Canyon Road

Today, we moved further north - up to Santa Fe. If you wanted, you could take I-25 and be there in just over an hour, but we chose the scenic route, the Turquoise trail, otherwise known as State Highway 14, which runs further to the east.To start with, it runs along the eastern edge of the Sandia mountains, so our first detour was the road which climbs up the Sandias to the crest. Although we had been up on the tramway yesterday late afternoon/evening, I wanted to go up the road to see the mountains from a different perspective and in a different light. The road comes out at the crest about 1.5 miles further north than the tramway. Once at the top, we admired the views and walked a nature trail, then decided to continue on our way. As we descended the mountain, the clouds were rolling in, and as we continued north on the Turquoise trail, we stopped a few times for photos, and could see storm clouds and lightening over the mountains behind us. Our next stop was Madrid, an old mining town. During its heyday over 3,000 people lived and worked in Madrid, and it boasted a population exceeding Albuquerque at that time. The Santa Fe railroad brought a spur to Madrid in 1892. But eventually the coal ran out and Madrid's infrastructure collapsed. Eventually the final town's residents moved away and Madrid became a ghost town. In 1954 the Wall Street Journal listed the entire town for sale for $250,000 - but there weren't any takers! However, in the 1960's and 70's a few artists moved in, and over the last 40 years has come back to life, with artists, craftspeople, gallery owners and business commuters to Santa Fe. We wandered up and down the main street and had lunch in one of the restaurants, then continued on to Santa Fe, arriving late afternoon, in the rain. We checked into our hotel, then went off to explore. In our Fodors guide I had read about this chocolate establishment, where they specialize in rich drinking chocolates that they have recreated from historical sources, spiced with native herbs, flowers or chilies. So we went there first and had hot chocolate - very good, but rather expensive - but then vacations are meant for spoiling yourself aren't they?! It also turned out to be quite serendipitous, as there was free parking there, and it was still within easy walking distance of the center, so that became our usual parking when in Santa Fe! After our hot chocolate, we went exploring Canyon Road, the subject of today's blip. Canyon Road is a long, narrow road that leads to the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. Artists were drawn to its beauty and began to create a subculture of artist-run studios and galleries. It is now lined with about a hundred galleries and studios, many in authentic, old adobe homes. Many had gardens full of sculptures that you were free to wander round and enjoy. It made for a nice early evening stroll.