We are now in Albuquerque and it is very crowded as tomorrow the State Fair opens for two weeks.

Not much to report on Route 66 today as this stretch has been covered by Interstate 40 and it's so bleak that there weren't many towns here anyway. This is very much Native American country and a number of the crossover bridges have ancient and intricate designs on them.

Houses seem to be built on any flat space that is available.

We arrived earlier than expected in Albuquerque and took a trip up to Sandia Peak. The journey was 14 miles long up very winding hairpin bends but the views from the top were unbelievable. The mountain summit is one mile higher than Albuquerque and 11,000 feet above sea level. There were warning signs about lack of oxygen. The temperature dropped 16 degrees as we travelled from base to summit. We managed a short stroll along the summit trail and watched a woodpecker that wasn't a bit afraid of us.

Soil is sparse, eroding quickly and some trees are just managing to survive.

Today has been an amazing contrast between bleak deserts and forested mountains.