Albuquerque, New Mexico

October 29, 2025

Our travel day was sunny, but we got rained on three times: once when we were taking down, once en route, and once while we were setting up. Through it all, the sun shone brightly. Each shower was relatively brief, and it was thankfully our only rain during our week-long stay in Albuquerque (or "ABQ" as the locals say).

It's hard to see, but it was raining quite a bit here while we were breaking camp

We were delayed about 20 minutes while a tanker with a burnt engine and cab was cleared from the middle of the road. Unfortunately, it had just started to rain, and the camera focused on the raindrops instead of the more interesting carnage.

Our campground was in the suburb of Bernalillo, just north of ABQ. It was a city-run park that mostly had standard RV sites except for one site tucked away in a corner that didn't have any hookups. That's the one we opted for, and it sure had a great view!

A great view of the Sandia Mountains!

We were treated to a beautiful sunset the first evening! Fortuitously, the weather was mild and we sat out on the deck enjoying our dinner while watching the show.

On Friday, we went to Old Town Albuquerque and Nob Hill. We found Old Town interesting, but didn't quite get the allure of Nob Hill. Perhaps we were expecting more old-timey Route 66 kitsch, but the main drag didn't look that unique to us. Maybe we didn't look hard enough. We finished off the day at Cervantes, a fun New Mexican restaurant with good food and a very festive atmosphere.

The historic San Felipe de Neri Church , built in 1793

Interesting sculpture in an old tree trunk

The church is still an active parish to this day

We liked the whimsical wooden animal art for sale. Alas, no room in the camper for such things!

Everything was decorated for Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead)

We've never seen a public bathroom like this one!

Ok, so the "spaceship house" in Nob Hill was actually something unique you don't see everyday

Too bad we couldn't take a peek inside!

Cervantes restaurant was all decked out for Dia de los Muertos / Halloween

Julie imbibed in a prickly pear margarita 😋

They really went all out on the decorations!

On Sunday, we attended a community Shakespeare troupe performance of Coriolanus, one of the Bard's lesser-known plays. We found it entertaining, with the two or three major parts being performed by well-seasoned melodramatic actors with booming voices, while the remaining ensemble was perfectly adequate for the price we paid for admission.

The play was held in an intimate black box theater where every seat was a good one.

Monday was a gorgeous day with brilliant blue skies, so we headed toward Jemez National Forest, about an hour away. We made several stops to see the striking scenery, which included a special treat that we thought we could only get in Utah--red rocks!

The aptly named Red Rocks trail is on Native American land. We ended up paying $12 each (plus tax) to walk the 1 1/2 mile (round trip) trail. The price seemed a little steep, but it probably cuts down on the crowds.

The GPS got a little fritzy in the slot canyon, so the recorded distance is not quite accurate.

The rocks were really red!

We've become quite the slot canyon junkies of late.

Some of Julie's favorite photos were taken at a little pull-off that happened to have some much-appreciated bathroom facilities.

The cottonwood trees were glorious!

This unusual travertine rock formation by the side of the road is called "Soda Dam". Note the waterfall hiding inside.

Battleship Rock

Another view of Battleship Rock

During our stay here, we got together with a lovely couple we met at Goosenecks State Park a couple of weeks ago in Utah. We had learned at the time that they were coincidentally planning on staying at this campground while we were going to be here, and we met up with them a couple of times. On Tuesday evening, we walked with them to a nearby brew pub and got lost in deep conversation until the staff started closing the place down around us. Robert and Sherri are retired farmers from Oregon and currently on a several-month trip visiting their four kids who each live in a different time zone. They are contemplating the full-time RV life, so we had a lot to talk about!

The brew pub literally bordered the campground, but it was surrounded by a fence. We found a small break in the fence and stealthily entered the property behind the dumpsters and amidst random stacks of pallets. Nobody seemed too alarmed by our sketchy antics.

Our last day was quite cool, but at least it was sunny. In the afternoon, we walked around the tent-camping area of the campground.

Most of the campsites had cute little casita-style shelters

We decided to check out the boat launch, hoping to get nice views of the Rio Grande River.

The Rio Grande was not immediately in sight

Still no signs of the river

This feels more like a portage than a boat launch

At last we arrived at the "boat launch". No great views after all, and how do you launch a boat here anyway?

Not the best photo, but Julie managed to snap a picture of the elusive, fast-running Gambel's Quail. We also saw a road-runner, but it was way too fast to catch.

A Say's Phoebe

We did a lot this week and had a very enjoyable stay. This was probably one of the nicest campgrounds this close to a major metropolitan area that we have been to.

A parting misty sunrise shot before we sign off...

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