April 22, 2014 pictures below


Beautiful day.  We drove on what is called the Turquoise Trail.  Prehistoric people made their homes here,  Spanish missionaires explored the area and battles were fought over this land.  Outlaws and Confederate soldiers camped in the area and Kit Carson marched the Navajo people along the trail in their "Long Walk" to Fort Sumner. 


The ride took us through the Sandia Range, which is home to the towns of Golden a town that appeared suddenly in 1839 as a new placers gold mining town.


 Madrid dates from the early 1800 which was a coal mining town.  It had unique geology as it mined hard and soft coal and phenomenon found in only two other mines in the world. The town has been converted into galleries, services and shops.  The movie "Wild Hogs" was filmed in this town and we took a picture of Maggies Diner.  Over 100 movies have been shot in New Mexico most recently Trancendence with Johnny Depp.  We did pass a movie location with big white tents and ATV's but we saw no humans.  Rumor has it that J.J. Abrams is scouting out this area for the next Star War's movie. 


The town of Cerrillos is known for its turquoise and lead deposits.  The Cerrillos mining district from 900 AD is one of the oldest and most marked of the Old Spanish Mineral Developments in the Southwest. 


We then drove down to the Old downtown of Albuquerque which is situated on the Old Highway 66.
The old homes are now housed with shops, restaurants and galleries. 


Hope this post finds our family and friends happy and healthy,
Jim and Debbie