Happy Hoofers on the Trails: Hiking Albuquerque Open Space Along the Rio Grande Bosque 2/15/2019

Saturday, February 16, 2019

Hiking Albuquerque Open Space Along the Rio Grande Bosque 2/15/2019

Missy led us on a different hike in the Bosque beginning at the City of Albuquerque Open Space Visitor Center off Coors. We did two trails there which made a nice loop then headed south to Montano where there was a park with many tree sculptures. We had lunch there, continue hiking south past Bosque Prep, then turned around and headed back to the cars. Total hike was ~ 6.8 miles. After the hike, Lynda and I toured the great visitor center and went to the viewing loft to see what birds we could capture on film.

A nice turnout! Left to Right: Missy, Annette, Judy A.,(mistakenly ID of wrong Judy) Helene, Jan, Lynda, Pat, Mary M., Betty and...wait for it....

...Rose

Heading through the neatest gate ever to the trail

Heading out on a nice sunny morning

Acequia along the Rio Grande

A Bat House that had fallen down from the tree

Someone built what could possibly double for an Eagle's nest or a hammock

A pile of metal scraps from the old metal X's that lined the Rio Grande back in the days when they needed flood control.

Walking north along the Rio Grande

There were many "pieces of art" along the trail...this one was a wise old owl.

This piece of "art" was called "The Cube". The tree stump inside rows of rectangular building blocks is a symbolic representation of the Rio Grande Bosque (the tree stump) surrounded by the urbanization of the city of Albuquerque

Note "The Cube" in the background.

Man's art can not compete with Mother Nature's

Another piece of Art

And it's explanation for why it is here...

We all thought it would be a great place for a group picture

And they insisted I take a selfie as well.

Once again Nature's art can not be outdone: here is a heart made from a beaver letting us all know how he feels about trees

And this dead cottonwood tree captured some curly, frilly stuff to decorate its bare trunk

Some unusual seed pods (?)

Sign telling us of the various birds that inhabit the Bosque

We were about to head down the River Loop and Canopy Loop Trail

Not too much debris caught, it must have been recently cleaned out

A view of the acequia

Lynda and Jan humor me for this photo-op

And they do one better by swinging -- you're never too old to enjoy a swing

Eagle-eyed Betty found an abandoned bird's nest

Branches (trunks?) that were identified as Willows

In the distance I saw the Loch Ness Monster, catching some sun during his Albuquerque vacation

Walking under the Montano overpass to get to our lunch spot

It was amazingly clean under the bridge as was the entire trail we hiked on

Crossing another Acequia

Finally reaching the Sculpture Park south of Montano Blvd.

Could not resist the photo ops here

As I was taking the pictures the Hoofers found a table for lunch

They had already started eating when I got back

So I thought it a great time for my lunch pictures since they all had food in their mouths: Judy P. oops, Judy A. (I really can tell the two apart) , Pat, Jan, and Mary M.

Helene, Lynda, Annette, and Betty

Missy and Rose

Continuing south after lunch we saw this impressive fence near Bosque Prep

Then we came across an ancient Salt Cedar Tree

As well as an old Cottonwood

We started heading back north to the cars

Along the trail we saw these--winged ants? or worse--termites?

At the parking lot there was a Wild Bee Hotel

Note the small holes drilled into the wood for the bees to make their homes. These bees are not community bees, but loners

A colorful mural on one of the buildings in the parking lot

As Lynda and I went into the Visitor Center we noticed these beautiful mosaics

We also were able to see some cranes

And Canadian geese Thanks to Annie, these are not Canadian Geese, but Canada Geese. They are named after an ornithologist named James Canada--you are never too old to learn something new!