So, we reached Albuquerque, New Mexico. Not really a place that we had on our list to visit even though Better Call Saul and Breaking Bad was filmed here, programmes we really enjoyed watching. We came here to do some functional things and to look at new bikes. 

We have decided to go to the dark side and have E-bikes. We have been cycling ‘muscle’ bikes for over 20 years and have clocked up a lot of miles, many great cycling trips and made great memories and friends along the way . Getting e-bikes is something we thought we wouldn’t do for a while, until we were much older, but the practicalities of being on the road with Shaun, a big vehicle that can’t get everywhere, means an e-bike will enable us to park outside National Parks and get in by bike, but still have energy for a good hike. 

We stayed at a Harvest Host, a brewery, on the outskirts of the city with views to the Sandia Mountains. The beer was very good, Mark says. The cocktails were also very good and they did some nice snacks too. On our second day there, we looked at e-bikes. We thought we’d found the right bikes but because our truck is fitted to run on 230v electric, UK style, these bikes would not have charged up from Shaun, sort of defeating the purpose of having e-bikes!  Back to the drawing board!

We took time to go into the old town of Albuquerque. It was really nice, it had a lovely little Plaza, pretty church and nice Adobe houses. On a Sunday the classic car club meet in the plaza to show off their pimped up, low riders. These were amazing to look at, but apparently, they are not comfortable to drive! We sat at a bar facing the square watching the vehicles and people; it was a great way to spend some time.

The following day we had to get Shaun to a garage, again! We had to get the rest of the wheel studs replaced. This was on the outskirts of Albuquerque, but the opposite side to where we were staying. This meant driving a bit of Route 66, which goes through Albuquerque! I had another few hours to kill but luckily there was a shopping mall close by so I checked out some Mexican shops and a Starbucks, so I basically just waited for the truck to be ready, whilst Mark supervised the mechanics! We think they’ve done a good job, so fingers crossed that saga is finished. 

We then went to the Specialized bike shop; Mark had checked that they had some e-bikes which we thought we could charge up on our UK truck. We test rode the bikes and they seemed great. Extra bonus, Mark’s is orange and of course you all know that Mark loves orange! As the shop was about to close, we had to leave them there and return the following morning so that they could finish setting them up for us.

The next day we went and picked up our new bikes and left our old ones with them as they will pass them on to a local charity, Esperanza. This charity promotes bike education, access and transportation, and people can learn skills and work on donated bikes and keep them; a worthwhile cause. Before we left Albuquerque we went to a new grocery store, Smiths, and were delighted to finally buy some great bread, the best we have had in the USA (most bread here is too sweet and lacking in texture!). Having nice bread is one of the things we miss about the UK and Europe!

From Albuquerque, we drove up to Bandelier National Monument; we were worried we wouldn’t get a camping spot but that was needless as there were only two other vehicles there, a good thing about travelling in low season. On the way there we drove through Los Alamos, the town  and facility where Oppenheimer lead a group of physicists in developing the nuclear bomb. We were surprised when we had to go through a security check, as we hadn’t realised the road took us right through the facility that still works on development of weapons. 

The following day we explored the Pueblo village in Bandelier. This history is amazing, the villages, houses and kivas date from 1150 – 1600. Kivas are underground round rooms, probably used for meetings and religious purposes. The village was made up of 400 rooms, housing about 100 people and were one or two stories high. There are also houses built onto the cliffs, using the naturally soft Volcanic Tuff to create rooms. Historians think the villages in this area were abandoned around 1600, possibly due to lack of water, and relocated closer to the Rio Grande. Native Americans regard this place, and other like it, as sacred and don’t see it as abandoned, but places their ancestors still live in. We were able to climb up ladders into the little houses built into the cliffs and look at petroglyphs 🤩 We rode our bikes from the campground to the Pueblo trail; it was great knowing we could use the battery to get us back up the long hill! That afternoon, we were treated to the sight of a pack of Mule deers coming right past Shaun 😍

As we left the area we walked another trail in the Bandelier National Monument area, Tsankawi Village Trail. This was quite different, it had a much more open aspect, the village was on top of a mesa, not in a valley as the other one was. The geology was quite different, the rock was very white, and we walked through very narrow oaths that had been carved out over many years by the Ancestral Tewa Pueblo people. We saw one of their dwellings, and some more of their petroglyph panels. The main village here has not been excavated, at the request of the people of the San Ildefonso Pueblo, they prefer the homes and belongings of their ancestors remains untouched.

We drove on from there to a wild camping spot we had identified, on BLM land, which means free, and you can stay for up to 14 days. The view from our camping spot was pretty good, the rock formations and colours are amazing.

After an evening of enjoying our quiet and scenic spot, the next day we cycled to Ghost Ranch and did a great hike up to Chimney Rock and explored the grounds and museums of the Ranch.

Ghost Ranch is a large complex that used to be a ranch but is now owned by the Presbyterian Church and is used a holiday and retreat resort. It has information about Georgia O’Keeffe, an artist who loved and painted this area. She moved here and used to have a cottage on the ranch but also built herself a small home about 10 miles from here. I hadn’t heard of Georgia until coming to this area but have enjoyed seeing her work and finding out about her and her life, a fascinating woman. Ghost Ranch also has small anthropology and palaeontology museums, as many Triassic fossils have been found at Ghost Ranch, including Ceolophysis, an 8 foot long dinosaur who used to roam the lands around here. Human cultural history of the area is rich too, and they have found many pieces of pottery that ancestral Puebloans used.

Once again, our new e-bikes were very handy as the ride back was into a headwind and having extra power at our fingertips was great!

We reluctantly left this beautiful valley and drove to our next campground, in Chaco Canyon. We are still on a theme, learning about the Pueblo people of New Mexico. Chaco Canyon is a special site and has been recognise d by UNESCO as a world heritage site. However, we did not know that to get to the ancient site and the campground we had to drive along a 12 mile dirt road, that due to excessive use has a washboard effect. Washboard is where the dirt has formed hard ridges, which is hard going on your suspension and your nerves! But we have no regrets as the place is magical. We first of all saw the majestic Fajada Butte, a large lump of rock that stands alone and proud. We could see why the Native Americans would find this sacred, it looks so impressive. We then visited the first great house in the valley, Una Vida and were impressed with peoples building skills and petroglyphs. 

The following day out came the bikes, and we cycled the 9 mile Canyon loop trail. This was great, as being there out of season the road, which was one way, was relatively quiet. The highlight of this route was Pueblo Bonito, a village, also known as a great house, planned and constructed from 850-1150 CE. These were multi-storeyed buildings, plazas and kivas. Historians believe this was used as public architecture used for ceremonies and trading. The scale of this site was huge and we enjoyed walking around this site, with a trail guide booklet, learning about different aspects of the building and life as it would have been, back in the day! This truly was a place worth visiting, despite the access in, and knowing we had to drive out the same way the next day!

To be honest, knowing the drive would be tough meant it didn’t feel as bad when we did leave the next day; managing expectations does help!

So, on to our last ancient Puebloan site, Aztec Ruins in the town of Aztec. This is a very small site and great house, but the best part for us was the fully reconstructed Kiva. It was great being able to go into the space and feel what it must have been like. After visiting the ruins we visited the town of Aztec, it was the only town we had visited where the local government provided a dumping station for waste water and fresh water to refill with, as well as somewhere to park, all for free. It felt safe too, as it was right by the police station. We wandered up the main street and found a Pioneer Museum, but as it was out of season, it was closed. Someone working in the building saw me peering in the window, and came out and allowed us to look around, even giving us the keys to look at the pioneer village and buildings. What a privilege, we particularly enjoyed going into a reconstructed caboose, the end carriage of a train.!

We have really enjoyed seen the depth of history that the USA has to offer in the South West. 

We are looking to seeing some of the amazing  scenery that has featured in so many moves we have seen, next up Monument Valley……………..