Albuquerque: Traveline Falls

The campsite was quiet and I slept well, but when I got up to shower at 6am, still felt very tired. Another camper was up washing clothes next to the shower/bathrooms and we exchanged proverbial greetings, but otherwise there were no humans yet awake.  I liked this campsite and will use it again when in the area.

I had a hard time getting going, though.  I rested for another hour in a shaded parking area which I think was part of the base exchange, then stopped for breakfast at the McDonald's, a rather nice one for the chain.  It was 9am before I finally got going again, in direction of the falls in the mountains, a 1.6-mile o/w trail.  and 14 miles east. It would be my last hike before resuming the drive south.  Thea trailhead is just outside an upscale neighborhood.

The information on Alltrails was wrong.  It was not a 1.6-mile hike.  The "falls" were at .5 miles and were dry, so I just continued hiking up to the Faulty loop trail, a pleasant 5.2-mile loop along a low ridge.  It began as a trail among pinon pine and juniper (love the scent!) to Ponderosa, spruce and juniper higher up.  There are views toward the south from parts of the exposed trail, but nothing too awe-inspiring. The trail was wide and smooth enough, but confusing at several trail intersections. All the drainages were dry, though, and the dogs were warm.  I had to stop a few times to give them shade breaks.  I met other loop hikers on this popular loop, all resting in the shade.  Without shade, this would have been a very hot hike.

When we got back down to just above the falls were a small trickle of water flowed, the dogs flopped down in the cool stream and soaked their bellies.  I let them rest for 20 minutes.  Sadie looked especially tired, a warning sign for me to cut back on hiking in the heat with her.

I was now on my return drive south, along Route 66 back into Albuquerque.  Part of the route was closed off for a summer blues festival. It was getting warm today.  I tried a different brewpub, Bosque's which is a block away from Kelly's off Route 66.  This place is as popular as Kelly's!  It's got a large dining area and mounted TVs. I would have taken the dogs out on the patio, but there was a three-month-old grey Great Dane pup enjoying her shade with her owner and I didn't want to ruin it for her.  Sadie has been especially aggressive this time around other dogs and I don't want to risk it anymore.  I stayed long enough to try a watermellon wheat and a regular hefeweizen before resuming my drive south toward Socorro.  With two brewpubs along Route 66 and seeing the activity along this stretch of highway, I can say that this is the hip and happening place in town.

My next destination is now Socorro, only 70 miles south on I-25