Sunday, June 27, 2010

New Mexico Part II










When I finished the last update we had made it to Los Alamos last Sat. night.  Sun. am, I started with a 4 mile run which looked something like this... ( see pics above)  After the run, we toured White Rock with a great Overlook area, and Bandelier where we took a short hike with a Ranger who gave us some information about the ancestral Pueblo people.  On the way to Bandelier we encountered some bikers who were in the middle of the Tour de Alamos bike race.


Then we headed back to Los Alamos to explore some of the museums and to learn more about the Manhatten Project.  It was interesting to learn how the scientist and their families lived in total isolation and secrecy during this time.  Today over 8000 people are still employed at the Los Alamos National Laboratory and you have to wonder what they are working on now.

Next we headed to the Jemez Mountain National Scenic Byway.  The Valles Caldera was one of my favorite parts of the trip.  Interesting - they had a marathon a couple of weeks before our trip.  Maybe one day I will make it back to explore the area on foot.


 If you look real close at the pic on the right, you may see a deer or maybe a baby elk???  My eyes are not that good  (ha ha)



After we drove through the Jemez Springs area we finally came across our much anticipated Fry Bread. 
"hallelujer"  (as Madea would say)  Fabulous!  Each year, Linde and I usually have a word or a phase that we repeat, like a million times, on the trip.  This year it was "FABULOUS!"
Fry Bread - Yummo!

The next stop was Albuquerque.  My favorite part of ABQ was my running and Sandia Peak area.
Last Monday, I ran 7 miles on the trail at the Rio Valley State Park.  The trail runs along the Rio Grande River.



Cottonwood trees line 
much of the trail.



Sat. we rode around the Sandia Crest area and toured Tinker Town.  Sat. evening we rode up the Sandia Crest Tram to see the sunset.  This is the world's longest tram - a little scary.




Tues. was my last morning to run in dry air,  so Linde and Mom were generous enough to drop me off at the trail that runs along Tramway Blvd.  I ran 9 miles and they went to breakfast.  









After the run, we packed and started the long journey home.  When we made it back to Atlanta, I lucked out because Delta had overbooked the flight, and they needed a volunteer to stay in Atlanta and in return they offered overnight accommodations, food vouchers, and a $300.00 voucher for my next flight.  Sweet - ready for our trip next year!

So this week, with the vacation, I managed to get 34 miles of running, 4 miles of walking, and some stretching and yoga poses.

6 comments:

HappyTrails said...

Awesome! Sounds like you had a wonderful trip - you packed tons of things into a short amount of time. Glad you found your fry bread and it sounds like you found some other good food along the way. Also glad you liked Rancho de Chimayo - I know we really enjoyed it. Bummer you didn't find Dale Ball - the main parking lot is off on the left as you are driving up into the hills but is not marked really well. Now that I think about it, it would be easy to miss - we knew the approximate mileage up the road as to where it was. You would have loved those trails! Again, so glad you had fun and got to spend great time with your mom and sis. Wonderful memories, I am sure!
K

dawn said...

i love madea! great photos, great trip, and great job on the running while you were gone! awesome!

Robbie said...

Great write up. Sounds like a fantastic trip and glad you had a lot of fun. And how great it is to have a good foundation put back for 2011!!!

Kym Klass said...

Looks wonderful! And your running route so peaceful!

LMC said...

This brought back great memories for me! Mark and I vacationed in New Mexico a few years ago. It was one of the best trips ever. We hiked in the mountains and in the desert. We went to Bandelier and Valle Caldera and traveled Jemez. We went to Los Alamos and the Santa Fe Institute. I loved Santa Fe! Anyway, I am so glad that you had such a great trip!! Love the pix. Thanks for sharing!

Tina @GottaRunNow said...

I'm glad you got a chance to vacation with your family and to run somewhere cool (that wasn't on a TM!) - a nice summer running break from the sweltering heat! Getting a $300 voucher isn't bad either!