an issue. There will be climbing involved as Albuquerque’s elevation, 5,312 feet above sea level is even higher than Alamogordo at 4,336 feet. Strange as it may seem we averaged 13 MPG on this leg of the trip.
The Vast Expanse of Albuquerque
One thing that is very apparent as you drive into Albuquerque is that this is a very large city. It extends as far as the eye can see. The population of Albuquerque and the surrounding area is over 900,000.
Since the elevation is higher the temperature is slightly lower than Alamogordo, which I’m sure Hannah and Kendra appreciated.
The sites at this KOA are pretty narrow, but well maintained; as is the entire campground. There was no grass at the sites, or in the dog walk area, but the girls didn’t seem to care. I think most if not all of the sites have porch swings.
Campground in Albuquerque
The main reason for our visit to Albuquerque was to visit the Sandia Peak Tramway. The three mile, fifteen minute tramway ride takes you to the Sandia Mountain Peak at an elevation of 10,378 feet. The temperatures at the peak can be 30 degrees cooler than at the base, so bring a jacket. The Observation deck provides a 11,000 square mile view of the Rio Grande Valley. All of the reviews of this venue speak of how beautiful the sunset is due to the desert skies. In addition there are two restaurants at the base of the tram, so we thought we would have a dinner at Santiago’s Mexican Grill followed by a sunset trip on the tram.
A word of caution, Garmin had a really difficult time finding the tramway. We probably spent twenty minutes weaving in and out of small roads snaking up towards the Tram with no luck. It wasn’t until Tammy used her iPhone to do the navigation that we were able to locate it.
The cables of Sandia Peak Tramway
As luck would have it, the tram did not open as scheduled due to some prolonged maintenance schedule so we decided to have dinner and view the sunset from the restaurant balcony. We had made a reservation weeks in advance so we could have a table at the window (via Open table), which had been confirmed in an email. When we arrived we were told they just don’t take reservations. So in other words a reservation is not a reservation. I bring this up so you are aware that you may encounter the same issue. My opinion is that the food was good but the service was incredibly slow the night we were there.
There is an old adage that trouble comes in threes, and this trip confirmed it; No elevator at Carlsbad Cavers, no Tram operating at Sandia Peak, and no window view with our reservation at Sandiago’s Restaurant. Hopefully this would be the last of the “troubles” on this trip.
After we finished our meal we stepped out to the balcony and took some pictures of the sunset, it was beautiful.
The next morning we decided to visit Old Town Albuquerque. The plaza is made up of more than just historic buildings, it has over 100 shops and restaurants. The shops here are a little more upscale than you might think, but so are the things that they sell. From jewelry to art, there really are things sold here that you will not find anywhere else.
On the north side of the square area is the San Felipe Catholic Church, built in 1793, it is one of the oldest surviving buildings in the city.
While taking a stroll around the Plaza, we found a small somewhat secluded restaurant. After some cold beer and a great lunch it was time to head back to camp.
The next morning we decided to head north to Santa Fe, New Mexico, to visit the Santa Fe Plaza. Santa Fe was about an hour drive from camp and all along the highway are houses, some very large, with adobe type exterior. The scenery along the route was beautiful and one can only imagine how it must be to wake up to these views each morning.
The Santa Fe Plaza is the heart of downtown, and has been for over 400 years and locals refer to it as just “the Plaza”. The Plaza is listed on the Nation Register of Historic Places, and is made up of a central park area lined with benches and trees, it is definitely a city square. The buildings are all of a colonial Spanish design, and make up restaurants, art galleries, and jewelry shops. Outside these shops you will find locals selling their own jewelry and pottery etc.
The Santa Fe Plaza
The Santa Fe Plaza “City Square”
The Plaza is home to the Saint Francis Cathedral, build in the mid 1800’s, it occupies the site of even older church built in 1626 but destroyed during a revolt in 1680. To say that this church is beautiful would be an understatement. There is an incredible amount of history surrounding this church and the structure itself. We highly recommend that you take this side trip to not only see the church but the entire Plaza itself.
Saint Francis Cathedral Exterior
Saint Francis Cathedral Interior
The oldest section of Saint Francis Cathedral
Within walking distance of the Plaza you can also see the San Miguel Mission, the oldest church in the United States. There is so much history in or near the Plaza that we probably should have found a campground nearby and spent a couple of days here.
This would be our last full day in New Mexico, one of the most beautiful places in the United States. As you can see from our three blogs regarding New Mexico, you will regret it if you don’t plan a visit. My only regret is that we didn’t make this a two week trip.
For more information on Santa Fe visit: http://www.santafenm.gov/
For more information on Albuquerque visit: https://www.cabq.gov/
To read about this trip from the beginning click here.
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