Albuquerque

The Turquoise Trail, a scenic, historic route route running between Albuquerque and Santa Fe, was the goal for the day, since we have visited a couple of times, and seen Old Town, the Pueblo Cultural Museum, The Balloon Museum, and Petroglyph National Park, all of which are very interesting.  The highlight for us on this tour, rather than the old mining towns, was Sandia Peak,  10,600 feet high, a mile above Albuquerque, and two miles above sea level.  A long winding road led to a cold and windy peak, and a spectacular view that made the houses below look like small Monopoly pieces! The longest tram in the world would also travel to  this peak, were the wind not blowing so hard, as it was the last time we were here.  Learning we could drive, allowed us the experience at the top. As far as scenic, this route paled in comparison to some of the beautiful roads we have been on this trip, and we were underwhelmed.

At the peak, we ran into two of the couples we are meeting to go to the Fiesta with!  

 On the way up we stopped at Tinker Town, a fascinating collection and life's work of a a man who carved miniatures as a hobby, and was then aided by his wife in building a bottle building to house those, and his other collections.  We spent over an hour touring and being amazed!  Never intended for the public, apparently news got out, and it was covered by several TV shows, resulting in enough demand that it was opened for tours.  Great collections and a fascinating, if sometimes head scratching, display, interspersed with words of wisdom, often original to the author and creator of this amazing place!

Friday morning, Oct 4, brought us to our long awaited day, and the move to the Balloon Fiesta Field, where we will stay in The President's Circle, on a bluff above the field.  Prime seating to view the balloons as they lift off at 5:45 Saturday morning!