Tuesday on the Turquoise Trail

Tuesday morning the rally was over. Several rigs that had been staying at the Balloon Fiesta Park moved into Hidden Valley with us. We spent the afternoon riding up NM 14 which is called the Turquoise Trail National Scenic Byway. We went as far as Madrid a small artsy town.
Afterward we took the Sandia Crest National Scenic Byway up to the Sandia Crest. The Crest is a mile above the surrounding countryside and 2 miles above sea level. The Sandia Crest Highway is the highest scenic drive in the southwest. The Sandia Mountains were created by an uplift, leaving the forested eastern slope we drove up, and a craggy, cliff-like western face. Part of the Cibola National Forest, the Sandias are home to Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep, mule deer, black bear and many other mammals and birds— including the golden eagles. Mostly we saw snow..snow and more snow. I think the only animal I saw was 1 little rabbit. Oh-well maybe next time. We carefully walked up the ramp to the overlook. As you can see from the picture it was partly covered with snow. The view overlooking Albuquerque was beautiful and worth the slightly cold feet I got.