Onion River Exploration Project: Steve and Tauni's

Sandia Mountains

Day 1 (3/29-4/2/15)

We were not sure if we were going to go anywhere for spring break. We had thought about going to Torreon, Mexico to see my friend Roger but things just didn’t seem to fall together. At the last minute we decided to go see a classmate of my wife’s and her husband that we hadn’t visited in thirty years. The last time we had visited them they lived in Portland, Oregon. Shortly after that they had moved to New Mexico. For years we had been talking about getting together again but it just never happened. This year the stars aligned and it seemed the perfect opportunity because my wife’s friend Tauni had spring break as well. We had never been to New Mexico before and really didn’t know what to expect. It turned out to be perfect weather. It was just starting to warm up but the spring winds that apparently sometimes plaque the region hadn’t started yet. Our friends Steve and Tauni live in Rio Rancho, a suburb overlooking Albuquerque with the Sandia Mountains forming a backdrop behind the city. At sunset the mountain turns bright red orange which is where it gets its name Sandia, Spanish for watermelon. After getting our rental car and finding our hotel, it was off to Steve and Tauni’s for a long overdue reunion. We had a delicious dinner and spent the first evening talking over old times and catching up on thirty years of life. We decided to spend the next day in the area around Albuquerque and take in the local fair.