Category Archives: _North America_

From deer trap to rail yard

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Today ended up as a fairly relaxing day. We kicked it off with a short morning hike / walk before breakfast. A quick drive got us over to the trail head and soon we were engaged in the Deer Trap Mesa Trail hike, featuring a historic game pit (hence the name deer trap) and some stunning views along the way. We made it to the northern overlook point and (with a bit of getting lost on the way) back – or approx. 2.5 to 3km roundtrip.

After breakfast it was back to the car and back to Santa Fe. We ended up at the rail yard with its farmer’s market. After an extensive tour around the market and a quick cuppa at the coffee shop, we made our way towards the actual train station to do a bit of research on the train options in and out of Santa Fe. As it turned out, there is only one line – the New Mexico Rail Runner – going south to Albuquerque (and a slight bit beyond). Train times were mainly geared towards commuters with good service in the morning and late afternoon – but limited options in between and in the later evening.

We also covered some good time in many of the art galleries around the rail yard, showing a wide variety of art – from local artists to further away artists to real archeological pieces (which – in my view – really should be a museum and not on sale in some gallery).

As we had some time to kill before dinner, we gave the New Mexico State Capitol another chance – and today being a work day, we were not disappointed – the building was open to the public and ready for visitors. While the building may look fairly unimpressive on the outside, the inside was the complete opposite – and actually a real surprise. Most areas were open to the public – including the viewing balcony of both house and senate, as well as the impressive gallery of New Mexican art scattered around the whole building. So this turned out a very worthwhile excursion.

Santa Fe Impressions

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Today we made it into Santa Fe proper, New Mexico’s capital and home to around 70,000 people.

Our first stop – after yesterday’s adventure around Abiquiú – had to be the brilliant Georgia O’Keeffe Museum in downtown Santa Fe – with good insight into her development and some of her major works.

From the museum we continued through town. At the main plaza we were surprised by car show, featuring mainly vintage cars (as well as some otherwise ‘special’ cars). From the plaza we made our way to the Cathedral and then on to Loretta Chapel.

Sightseeing makes hungry, so we decided to go for lunch – which unfortunately did involve a lengthy wait. After lunch we had a look through some art galleries, we also walked by the capital building (only at the outside, as the building itself was closed today).

We were now approaching the late afternoon and were getting thirsty, so decided for pre-dinner drinks in Harry’s favorite bar in town to then proceed for dinner in a tapas bar – complete with wine and live music.

Around Abiquiú – in Georgia O’Keeffe Country

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Today was dedicated to the late Georgia O’Keeffe.

We left Los Alamos after breakfast and made is all the way up to Abiquiú and the Ghost Ranch – and into Georgia O’Keeffe Country.

From the ranch we engaged for the 5km chimney rock trail with some amazing views of the area, including – of course – Cerro Pedernal (a major piece of inspiration and subject of the paintings of Georgia O’Keeffe).

After the hike we had lunch, before continuing into town for gas and some ice cream at the Frozen Cow ice cream shop (imagine our surprise, when we realized, they were serving Oakland made Dreyer’s ice cream).

Our next stop was a the Echo Amphitheater, a natural rock formation resembling an amphitheater (you would not have guessed that – right?). From here we continued to the Benedictine Abbey of Christ in the Desert. This was to get a glimpse of the church and monastery and its architecture – but also to get a bit into the back country during the 13 mile dirt road drive.

We eventually made it back and through Abiquiú – and had a further stop just outside of town at the Poshuouinge Ruins – again with a little hiking trail – passing by the ruin site and then to a view point for a full view of it.

From here – after a short stop at El Santuario De Chimayo – we continued into Santa Fe for a nice and spicy introduction to the most New Mexican of questions – will it be red or green …

 

Miami Impressions

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After last week in Madrid with focus on the European processes, this week saw me flying into Miami for similar discussion on North America.

Once more we had intensive meeting days – with a little time in between for some sightseeing and exploration of Miami – below some photos.

Around Half-Moon-Bay

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The plan for today was less tight and – after the action the previous days – we kind of took things easy. Also the weather turned against us – with rain and low temperatures (around 12C).

We left Oakland late in the morning and made our way South to the San Mateo Bridge to cross the bay and then over to the Pacific Ocean at Half Moon Bay.

With the weather against us, we decided – after a short coffee / tea stop – to have a small road trip down famous Pacific Coast Highway / California 1 to Pescadero for lunch and then back via the back country with a stop at the beach on the way (it had stopped raining at least).

Heading North we stopped in El Granada to pick up some crabs – that would become dinner later tonight. After a short walk around, we made our way back to San Francisco for a crab dinner with the family of Lisa’s son – a great opportunity to finally meet them, after having heard so much about them over the years.

Around Mount Diablo (literally)

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Today we were heading inland for Mount Diablo. With just below 1200m the single highest elevation in the bay area – offering stunning views.

We first made it to the summit by car (this is the US at last) to take in the views and check out the visitors center. We also talked to the ranger about hiking / walking options. There was the easy going 1km trail around the summit (even halfway paved) – with the next bigger hike a proper 12km hike around the mountain (and no real options in between).

We decided for the latter one – and soon discovered, that we had underestimated both elevation changes and trail conditions – in short gravel and gradients are not a combinations … the hike in the end took us a good four hours (including breaks) and not the 2.5 to three hours we had expected. Yet – it was a very enjoyable hike, with fantastic views (some proof below), abundant plant life (many wildflowers in full bloom) and perfect weather conditions (cloudy, temperatures of around 18C). So – we took our time and enjoyed.