hikrchick

I and my BF are back from our very nice week of Oct. 10-16 in Santa Fe, Taos and ABQ. I recieved some very helpful advice here and wanted to return the favor.

Details: I am in my early 40s, BF is in his late 30s. We are from northern NJ (me) and Long Island (him) and are hikers and like to spend time outdoors. I had been to the area in 1998 and loved it. I had posted questions about restaurants as I am kosher and do not eat meat. My BF eats meat but not pork. So we weren't interested in fancy restaurants that didn't have vegetarian options.

Part of the reason for the trip was for me to do some easy hiking. I had a small operation on my foot in January after a hiking mishap last year in New Zealand and this was my first time out on a trail since Feb. 2007. My orthopedic surgeon approved the trip and gave me some rules about hiking which I followed closely. This was a test for me: If I could do a few easy hikes with no pain then I could start to train for something bigger.

We needed to do this trip on a budget as I am worried about my job. I added it all up and the grand total of hotels, car and food, without airfare from LaGuardia, was about $1850 for both of us. So it is possible not to spend a bajillion dollars out there and still feel very satisfied!

I borrowed a 2007 Fodors New Mexico guidebook from the public library, and it came in very handy.

Oct. 10 Saturday: We arrived in ABQ at about 2:30 p.m. after flying since 8 a.m. from LaGuardia. We got our rental car and were out the door on the way to Santa Fe in an hour. We took I-25 as it was raining and got to Santa Fe about an hour later.

We stayed at the El Rey Inn on Cerrillos for three nights. I had stayed there in 1998 and it was great. It was just as great this time. I love funky places like this, with lots of character. It was clean, and the king-size bed was comfortable. The manager was very friendly and helpful. I also liked the computer for guests' use in the fireplace room/lounge area. Breakfast of cereal, oatmeal, toast, fruit, and eggs was included in the price. New since 1998 is an exercise room; wish I had known that so I could've packed some workout gear. The only thing which bothered me a bit was that the lightbulbs weren't strong enough overhead. We paid $135 a night, plus tax.

After we unpacked and stretched our weary muscles we headed out for an early dinner -- to La Choza, which turned out to be 2 minutes away, right up Cerrillos. La Choza had been recommended to me here as a place that would have some vegetarian options and it was great to see lots of options for me and a little box on the menu that said they would make the chiles vegetarian if asked. We had vegetarian nachos and combination plates of enchilladas and rellenos (mine vegetarian of course) and 2 sopapillas, and a margarita apiece. I got through only half of mine before my head started swimming. I forgot the most important lesson of not drinking alcohol the first day at altitude. Total for dinner, with tax but not tip: $48.

We finished up about 6:30 p.m. and there was a huge line in the lobby. When we got there an hour earlier, we walked right in.

The rain had stopped so we drove up to the Plaza to walk around, figuring shops and stuff would be open in the early evening. This was the most surprising thing to me that the place just closes up so early. We are used to NYC where there is something going on all the time. Not the case here. There was just about no one walking around and that felt strange.

So we got back in the car and drove around looking for somewhere open. The book noted the Cowgirl bar on Guadelupe, and when we drove by there were people so we stopped in. They have an adjacent room with 4 pool tables so we headed there. We stayed for an hour and a half or so and played a few games of pool ($1 each) and my BF had a beer and a half before calling it a night. They have music every night at 9 p.m. but we weren't able to stay awake that late the first night.

We drove by the new Railyards complex thinking it would be open at night but no luck. I saw on the web site there was supposed to be a wine bar but it wasn't even constructed yet. I'm sure when the place is all finished it will be great.

Oct. 12 Sunday: THis was our first hiking day. After reading other trip reports we headed out to Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks.

But first, my BF surprised me by suggesting we drive up to Ten Thousand Waves to see if we could book a hot tub and massages for Monday night.

Tent Rocks was everything that has been said here. Fabulous hiking! We did both the lower loop trail and the slot canyon trail up to the lookout. I think the whole route, including hanging out at the top for photos and snack, took about 3 hours. It can be done slower, of course. It was so beautiful there, especially in the slot canyon. We kept looking up and aiming the camera at all the lovely designs in the rock from the erosion. The weather was perfect for hiking -- overcast early on, and as we were coming back down, I think about 12:30 or so, the clouds blew off to clear blue skies. I think someone might have mentioned that there is no lock-box any more to put money -- there is a gate-house with a person, a very nice young lady who answered some questions. We thought about the road out to the scenic overlook but by that point I didn't want to push myself too hard on my very first hike in more than 18 months. Helpful hiking hint: Go first thing in the morning. We had almost no company on the way up and it was so nice to be in the "wilderness" by ourselves. As we were coming down there were tons of people going out.

We got back into town about 2:30 p.m. and headed for the Plaza Cafe, another fabulous suggestion by someone here. It was perfect. We had chips and salsa, I had a huge chopped salad, and my BFR had chicken and rice. He had a beer and I had water for the grand total of $34 including tax, but before tip. I bought some postcards at the Five and Dime and we walked over to the Palace of the Governors, where I bought a lovely pair of silver earrings etched with Native American geometric designs.

We headed back to the El Rey for some rest and unfortunately slept until morning. I think it was the altitude from the hiking that did me in.

Oct. 13 Monday: After a late breakfast, we headed out to Canyon Road to look around. My BF was on a mission to find a belt buckle with some turquoise in it. We parked in a lot on Paseo del Peralta, just before the group of shops with Nambe in it. (Having a sale. I drooled but didn't buy a thing.) We walked up Canyon, looking in a bunch of galleries. My BF was expecially excited at the Wiford Gallery with the twirling metal thingies.

I saw El Farol, another restaurant suggested here for me. There was a woman setting up for lunch, who said they could do vegetarian for me. We put it on the list.

At just about the top of the road we stopped at a Teahouse, the name of which I completely have forgotten. But it's the only Teahouse around. The menu is huge, and you are encouraged to open the tins of loose teas and smell. We hung out there and talked with some locals before heading back out. Total for two teas, with tip: $10.

We decided that we weren't ready for lunch at that point so we said goodbye to El Farol. We got back in the car and went to the post office so I could mail my postcards. I smacked my head when I got to the locked building and realized it was Columbus Day.

Then we started to get hungry so I pulled out the Fodors and found a place that had caught my eye -- Chocolate Maven. Any place with the word Chocolate in the name has to be good.

It was quite an adventure to find it as it is in a bit of an industrial area. My BF was driving and I had the map and he kept saying, are you sure? We pulled in to what looked like a Toyota parts warehouse and there on the side of the wall was a bunch of "Best of Santa Fe" signs. We had chips and guacamole, I had an "eggsadilla" and he had a turkey & swiss sandwich. He had a soda and I had water. Total with tax but before tip: $29

And then we bought the chocolate goodies -- a thick chew brownie, a pain de chocolat, and a chocolate chip cookie. None of that lasted until the next day.

This evening, we kept telling ourselves, we couldn't go to bed early. We had Ten Thousand Waves at 8:30. So we headed over to the Bell Tower at La Fonda Hotel to have a glass of wine and watch the sun set.

Sure enough, 5 minutes after sunset -- for which a bunch of us applauded -- they started shepherding everyone out so they could close up. We once again headed over to the Cowgirl for another few games of pool, and then left for Ten Thousand Waves a bit early.

It was fabulous. We had an hour private tub and then each had a 25-minute massage. So great. This was our greatest expense other than airfare, hotel and car but it was so totally worth it to sit outside and see the trees blowing and feel the cold air and be in the hot tub.

Oct. 14 Tuesday: We woke up to rain. We checked out of El Rey and headed for Taos where we would spend the next 2 nights.

First though we went to Shidoni, the art gallery/foundry, which was fabulous. I'm sorry we weren't able to be there on a Saturday to see the bronze pourings. The gentleman in the gallery explained the history to us -- we were the only ones there at 10 a.m. in the rain -- and we walked around the gallery and then headed over to Tesuque Glassworks next door.

We looked at the map and figured that Bishop's Lodge Road must somehow hook up with the highway, so we could then get the High Road to Taos. Somehow we made a right turn instead of going straight at one point and ended up on a dirt road climbing into the mountains where the rain all of a sudden turned to big sloppy snowflakes.

This was wrong. There was a sign that said 76 with an arrow, and that's part of the High Road,but no way was this part of it and no way was I going up there. We very delicately turned the car around, careful not to skid in the now-mud road, and went all the way back down again. Have to say, though, that it was gorgeous up there, wherever we were.

Finally found the highway, and got on the High Road, and got to Taos, all in the rain. We were staying at El Dona Luz B&B, formerly El Rincon. We had the ground-floor Yellow Bird Deer Room, with a separate sitting room with fireplace, and a king-size bed. $109 plus tax per night. Including breakfast.

Had lunch at the Bent Street Cafe, nothing special but it was out of the drizzle and the soup was warm. Lunch was $30 for 2 appetizers, 2 sandwiches, and a beer for the BF. We asked the waitress where we could hear some music at night. She suggested the Adobe Bar at the Taos Inn, and the Alley Cantina -- a real bar that stayed open late. She also suggested the Old Blinking Light and the Solar Center, attached to the radio station KTAO on the way to Taos Ski Valley.

The rain had stopped so we decided to go check them out and see what's at the Ski Valley. The Solar Center had nothing going on, and OBL has music only on Sundays and Mondays, so we headed on up to the ski resort.

We get up to the parking lot at 9,200 feet and I had the bright idea to do an exercise experiment. I got out of the car and started doing jumping jacks -- just so see how long it would take before I'd feel the altitude. It took just 10 jumping jacks before my chest felt like it was in a vise and my heartbeat sped up. Experiment over.

On the way back we put on KTAO and they were talking with the guy who would be playing at Adobe Bar that evening. Eric Hisaw is a singer-songwriter from Austin TX and he played one of his songs. Sounded good so Adobe Bar was on the list.

Then we drove out to see the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge. Somehow the Billy Joel song "Billy the Kid" got stuck in my head at the point "east and west of the Rio Grande. guitar riff". I proceeded for the next couple of days to sing, hum, la la la it, with the accompanying music, each time laughing my head off and each time making my BF a little bit more pissed off.

We got to the Taos Inn at 7 p.m. and walked in and saw that young Eric Hisaw was not singing in the actual bar but in the lobby of the hotel with a bunch of tables around. It was really lovely. The menu calls it "the living room of Taos" and you could see why. There were mostly locals; the couple sitting next to us was from Germany. My BF had 2 beers, I had one (Santa Fe pale ale) and we shared a very filling olive/hummus/3 chese plate with crackers. That ended up to be dinner. Total: $23. Eric was good too and played until past 9:30 when apparently the hotel asks all the performers to stop so guests can get some sleep. I bought his CD for $10; so did several others, including the couple from Germany. And it was so cool when I went up to him during a break and said, "I heard you playing on the radio this afternoon" and he looked so happy.

We did not make it over to the Alley Cantina. I would've liked to have seen that, though. Next time.

Oct. 14 Wednesday: This was our second hiking day. The breakfast at El Dona Luz was very filling -- toast, cereal, fruit salad, coffee, juice. The woman who was working there suggested the Wild Rivers Recreation Area, up to the north at Questa. This was a perfect suggestion for us.

The Wild Rivers Recreation Area has a bunch of hikes of varying lengths and levels of ability. It was about 30 miles out from Taos but ended up to take about an hour to get to the trailhead in the park.

We did the Big Arsenic Trail, which is at about 7,200 feet and goes down 680 feet to the Rio Grande via a series of switchbacks. Joining us on the trail were 4 very fuzzy llamas. There's a guy who has a business using llamas as support for guided day hikes. We hung out with him for a while at the bottom and asked some questions and it turned out he's originally from Queens, NY. Small world. He told me the llamas like to be scratched between the ears and rubbed on their chests. Just like a man, I quipped. The guide and my BF laughed. The llama hummed.

I would definitely recommend this hike if you are in shape. The park map said it is a good trail for visitors and they were right. The views were outstanding. We got to the bottom at the Rio Grande and had some snack (chocolate, always good after a hike) and took pix sitting on big rocks in the river, then walked a little farther around a hillock of stones to see some petroglyphs that a ranger told me are more than 1,000 years old. They were just carved into one of the rocks. Mountain goats, and a person or two, and I think a bear claw. Very cool.

The way up was a bit more difficult than the way down but we got up to the top in about 45 minutes. We took a ton of photos there.

Back in Taos we rested up and thought about dinner. After so many inexpensive meals it was time for something a bit more upscale so for dinner we headed out to Rancho de Taos to Stakeout Grill, out on Outlaw Hill. It was a lookout point for desperadoes and other outlaws at one point and of course the stupid song popped right back into my head when my BF said, "d'ya think Billy the Kid was here?" The windows face out to see the sun set and it was so gorgeous -- it kept changing colors. My BF had what seemed to be a very tasty rib-eye steak (he must've eaten it in 5 minutes) and I had a very nice pan-seared halibut with some fresh salsa on top. we shared a portobello napoleon appetizer and a chocolate Grand Marnier mousse for dessert. We each had a glass of wine. Total with tax: $116, which is amazing after coming from NYC.

Oct. 16, Thursday: Another day dawns bright and sunny and chilly and we are on our way out of Taos back to ABQ. We took the High Road back to Santa Fe, and what a difference it made being dry and sunny instead of rainy. Back in Santa Fe, we got off at Bishop's Lodge Road (no mess-up this time) and walked around Shidoni. In Tesuque Glassworks a woman was making glass pieces. We stayed and watched for a good 20 or 25 minutes as she created artwork out of molten lumps on a long metal poker.

We stopped at a particular gallery on Canyon Road to see their belt buckles -- my BF loved one that turned out to be $3,500. After we choked on that -- the woman said the artist was "highly collectible" so that should've given us a clue -- we headed out of town down the Turquoise Trail.

Lunch was in the Mineshaft Tavern in Madrid and we walked around some of the galleries looking, of course, for a belt buckle. BF finally found one that he liked for a lot less than $3,500 and we headed down to ABQ. At this point I was tired of being in the car and all the gorgeous scenery was starting to look the same.

In ABQ we headed to the Sandia Peak tram. I hadn't done that in 1998. I was smart then; being in that little cable car 1,000 feet up sort of freaked me out just a little bit. We got up to the top just as the sun was getting ready to set. There were small piles of snow in the areas where no sun hit. And boy was it COLD up there. 35 degrees or something like that. 1 minute after the sunset we were in the next car going down. BF would've stayed, being manly and all that, but at this point I wanted to be warm.

We were staying out by the airport in a typical LaQuinta ($77 + tax) which coincidentally was very near the UNM campus and Central Ave/Route 66. Again from a wonderful suggestion here, we headed to Frontier Restaurant for dinner. (google it, it's awesome). Built into a 1930s Ford Dealership it is the quintessential Cheap Eats in the Southwestern genre. Dinner -- 2 sodas, a huge vegetarian burrito for me, and a regular burrito for BF, and an outrageous cinnamon bun for dessert -- $19.

We walked around the campus for a little while to walk off the dinner, and then headed over to the hotel to organize for the flight the next day.

Oct. 17 Friday: We had to be at the airport around 11:30 a.m. for a 1 p.m. flight, so we had all morning to walk around. We went back up to campus and after walking to the 66 Diner and finding it closed for Breakfast on weekdays, we ended up at Frontier again. I had eggs, he had a breakfast burrito. I had juice and he had coffee. It was $16. Then we just started walking on Route 66 looking at all the different architecture. I wish I had more time to walk around Nob Hill and go into stores etc. Next time.

We had about 45 minutes before we had to be at the airport so I asked BF if he would drive me a few blocks away to the Ernie Pyle Library, in the former home of the famous war correspondent. It was so meaningful to me to walk in and to see Ernie's patches, and photos, and his Coleman Stove, and the newspaper from the day he was killed in the Pacific Theater. Under glass on one of the tables is a photocopy of the last story he wrote, in his own hand, that was found on him when he died. What a lovely idea to make this the memorial to a great and brave journalist. There's a free postcard, and a little history of the place at the main desk where they check out the books. There's a small guest book where people have written comments. That's just as moving as the actual exhibit. BF took my photo outside the library and didn't even give me grief for doing a touristy thing.

We were at the airport in 10 minutes.

So, all in all, a good week. I experienced Southwestern food, just like I wanted to, and found vegetarian options with help here on the forum. I did two hikes and did jumping jacks at 9,200 feet. BF enjoyed being outdoors and getting a taste of that part of the country. The weather was good on the days that counted, and the rain didn't bother us too much on the driving days. We found all the locals to be very friendly and helpful -- not that I expected anything less. The only thing I was really disappointed in was the complete lack of a nightlife. I can't imagine what other visitors do there. We didn't even see anyone walking around.

I hope it's not 10 years until I am there again.

I'm grateful for all the help I got here. I hope someone finds this helpful too. Thanks for reading.
hikrchick

DebitNM

I smiled as I read this; I so love the southwest in general and NM in particular. I can tell that you do too. You went to some of my favorite places and ate at some of my haunts.

I may have walked right past you on the campus, it is one of my favorite places to walk in the 'hood. Next time, check out some of UNM's museums, galleries = Maxwell Museum is excellent.

I am so glad you had such a good time. The weather that week was a bit odd, but October is like that here.

Come again and way sooner than 2018!

Pictures??

Deb

hikrchick

Thanks Deb for the kind words! It was really important to me to enjoy SF and Taos the best my wallet could. I love finding local places -- I think I get a better feel for a place than staying in the touristy district.

I would've loved to have walked more around the campus in the daytime and visited a museum there. I know from reading that the architecture of the university buildings is also something special. The list for next time gets longer!

As for photos, we took about 400; my BF is loading them from the digital camera to a disk so I can take a look.

BeachGirl247

Sounds like you had a wonderful trip! I felt like I was tagging along with you. We, too, love El Rey Inn. Quirky and charming.

Canyon Road + turquoise jewelry = $$$$$
They get a premium on prices for the location.

And, yes, don't wait until 2018 to return!!

Thanks for posting your report.
BeachGirl

TDudette

Nice report, hikrchick! Bookmarking for poss trip there in the future. It looks like a great area.

Good luck healing! Where will your "big" hike be?

hikrchick

Glad you liked the trip report, beachgirl and TDudette!

Not to get off-topic but my dream hike is the Annapurna Circuit in Nepal and a walk up Mount Everest to Base Camp at 18,000 feet. This is one of my greatest desires. I was hoping I could do it next summer, but I'm not sure I'll have all of my stamina back by then. Plus, with the economy the way it is I don't want to spend so much money outside of the U.S. So it looks like perhaps Alaska in 2009 and Nepal in 2010 when I am 45.

ElendilPickle

Great trip report, hikrchick! Thanks so much for posting.

Lee Ann

eveningcrane

Thanks for the great trip report!

We now own one of those whirly metal sculptures from the Wiford Gallery (and also a stone fountain from a place in Madrid on the Turquoise Trail). Aren't they wonderful!

Bookmarking for further reference.

Pamela

msteacher

Thanks for this report! We are just about your same age, also from NJ, and considereing a similar trip next spring or summer. Your report has really whet my appetite for the SW, and has provided some good suggestions for places to go. Thanks!

FainaAgain

Hikrchick, was it not the week of balloons?

And it's great you've decided to start with an easy hike after injury. Alaska is great, I absolutely agree with a comment about the southern part of it: take Yosemite, put it in the ocean, you've got Alaska!

hikrchick

Thank you all for your comments; you are very kind. I'm not so good at the very enthusiastic writing in a lot of the trip reports here, but I hope you could tell from my report that I was very enthusiastic!

One thing that I forgot to mention is that in Santa Fe there is a very conveniet Trader Joe's, on Cordova just off of St. Francis. We stopped there and picked up some fruit and crackers and snacks and trail mix packs. It was great for hiking, and for keeping in the car when driving on the High Road and Turquoise Trail and for those midnight snacks when you just need a granny smith apple.

The other thing I forgot to say was that there is a tourist information desk with a huge number of maps and brochures in the ABQ airport next to the baggage claim. I got a great map of the Turquoise Trail which noted every store/gallery, and a bunch of other brochures too.

The one thing I'm sorry that I didn't do was visit any museums. I'm a huge museum-goer -- here at home I have to stop in to the Met to see my favorite paintings all the time -- but my BF isn't so into it so this trip I sacrificed and didn't visit any.

Faina, we arrived on the day the Balloon Fiesta was ending. The woman at the info booth at the airposrt said they might cancel the fternoon/evening events because of the rain. I was there during that time in 1998 and went to a dawn ascension. This year because of the way the Jewish holidays fell I could not be there for the balloons.

Eveningcrane, if I ever get out of my rental apartment and buy a house I will definitely be getting one of the whirling thingies. They were really mesmerizing. And what was so nice was that the woman working there encouraged us to walk amongst them and take photos!

easytraveler

Hi, hikrchick!

Thanks for a wonderful report!

We were there for the Balloon Fiesta but, you're right, the winds and rain made it impossible for the balloons to go up that weekend, so all the flights were cancelled!

Isn't it amazing? You could be in hot desert country one moment and a couple of hours later you'd be in the snow up near Taos!

Thanks again for a great report on a magnificent part of this country. I'm saving your hikes for later reference - maybe next year's balloon fiesta!

FainaAgain

"This year because of the way the Jewish holidays fell I could not be there for the balloons." - I understand your planning, being Jewish I too look for vegetarian places/dishes and plan my vacation around the Holy Days.

Once I was planning a trip with a Jewish friend, and I think she still doesn't understand why I wouldn't travel on Shabbat

misty_in_stl

Thanks for the great report, hikrchick! My hubby and I are going in the the spring and I made note of several tidbits in your report. Thanks!