From Albuquerque
1. To Santa Fe via I-25 Heading North, from Albuquerque
Albuquerque was officially founded in 1706, but its roots reach as far back as 2,000 BC, when ancestors of the Pueblo people thrived in the Rio Grande Valley. These early inhabitants established an advanced culture with highly developed techniques in stone masonry, pottery, textiles, jewelry and other traditional and functional art forms their descendants continue to use today.
Spanish explorers, led by General Francisco de Coronado, first arrived in Albuquerque in 1540, searching for gold. Waves of Spanish settlers followed, establishing communities in the area's river valleys. When King Phillip of Spain authorized a group of colonists to establish a town in 1706, they settled along a sweeping curve of the Rio Grande and named their new community after Spain's Duke of Alburquerque. The first "r" in Alburquerque was unofficially dropped around the time the railroad arrived in 1880, apparently after a railroad signpainter misspelled the name.
Albuquerque, nicknamed the Duke City, represents a fascinating blend of old and new worlds. Old Town today contains many of Albuquerque's early adobe buildings, which date to 1790 when the city was an important stop along El Camino Real, or The Royal Road, which stretched from Chihuahua, Mexico to Santa Fe. The Duke City became known as The Atomic City when, during World War II, weapons research at Sandia National Laboratories on Kirtland Air Force Base brought a boom in jobs and money.
Today, Albuquerque is New Mexico's largest city with a multicultural population of nearly 800,000 people and a vibrant arts and culture scene. Nestled between the dramatic Sandia Mountains, with 10,500-foot peaks, and dormant volcanoes, the city is home to the University of New Mexico, with a student population of 25,000, and the Albuquerque Isotopes, a minor league baseball affiliate of the Florida Marlins. The city's famous Sandia Peak Tramway, the longest of its type in the world, takes passengers on a dizzying 2.7-mile ride to Sandia Peak, amounting to a 4,000-foot rise in elevation.
The historic village of Bernalillo, a site for both early Pueblo and Spanish Colonial settlers, sits along El Camino Real, the old road to Mexico, 16 miles north of Albuquerque. In the 1600s, Bernalillo consisted of a group of haciendas built by Spanish colonists along the Rio Grande. By the 1800s, it had grown into a commercial trade center used by Pueblo people and Mexican settlers. Sheep ranching, mining and timber all contributed to the village's economy. The community's old town, known as Las Cocinitas, still stands and with buildings dating to the 1690s, remains one of the country's oldest residential areas. Residents celebrate their history with an annual fiesta in mid-August and the New Mexico Wine Festival in September, a festive way to honor New Mexico's status as the oldest wine-producing region in the country. Spanish missionaries brought the first wine grapes into the region nearly 400 years ago, and early Spanish settlers began cultivating grapes to make their own wine. A resurgence of winemaking that began in the 1980s has ripened into a burgeoning industry. Today, more than two dozen wineries across the state produce an impressive variety, including some award-winning vintages.
Just to the north of Bernalillo is the Coronado State Monument, a lush spot along the Rio Grande where General Francisco de Coronado is said to have camped during his visit in 1540. The monument houses the partially restored ruins of the pueblo of Kuaua, a Tiwa ("teewah") word for "evergreen. The pueblo thrived between 1300 and the early 1600s. Visitors can climb into a square kiva, excavated in 1930, and marvel at the life-size murals on the walls that have been reproduced. Some of the original murals are on display in the visitor's center.
New Mexico has 19 pueblos, primarily located in central and northern New Mexico, and each is a sovereign nation. It's commonly believed today that the modern-day Pueblo people are descendants of the Ancestral Pueblo Culture, also known as the Anasazi, who once inhabited Chaco Canyon, Mesa Verde, Bandelier and other ruins scattered across the Southwest. Contemporary Pueblo culture emerged in the fertile Rio Grande Valley, where Pueblo people established advanced agricultural practices and highly skilled techniques in making pottery, jewelry, weaving and other art forms. Near here are the Sandia, Santa Ana, San Felipe, Santo Domingo, Jemez and Cochiti pueblos.
At 7,000 feet, Santa Fe is the oldest and highest capital city in the country. Founded between 1609 and 1610 by the Spanish conquistador Don Pedro de Peralta, the city has been the capital of the Spanish Kingdom of New Mexico, serving as Spain's northernmost territory in the New World; the Mexican province of Nuevo Mejico; the American territory of New Mexico (which contained what is today Arizona and New Mexico); and the state of New Mexico, which officially achieved statehood in 1912.
During the 19th century, Santa Fe was the destination for merchants, military men, pioneers and other travelers along the Santa Fe Trail.
Today, Santa Fe is a flourishing multicultural city of about 70,000 people with a vibrant art and cultural scene, a world-class reputation for unique dining and shopping, and enduring connections to its fascinating past. It is the fourth largest city in the state, behind Albuquerque, Las Cruces and Rio Rancho. Nestled in the dramatic Sangre de Cristo Mountains, the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, the city is famous for its stunning landscape, majestic sunsets and close proximity to excellent hiking, biking, skiing and other outdoor activities.
Albuquerque was officially founded in 1706, but its roots reach as far back as 2,000 BC, when ancestors of the Pueblo people thrived in the Rio Grande Valley. These early inhabitants established an advanced culture with highly developed techniques in stone masonry, pottery, textiles, jewelry and other traditional and functional art forms their descendants continue to use today.
Spanish explorers, led by General Francisco de Coronado, first arrived in Albuquerque in 1540, searching for gold. Waves of Spanish settlers followed, establishing communities in the area's river valleys. When King Phillip of Spain authorized a group of colonists to establish a town in 1706, they settled along a sweeping curve of the Rio Grande and named their new community after Spain's Duke of Alburquerque. The first "r" in Alburquerque was unofficially dropped around the time the railroad arrived in 1880, apparently after a railroad signpainter misspelled the name.
Albuquerque, nicknamed the Duke City, represents a fascinating blend of old and new worlds. Old Town today contains many of Albuquerque's early adobe buildings, which date to 1790 when the city was an important stop along El Camino Real, or The Royal Road, which stretched from Chihuahua, Mexico to Santa Fe. The Duke City became known as The Atomic City when, during World War II, weapons research at Sandia National Laboratories on Kirtland Air Force Base brought a boom in jobs and money.
Today, Albuquerque is New Mexico's largest city with a multicultural population of nearly 800,000 people and a vibrant arts and culture scene. Nestled between the dramatic Sandia Mountains, with 10,500-foot peaks, and dormant volcanoes, the city is home to the University of New Mexico, with a student population of 25,000, and the Albuquerque Isotopes, a minor league baseball affiliate of the Florida Marlins. The city's famous Sandia Peak Tramway, the longest of its type in the world, takes passengers on a dizzying 2.7-mile ride to Sandia Peak, amounting to a 4,000-foot rise in elevation.
The historic village of Bernalillo, a site for both early Pueblo and Spanish Colonial settlers, sits along El Camino Real, the old road to Mexico, 16 miles north of Albuquerque. In the 1600s, Bernalillo consisted of a group of haciendas built by Spanish colonists along the Rio Grande. By the 1800s, it had grown into a commercial trade center used by Pueblo people and Mexican settlers. Sheep ranching, mining and timber all contributed to the village's economy. The community's old town, known as Las Cocinitas, still stands and with buildings dating to the 1690s, remains one of the country's oldest residential areas. Residents celebrate their history with an annual fiesta in mid-August and the New Mexico Wine Festival in September, a festive way to honor New Mexico's status as the oldest wine-producing region in the country. Spanish missionaries brought the first wine grapes into the region nearly 400 years ago, and early Spanish settlers began cultivating grapes to make their own wine. A resurgence of winemaking that began in the 1980s has ripened into a burgeoning industry. Today, more than two dozen wineries across the state produce an impressive variety, including some award-winning vintages.
Just to the north of Bernalillo is the Coronado State Monument, a lush spot along the Rio Grande where General Francisco de Coronado is said to have camped during his visit in 1540. The monument houses the partially restored ruins of the pueblo of Kuaua, a Tiwa ("teewah") word for "evergreen. The pueblo thrived between 1300 and the early 1600s. Visitors can climb into a square kiva, excavated in 1930, and marvel at the life-size murals on the walls that have been reproduced. Some of the original murals are on display in the visitor's center.
New Mexico has 19 pueblos, primarily located in central and northern New Mexico, and each is a sovereign nation. It's commonly believed today that the modern-day Pueblo people are descendants of the Ancestral Pueblo Culture, also known as the Anasazi, who once inhabited Chaco Canyon, Mesa Verde, Bandelier and other ruins scattered across the Southwest. Contemporary Pueblo culture emerged in the fertile Rio Grande Valley, where Pueblo people established advanced agricultural practices and highly skilled techniques in making pottery, jewelry, weaving and other art forms. Near here are the Sandia, Santa Ana, San Felipe, Santo Domingo, Jemez and Cochiti pueblos.
At 7,000 feet, Santa Fe is the oldest and highest capital city in the country. Founded between 1609 and 1610 by the Spanish conquistador Don Pedro de Peralta, the city has been the capital of the Spanish Kingdom of New Mexico, serving as Spain's northernmost territory in the New World; the Mexican province of Nuevo Mejico; the American territory of New Mexico (which contained what is today Arizona and New Mexico); and the state of New Mexico, which officially achieved statehood in 1912.
During the 19th century, Santa Fe was the destination for merchants, military men, pioneers and other travelers along the Santa Fe Trail.
Today, Santa Fe is a flourishing multicultural city of about 70,000 people with a vibrant art and cultural scene, a world-class reputation for unique dining and shopping, and enduring connections to its fascinating past. It is the fourth largest city in the state, behind Albuquerque, Las Cruces and Rio Rancho. Nestled in the dramatic Sangre de Cristo Mountains, the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, the city is famous for its stunning landscape, majestic sunsets and close proximity to excellent hiking, biking, skiing and other outdoor activities.