[Closed] Some pics of my backyard (almost) New Mexico trails

Must be nice not coming home covered in crap every day !

Not Jealous at all, no sir.

I hate you!

I have great memories of riding in New Mexico (mostly around Santa Fe, in the Fall)... I think I need another holiday.

You lucky bastard

Rattlesnakes & Bears Cougars Coyotes, sound delightful.
NOT

When's the next flight due out there?

Looks superb.

Not enough loam for me 😛

New Mexico is just brilliant - especially the green chili sauce! I'm salivating now.....

Trails and weather looks really good, and the bonus of real wild animals.
I saw the only poison snake we have in denmark yesterday at my local trails, its called a hugorm, 15 inches long and you should be really unlucky to die if being bitten.

You on the other hand,bears , cougars and coyotes etc. Must be fun.

Id rather put put up with rattle snakes and bears than the wild chav scumbags with bowie knives we have over hear! 🙂

Does look spectacular though!

Must be nice not coming home covered in crap every day !

This is one of those years where we wish we could get some of your excess rain---we have had a total of 3.9 inches so far all year. While you are trying to keep the muck out of the drivetrain, we are trying to keep the decomposed granite/sand/dust from grinding up chains, gears, bearings, etc.

You can go off people

While you are trying to keep the muck out of the drivetrain, we are trying to keep the decomposed granite/sand/dust from grinding up chains, gears, bearings, etc

Philbert31....I know I can handle myself against a chav, take them out....but don't fancy my chances against a wild bear!

I'd be terrified out there & Canada....I'm scared is fall off and either die from dehydration or be eaten by a bear....besides its fun riding in the rain!?!?

Ps trails looks amazing mind!

those trails do look pretty nice, certainly different to muddy, twisty woodland round here.

It looks like the sort of place b.a. hannibal, face of murdoch would be lying in wait!

Oh wow, I like the look of that place! Imagine the suntanning possibilities

Looks great but do you not have to watch out for mobile meth labs.. 😀

Looks great but do you not have to watch out for mobile meth labs..

What tyres for...

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There's some sweet booters there!!

Fancy a house swap ?

Edit: The wife wants to know if you carry a handgun and anti-venom in your camelbak ? 😀

Actually do see quite a few rattlesnakes, probably at least one a week. Usually come across them stretched across the trail when you least expect it--calls for some creative, rapid manuevering or a test of you bunny-hopping skills.

Over the 20 years of riding up there, I have seen several bears, but they usually just shuffle off into the trees or brush. My biggest concern is running into a mother with new cubs in the early summer.

Have never seen a mountain lion in the local mountains, but have seen a few tracks over the years. The State Wildlife people estimate the population in the Sandia and Manzano mountains, adjacent to the city, to be only 15-20 at most (covers a 50 by 20 mile area). Some friends who live about 1/4 mile from me found 2 lion cubs in their backyard peachtree last summer, but mama was nowhere to be seen.

Coyotes are commonplace--I have opened my garage in the morning to walk the dogs to find one (or more) standing in the street. They saunter around in broad daylight. I was within about 15 feet from one along a walking trail yesterday when walking the dogs at 6AM.

Sickening, truly jealous. Here in north east Scotland we've had very little dust this year. Absolute shite weather here.

The wife wants to know if you carry a handgun and anti-venom in your camelbak

I don't in the foothills trail area, but sometimes do carry a handgun in a small pack when riding on the east side of the mountains in some of the more remote areas (where one sometimes doesn't see another human during a ride, even though only 20-30 minutes from my house to the trailheads). Actually, the foothills trails aren't often crowded either. On a Sat or Sun, I might encounter 20 riders in a 2-3 hour ride and about the same number of hikers/runners.

Sickening, truly jealous. Here in north east Scotland we've had very little dust this year. Absolute shite weather here.

We were planning a trip to Scotland this summer/fall and planned to get some riding in, but business got in the way of things and we are going to try and reschedule next summer. Based on the weather you guys have had this year, maybe worked to my advantage having to change the trip.
I used to have a company office in Paisley and lot's of fond memories of the area (and the single malt scotch), although I didn't get to spend as much time getting to know the area as I would have liked to.

I like!

Some of those trails in the photos look a bit 'samey' though 😉

Some of those trails in the photos look a bit 'samey' though

I noticed after I had posted, that I did have a duplicate. It is only one section, called the "rock garden" where I was walking the dogs. The overall foothills trail system consists of about 45 miles, stretched out along the city and range from really easy to moderately technical (a few short sections very). The north/south part of the rock garden where I took the pics is only about 2 miles of the trail system.

Got a spare room for a few months 😀

Here in north east Scotland we've had very little dust this year.

Outside, at least... 😀

Must be awful having nothing to moan about.

Looks like the last ten weeks in Vancouver 😀

No rattlesnakes here, although the pitch'n'putt course in Stanley Park had coyote warnings up (they're just glorified foxes aren't they?).

Oh, and these guys, still not seen one though...

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That looks good stuff, I was in Alberquerque for an overnight stay on Saturday, alas I was sans bike & working. There looks to be plenty of hills around there to play on. The altitude before you even start to climb must give your lungs a good work out.

Looks absolutely fabulous ! What bike do you ride around them trails ?

Looks absolutely fabulous ! What bike do you ride around them trails ?

Riding an Ibis Mojo at present. Have an old vintage Outland VPP in the shed I pull out once in a while, but the suspension bushings are getting pretty worn, so not comparable to the Ibis

Oh, and these guys, still not seen one though...

They have been releasing Mexican Grey Wolves in the southwestern part of New Mexico in the Gila Wilderness area trying to reestablish the population. They are pretty reclusive and I have never seen one down there.

Trails look great fun, love the safari rides, but 'Albuquerque' will surely never appear in a hit song again. Mr Campbell must have won a few dollars on that bet.

Looks fairly similar to the trails round here in central Spain. No bears or rattlesnakes here, though.

Looks fab.

Have you ever cum across a beaver whilst riding?

Nice. And good to see another American on here.
Just don't be drawn into political or cultural discussions/arguments, 🙂
Have done some really nice walking about Abiquiu and spent a summer further north in the San Luis valley -- heaven.

Have you ever cum across a beaver whilst riding?

Too dry for beaver--there are almost no runnig streams in the local mountains--just spring-fed ones that go dry most summers. There are beaver in the Rio Grande river than runs through the city and they are pretty common in the higher mountain ranges that do have more water and the upper Rio Grande.

Nathaneddy--where are you located?

😆

It looks lovely.. but one thing I've noticed in the US is that you get a set of trails in a location and that's it. There's no ROW network. That's always annoyed me.

Having said that, you seem to be doing ok with 45 miles 🙂

Rode there a few years ago. Stunning place. Ottero canyon is a phenomenal ride, really worth getting out to.

Have you ever cum across a beaver whilst riding

Having said that, you seem to be doing ok with 45 miles

I use the local trail system for after work rides mostly. Within 20-30 minutes I can access the east side of the Sandia and Manzano mountains where there is something like 130-145 miles of interconnected trails between Otero Canyon, Cedro Peak, Pine Flats, Oak Flats, Faulty Trail, 10K trail and multiple others. Santa Fe area, Jemez mountains, White Mesa, etc are all within an hour, so no lack of riding ranging from easy cruising to extreme technical.

Ottero canyon is a phenomenal ride, really worth getting out to.

If you get this way again, you should check out Otero now. They have expanded it so that it interconnects with a whole trail system that begins at Mars Court trailhead, about 8 miles farther south from the Otero trailhead. I have ridden it dozens of times and still haven't found all the trails.
Some of the west part of Otero canyon was closed a couple years ago when Kirtland Air Force base reclaimed some land that was withdrawn during WWII for a live firing range--concerned there could still be some unexploded ordanance lying about, athough nobody every got blown up riding and hiking it.

 

I'm in the mountain biking that is Norwich, England. It's kind of like the Moab of the UK.
Grew up riding in VT, though, proper muddy old school riding.
Great skiing round here, too. 😕

Grew up riding in VT, though, proper muddy old school riding.

I don't know VT well. Have some friends in Portland, Maine I have visited a few times,but never ridden there. I can imagine it out to be a mud/tree-root heaven at times. Funny, riding here in NM we don't get much chance to experience mud, but farther up in the mountains one does get the tree root experience.

Abiqiu---Georgia O'Keefe country---gorgeous area.

Really haunted area, Abiqiu. And I can attest to the number of rattle snakes thereabouts. . .
I showed my kids (both born in the UK) pics of the cliff dwellings at Mesa Verde the other day to give them a bit of American history and culture. Would love to take the family over to the four corners area.
I guess it might be a bit more built up than 10 years ago when I was there, tho!

New Mexico you say........Forget the rattlers etc, you'd better look out for these guys!

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nathaneddy

4 Corners area hasn't built up all that much. A lot of oil & gas industry in and around Farmington, NM but still more open space than one could visit in a lifetime.
If you get back, be sure and visit the Escalante Staircase area in SE Utah. You can google it. Hundreds of square miles of sandstone---miles upon miles of remote, beautiful landscape. I always wanted to go ride the White Rim trail, but haven't been able to pull it off--getting too old to even consider a solo ride and Mrs. Busydog won't even consider piloting the 4-wheel drive as back-up on those roads.

looks stunning. A friend and I walked a bit in the Green River area further north.
Such beautiful country. Thanks for the reminder.

I've been to New Mexico, btw 🙂

I've been to New Mexico, btw

Did you get a chance to do any riding while here?

Sadly not. The only riding out west I've done was a few abortive attempts in Oregon, and one ride in Montana at a small local spot near Missoula. It was not memorable apart from the descent down the valley towards the end, which was smooth singletrack where I found myself going so fast I'd have had no hope of stopping if I'd met some walkers around a bend, so I backed off 🙂

Look like some great trails to be had there although given rocks and trees already frequently attack me I'm not sure I'd live long with coyotes, bears, rattlers and cougars after me as well.

3.9" in a year?? I reckon we had that today!!!

although given rocks and trees already frequently attack me

Know what you mean----rocks and trees have caused me much more grief than the wildlife.

3.9" in a year?? I reckon we had that today!!!

Things are looking up, we had 1/10 of an inch yesterday afternoon----will have to get my foul weather gear out no doubt

How long does it take your laundry to dry on the line, busydog?
loving this thread.