Canyon Bosque Trail Ride (Part 2)

 

Ok. I admit it. I was surprised to discover that we have our own Bosque here in the foothills of our mountains east of Albuquerque.

For those that aren’t familiar with the word Bosque……..”Bosque is the name for areas of deciduous forest found along the streams and river banks of the SW United States. The name comes from the Spanish word for woodlands. In the arid southwestern United States, the bosque is an oasis-like ribbon of green vegetation, often canopied, that only exists near rivers, streams, or other water courses. The most notable bosque is a 200 mile long ecosystem along the Rio Grande in New Mexico that extends from Santa Fe down into Texas. One well know bosque area is the Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge.”

 I have driven past this area for over 20 years now, and I am ashamed to admit that I have never stopped, parked and explored this area.

 

But I am very grateful that my riding friends suggested we ride here. I thoroughly enjoyed riding beneath the tall, green cottonwoods.

 

It was very peaceful and calm in the shade of the cottonwoods and we all enjoyed just strolling along quietly. Even Apache seemed to enjoy herself, too.

 

Interestingly, Karen grew up in this area and as a child, rode her ponies along this Bosque and in the hills above. Karen hadn’t been back to ride here since she was a teenager, and it was easy to see that she was enjoying the experience. She shared her childhood stories with us and it was fun to walk down memory lane with her. 

 

When I invited Colleen to ride with us, our original plan was to ride up to Sandia Crest, but we changed plans because of a forest fire in the foothills of the Sandia Mountains. I was happy that Colleen didn’t mind where we rode, and that she was as pleased as I was, to discover these Canyon Bosque Trails, too.

 

The entire day we were there, we only saw one other person walking his dog. Other than that, we had the entire area all to ourselves.

 

Apache appreciated the creek crossings and being able to stop for a drink of nice refreshing Spring water.

 

Colleen couldn’t convince her mare Pepper to take a drink or even get close to the creek, even after Apache and I took our turn.

 

We continued to ride along in the Canyon Bosque in a westerly direction. The horses seemed to enjoy the flat sandy path and were very relaxed and content to mosey down the trail.

 

As we rode further west, we began to see houses on the hills above us and realized that we were riding below the Four Hills Neighborhood of Albuquerque.

 

There were several creek crossing opportunities, which is a rare and wonderful thing for our high desert equines. Water training is difficult to do when we’re lucky to get a few sprinkles of rain once every 6 months, and we’re sorely lacking in the creek, stream, pond, lake and river department.

 But our horses were all eager to get their feet wet and take a drink from the creek. Even that shallow bit of water must have been a joyful sight for them, as much as it was for us. 

 

I still kept a close watchful eye on my Apache mare while we stood in the cool creek. My mare has happy hippo tendencies and enjoys a wallow in some water now and then. (Even with me on her back!)

 

Even Pepper decided that the creek was a lovely place for a drink and a rest.

 

As we rode further west, the Canyon Bosque narrowed and a great wall of rock rose up on one side.

 

It was late afternoon when we decided to turn around and ride back to the trailers. We rode up above the Canyon Bosque for a short ways and were treated to views of some of the professional buildings along Route 66.   

 

And then we dropped back down into the cool shade of the Canyon Bosque again.

 

I still can’t believe this wonderful place is only 15 minutes from my house. I have to drive past it every time I drive into Albuquerque!

 

This area has everything a trail rider could want: Beautiful scenery, challenging, interesting and diverse trails, hills for climbing as well as staying down low out of the wind, sandy arroyos for cantering, shady paths for hot summer days, and because it’s just far enough out of the mountains to not get large amounts of snow, it would be possible to ride during the winter, too.  

 

Oh! And we can’t forget water crossings, too! (And water for your horse to drink on a hot summer day, too!) 

 

The path that leads from the trailer parking area passes right by the Rodeo Arena.

Apache was fascinated, especially by the cattle chutes.

 

Gosh! I had such a good time with these awesome ladies and their terrific horses!

 

Town & Country Feed Store has always welcomed trail riding folks to use their parking lot and have hosted many horse events over the years. I have bought chicken, goat and horse feed here and I have bought chicks, too.

Sadly, the Feed Store and Horse Rental has shut down and the building is up for lease by the owners. I hope this facility will be a feed store again and continue to be horse and trail rider-friendly from whomever decides to lease it.

 

I look forward to riding there as often as I can in the future.

But it was time to remove tack and load up our horses. Bye Loeta and Profe!!

 

Apache and I shared a ride with Colleen and Pepper.

 

Apache says, “Ok, you can stop taking photos now, and get this saddle and gear off me”

 

And here’s the GPS Map from our Manzano Open Space and Canyon Bosque Trail Ride.

Manzano Open Space and Canyon Bosque Trail Ride

EveryTrail - Find the best Hiking in New Mexico