The brown sort of desert that is Albuquerque isn’t my favorite environment. I miss trees and brush that are even slightly green, and I could happily go the rest of my life without ever running into a cholla cactus again. That said, new Mexico has it’s charms. One of them is quick access to the trails in the Sandia foothills, some of which are within a mile of my front door. The last two Saturday’s in a row, Michael and I have hiked one of them to a large granite formation that looks almost like a dam. This last Saturday, Liz came with.

Access to daylight is important to my well being in the winter, so hikes like this are something of a lifeline.

It is kind of funny hiking the foothills though. You can hear the dull roar of the city while being completely in the wilderness. That is a little hard to get used to.