albuquerque – Snapping The Globe

Adventures in New Mexico Part 3-The Cat’s Meow

What’s the saying…when something is very appealing?

It’s the Cat’s Meow!

With all there is experience in New Mexico, I can say that phrase it is most appropriate.

After the long drive to Chaco Canyon, you would thing that we would have wanted to sleep in on the next morning. No way! There was too much to see and do and then, we needed to get to Santa Fe!

Rising early, we packed up, check out and headed to Petroglyph National Monument, one of the largest petroglyph sites in North America. Since there are four different trail systems, we chose the trail that appeared to offer the most petroglyph viewing, Piedras Marcadas Canyon. Parking in the adjacent lot, we grabbed out water and headed out onto the trail.

*Petroglyph National Monument, Piedras Marcadas Canyon Trail*

The path was easy and flat, marked with guide lines on either side, to keep hikers off of the fragile desert growth. Before long, we found ourselves alongside the rocky hills that arose from the desert floor. It took a few moments to decipher what we were supposed to be looking for but we soon began to spot the images carved into the rocks.

The petroglyphs we spied were created by the ancestors of modern Pueblo people as far back as the year 1300, by carefully removing the desert varnish with hand-held stone tools to expose the lighter color of the basalt’s interior. Centuries of weathering cause the older petroglyphs to oxidize and darken. As we now knew what to look for, it soon became easier to spot the various human figures, animals and geometric designs along the one and a half mile route.

*Roadrunner petroglyph and real roadrunner perched on the rocks*

All in all, we spent about an hour and a half out and about before completing the circuit. Deciding that there was not enough time to do another trail, we moved on.

Next up was Old Town Albuquerque.

The downtown area is comprised of approximately 150 individually owned and operated businesses, situated around the main plaza, the square and birthplace of the city in 1706. This plaza reminded me so much of the ones found in many Latin American countries with numerous people lounging on the benches around the gazebo. With so many shops, restaurants and galleries in the immediate area, we took our time doing a little shopping, grabbing a bite to eat and taking lots of photos.

One of the places I wanted to see most was San Felipe de Neri Catholic Church, one of the oldest surviving buildings in the city and the only building in Old Town dating back to the Spanish colonial period. The current church replaced the original which collapsed during the winter of 1972. I would imagine the interior exhibited European qualities, but sadly it nor the museum were not open during our visit.

San Felipe de Neri Catholic Church

Keeping an eye on the clock as we were heading to Santa Fe, we found one more place of interest, the Breaking Bad Store ABQ. Although I had no knowledge of the television series, I thought that maybe there would be some interesting souvenirs for my sons. What we discovered, however, was that this was not only a store, but a small museum of sorts dedicated to the series Breaking Bad and its follow up, Better Call Saul. While most of it didn’t resound with me, it meant a lot for my son to see mementos and set props from the show. Recently, when my husband and I finally watched all five seasons of the series, it was fun to pull out the photos and understand what all of it meant. My favorite photo? Me dressed in the Los Pollos Hermanos uniform posed behind the restaurant counter!

With our time in Albuquerque coming to a close, we headed out to the highway, making our way to Santa Fe.

When my son had mentioned to his friends that we would be visiting New Mexico, the unanimous suggestion was to visit a place with a very strange name…Meow Wolf.

Meow Wolf, a relatively new experience in Santa Fe (established in 2016) is one of three similar interactive experiences located in the United States. Along with the other two, in Denver and Las Vegas, the explorable art encounter beckons visitors to explore rooms of immersive art. Santa Fe’s version, entitled House of Eternal Return offers 70 rooms which I could only describe as a mix between an art exhibit, escape room, a fun house and a maze.

As we parked, we glimpsed what we thought we might experience with its giant metal spider, robot and of course, wolf, in the parking lot! Although we had not purchased tickets prior to our arrival, we learned that we were lucky since it was a weekday that we were able to gain entry, not usual on busy weekends.

We began our explorations in the front part of the House, trying to read every piece of paper and attempting to decipher clues. There was a strangely dressed man standing in the stairway talking about missing children and we deduced that children from the storyline were missing. We also heard other speaking about finding hamsters. We did discover a few hidden in various places, but then we never quite understood what to do with this information.

Finally, we just decided to have fun and explore all the nooks and crannies. Once we relaxed about the whole affair, it was a great deal of fun just enjoying the unique and unusual artistry.

It was great fun to discover hidden passageways in refrigerators, fireplaces closets and clothes dryers. After exploring both floors of the house, we discovered in the living room a fish tank on a shelf and then a tunnel through the fireplace which led to a life size fish tank which we could walk through! This led to other parts of the exhibit where we encountered a giant neon dinosaur skeleton whose bones made music when you hit upon them, a forest with giant mushrooms and creatures that appeared to be out of the book Where the Wild Things Are, the crazy clown room decorated with recycled bottle caps, cans, compact discs and clown videos, a Chinatown alleyway and the “black and white room” complete with a monster under the sink! There was abstract art and abstract rooms, interactive games hidden away in dark corners and an EDM music room. There was a band playing in the back and walkways overlooking their stage. Everything was dark and bright at the same time and neon and black lighting was everywhere!

It is one of the hardest things to explain and one of the most unique places I have ever visited! I will definitely have to visit the ones in Denver and Las Vegas which are differently themed.

We realized that if this was our introduction to Santa Fe, we were in for a treat! Meow Wolf was definitely the Cat’s Meow or maybe you could say, the “Wolf’s Meow”!

For more pictures check out Facebook, Snapping the Globe and Instagram, @snappingtheglobe.

Petroglyph National Monument

https://www.nps.gov/petr/index.htm
Address: Visitor’s Center, 6510 Western Trail, Albuquerque, NM 87120. Boca Negra Canyon, Atrisco Drive, NW, Albuquerque, NM 87120, Rinconada Canyon, 7601 St. Josephs Avenue, Albuquerque, NM 87120, 87114 Unnamed Cul de Sac, Albuquerque, NM 87120, Piedras Marcadas,
Address: Visitor’s Center, 6510 Western Trail, Albuquerque, NM 87120. Boca Negra Canyon, Atrisco Drive, NW, Albuquerque, NM 87120. Rinconada Canyon, 7601 St. Josephs Avenue, Albuquerque, NM 87120. Piedras Marcadas Canyon, 87114 Unnamed Cul de Sac, Albuquerque, NM 87120. Volcanoes Day Use Area, Western Trail NW, Albuquerque, NM 87120.
Hours: Boca Negra Canyon, 0830-1630. Rinconada Canyon 0800-1700. Piedras Marcadas Canyon, Sunrise to Sunset. Volcanoes Day Use Area, 0900-1700.
Admission: free

Old Town Albuquerque

https://www.albuquerqueoldtown.com/
Address: Old Town Road NW, Albuquerque, NM 87104
Hours: Most businesses open Monday-Saturday, 1000-2000, Sunday, 1100-1900. Most restaurants seat until 2100.
Admission: free

San Felipe de Neri Catholic Church

https://sanfelipedeneri.org/
Address: 2005 North Plaza NW, Albuquerque, NM 87104
Hours: 0900-1600, daily (unverified). Gift shop and museum, open from 1000-1630. Museum may not be open due to lack of docents.
Admission: free

The Breaking Bad Store ABQ

https://www.breakingbadstoreabq.com/
Address: 2047 South Plaza Street Northwest, Albuquerque, NM 87104
Hours: 1000-1700, daily. Closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas Day, New Years Day.
Admission: free

Meow Wolf Santa Fe

https://meowwolf.com/visit/santa-fe
Address: 1352 Rufina Circle, Santa Fe, NM 87507
Hours: Sunday, Monday and Thursday, 100-2000, Friday and Saturday, 1000-2200. Closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
Admission: Adults (ages 14 and up), $35, Children (ages 4-13), $20, Children (under 3), free, Seniors (ages 65 and up), $25, Military, $25.

Adventures in New Mexico Part 2-Chaco Canyon

Chaco Culture National Historic Site bears a unique title, one of the 20 least visited national parks in the US!

So why were we up early, making a three hour drive through unmaintained roads to hike through its boundaries?

For one, Bandolier National Park was closed due to the wildfires raging in the northern part of the state and Taos Pueblo had still not reopened since Covid restrictions were lifted. After spying pictures of this park and noticing its remoteness, I decided that it would be a perfect photo opportunity, make for an interesting blog post and a way to learn about the ancient Chacoan culture in this UNESCO World Heritage Site.

This national park gives insight to the engineering abilities of the ancestral Pueblo people of the southwest. The structures located in the park were built between 850 and 1250 in a remote canyon cut by the Chaco Wash. The structures were constructed of quarried sandstone bricks and timber hauled from great distances and during this time frame, the area was a major center of culture for the Puebloans. Fifteen major complexes make up the area and what remain are the largest building ever built in North America until the 19th century.

Our original plans had us spending this day in the Albuquerque area and driving to Chaco Canyon the next day, to hike and sight see before continuing on to Santa Fe. As I awakened early, however, I burrowed under my hotel sheets and pondered this agenda. We wanted to make it to Santa Fe in time to visit the new attraction Meow Wolf. There is nothing I hate more than not having enough time at an attraction and having to leave before I’m ready in order to meet a timeline and I was afraid that I wasn’t allowing enough time in Chaco Canyon. And…if we were not to make it to Meow Wolf, we would miss our opportunity since it was closed on the next day. After doing a bit of reading, I realized that there was much to see and do in Chaco Canyon that a couple of hours was not adequate.

A change of plans was in order.

This journey was beckoning our adventurous sides. It did not matter how long or hard! If the Chacoans could do it without modern conveniences, we could too.

Jumping into the shower, I informed my son of our new plan. Thankfully, he’s a flexible travel companion, quick to get ready, and we were soon on the Interstate 25 heading north.

The further we traveled, through desert and mountainous regions, cell service became more spotty and obsolete at times. Before all was lost, we made a call to the National Park for some specific directions, since we were a little unsure of the roads in this area. This proved to be a smart move! The ranger gave us detailed directions and even the good advice to fill up our car and purchase snacks at the nearby gas station before leaving the paved roads.

While I had anticipated rough roads, I wasn’t quite prepared for what we encountered. Twenty-one miles on a paved highway would take approximately 15-20 minutes, however, dirt, loose gravel, potholes and uneven surfaces kept us at about 20 miles per hour…you can do the math!

Finally, after the grueling, steering-wheel-clutching, teeth-gritting-when-we-hit-the-potholes drive, we spied the National Park entrance sign ahead and a paved road leading into the park. Success!

*Entering the park, views of Fajada Butte*

First stopping into the Visitor’s Center, we purchased a America the Beautiful Annual Parks Pass. As we would be visiting other parks within the state, it would definitely pay for itself. Quizzing the ranger for helpful advice, we then headed out to the parking lot to fill our water bottles at the cisterns and began our explorations along the Una Vida trail leading from the lot.

Una Vida, only a mile long, gave us our first look at the type of structures and petroglyphs that we would be encountering throughout the park.

Refilling our water again, we headed out on the nine-mile loop road to the next stop, the Hungo Pavi trail. More structures dotted the landscape, but it was on the trail that we would find the Chacoan Great House (occupation AD 1000-1250s). Paved and dirt pathways ran throughout the site and we were able to examine these dwellings from extremely close proximity. This monumental public building is a good example of what Chacoan sites look like without excavations, covered in windblown sand and native vegetation, and consists of over 150 rooms, a great kiva (space used by Puebloans for rites and political meetings) and an enclosed plaza.

Our next stop was the Chetro Ketl trail, home to the second largest Chacoan great house, covering more than three acres and containing a great kiva and elevated kivas. The structures consists of two and three stories and an elevated plaza that stands twelve feet above the canyon floor. Along the way we also followed the Petroglyph trail which spanned the bottom of the cliff face between Chetro Ketl and Pueblo Bonito. Here, we spotted many petroglyphs etched onto the walls, some low and some so high it made you wonder how they reached these soaring elevations.

The Pueblo Bonito trail is named after the beautiful structure located within its confines. This large complex, where we headed next, was unearthed between 1920 and 1927 by seven expeditions of the National Geographic Society and the Smithsonian Institution. According to the sign on site, over one hundred thousand tons of rubble and wind blown sand were removed to accurately reconstruct parts of the destroyed walls and match the ancient masonry. Located approximately 4.5 miles from the Visitor Center, it is the most important site in the canyon and worth the 0.6 mile roundtrip hike. Constructed from AD 850 to AD 1150 it was the center of all of the Chacoan universe.

A much larger compound than we had encountered thus far, we walked around its perimeter, comparing its size to the massive boulders that had fallen from the mesa beyond. Climbing these boulders, we had a bird’s eye view of the interior of Pueblo Bonito.

*View of Pueblo Bonito Ruins from top of boulders*

Along this trail, we encountered a sign directing us to the Wetherill Cemetery. While from this point, it was only a quarter mile hike, we learned later, that there was a parking area up the road which would have provided a much shorter walk. Only one grave was located here, that of Richard Wetherill, an amateur archaeologist who discovered, researched and excavated sites associated with the ancient Pueblo people. Fascinated by the ruins and artifacts of the Southwestern United States, Wetherill was credited with the excavation of Pueblo Bonito. He was murdered during a mysterious circumstances by a Navajo in Chaco Canyon in 1910.

Returning to Pueblo Bonito, the trail brought us around to the front of the complex and through parts of its interior. Judging by the small doorways, these ancient people must have been of a smaller stature and we were mesmerized for the still intact wood beams still in place. The most interesting part of the entire complex was an interior room with its wooden walls and ceiling still unscathed.

*Pueblo Bonito Ruins* *with original wood walls*

Skipping Casa Rinconada, we next headed to Pueblo del Arroyo, about a mile up the road. The 1/4 mile roundtrip trail brought us to another Chacoan Great House (occupation 1075-1250s). Planned and constructed in two stages, the architecture found here lacks a great kiva and earthen mounds, however, typifies the pueblo architecture found throughout the area.

It was now getting to be late afternoon and there was still so much more to see. Realizing that we had made the correct decision to devote this entire day to Chaco Canyon, I quickly calculated that although making it a long day, we could conceivably depart from the park between 6:00 and 6:30pm, have dinner along the way and still make back to our hotel at a semi-decent hour.

There was still a trail that we wanted to follow, but we were concerned about making it back in time to follow our new itinerary. This trail passed near Kin Kletso, another great Chacoan House (occupied from AD 1100 to 1150s). There were some interesting petroglyphs here, but we hesitated for a moment because to take this trail up to the top of the mesa, we needed to register. After talking with another couple of hikers, who assured us that we had enough time and that we could register at the top of the trailhead, by filling out a form, leaving half in the box and half on the dashboard of our car, we set off.

Heading on the Pueblo Alto trail, we hoped to reach the Pueblo Bonito Overlook. The trail, a total of 2.6 miles, reaches the overlook at .75 mile. If we could reach the overlook, we would then recalculate our time. But first, the beginning of the trail had me rethinking if I was capable of making it to our destination. The trail wound up the side of the cliff, giving us great views of Kin Kletso, but I was a little hesitant of looking anywhere but in front of me. Next, we discovered that we had to make our way through a narrow path, between the cliff walls, straight up. Not wanting to let my son down, I persevered and even enjoyed myself, discovering the beautiful flowers, fossils embedded in the stone, shrimp burrows and other landmarks along the way. From the top of this mesa, the view of the canyon was stunning.

*Pueblo Alto Trail, overlook to Kin Kletso (middle left and bottom right), trail through slot canyon (top right)*

*To the end of the Pueblo Alto trail and views of Pueblo Bonito*

*View of Pueblo Bonito from Pueblo Alto trail*

When we reached the Pueblo Bonito overlook, I had to admit that it was worth the intimidating climb! With Pueblo Bonito spread out below us, it was much easier to see from above what we could not fathom while walking through the complex!

Checking our watches, we discovered that we had actually made pretty good time, so we decided to follow the Chacoan Road for a little ways. There were two additional structures that we were able to spot from afar, but sadly, if we were going to make our departure window, we had to turn back. Along the cliff’s edge we retreated, back through the narrow canyon, gingerly stepping from one rocky stair to another, past Kin Kletso and back to the cool confines of our car.

*Back thru the slot canyon and to the main road*

Another quick trip to the Visitor’s Center to grab more water and we were on our way back to Albuquerque. While the trip on the unpaved roads seemed shorter as we were now familiar with its length, it was still harrowing, praying we didn’t pop a tire or break an axle. As we approached paved roads and civilization, the late summer sun was illuminating the nearby mountains, giving us quite the show of fiery reds and oranges!

As we arrived back to Albuquerque close to 9:00 p.m., during the midst of a lunar eclipse, I realized that while we were extremely tired from the six hours we had spent in the car, the sun and all of the hiking in the park, we had made the right decision.

Chaco Culture National Historic Site absolutely warrants enough time to see everything that if offers. Maybe it is one of the least visited, but we can say we did!

For more pictures, check out Facebook, Snapping the Globe and Instagram, @snappingtheglobe.

Chaco Culture National Historic Park

https://www.nps.gov/chcu/index.htm
Address: Mailing address, PO Box 220, Nageezi , NM 87037
Hours: 0700-sunset, daily
Admission: Vehicle entrance fee, $25.00 USD for 7 days (includes all persons traveling in one private, non-commercial vehicle (car/truck/van). Motorcycle entrance fee, $20.00 USD for 7 days. Individual entrance fee, $15.00 for 7 days.
- Getting There: https://www.nps.gov/chcu/planyourvisit/trafficandtraveltips.htm Calling ahead for travel conditions is advisable.

America the Beautiful Park Pass

https://usparkpass.com/?msclkid=93b48013494c171633b4e37a00f1093a

Adventures in New Mexico Part 1-Breaking Bad

Sometimes the best trips are the ones that you didn’t even know you were going on or needed.

Last May, after spotting a hole in my work schedule and realizing that it coincided with my son’s college break, a plan took root in my head.

Mother/son trip!

Deciding to meet in Atlanta on a Saturday morning, we would figure out where to go from there. Of course, we had some possibilities and preliminary plans, but in the end, flying standby would dictate where we would end up.

The winner?

Albuquerque, New Mexico!

A couple of years ago during Covid, I had mapped out a driving plan to some of New Mexico’s most interesting destinations and attractions. When we realized how many restrictions and quarantines were in place at that time, we headed south to the beach instead. I had kept this itinerary, however, in my back pocket and it was time to whip it out!

Landing in Albuquerque in the late afternoon, we decided that with the amount of daylight remaining, we would try to visit one thing in the city. I had thoughts of Petroglyph National Monument or Sandia Peak Tramway, but my son had another idea.

A fan of the television series, Breaking Bad, which I had never seen, he was hoping to see the house that was featured as the lead character’s home. Following directions to the home in the northeast part of the city, we entered a residential area and then following three other cars down Piermont Drive, we slowed behind them as he pointed it out to me. 3828 Piermont Drive, NE.

Since he wanted to take a photo of the house, we circled back around and parked on the street which was perpendicular to Piermont and right in front of the house. Little did I realize that this was the parking location where many a stake out took place during the show and he explained that the fence that now encircled the home was not present during filming. Soon after we parked, a woman exited the house and came into the front yard. She began holding up a phone, filming us and yelling for us to leave, even though other cars were driving by slowly and taking pictures of the house.

Realizing that this was our cue to depart, we pulled away as my son explained that he had read that the new owners of the house had no idea that their house was famous when they bought it and hated the attention that it garnered on a daily basis.

I felt terrible! Never having seen the show, it didn’t mean anything to me and as a homeowner, I would absolutely hate having people drive by taking pictures of my home, as this woman obviously did!

After finishing the series a couple of months ago, I understand that fans would be interested in where critical outdoor scenes were filmed, but after hearing stories from my son about people throwing pizzas on the roof, as was done in one of the episodes, I could sympathize with why the owners added a gate to give them a bit of privacy.

Since we had had a long day, we decided to have dinner (not pizza!) and make a plan for the next day…one that didn’t involve stake outs and invasion of other people’s privacy!!!

For more pictures, check out Facebook, Snapping the Globe and Instagram, @snappingtheglobe.

Breaking Bad House

Address: 3828 Piermont Drive, NE, Albuquerque, NM 87111
Hours: 24 hours
Admission: not available