Bernalillo is an old Spanish and Pueblo town on the Rio Grande just north of Albuquerque, and it has a quiet identity of its own, a mix of adobe walls, cottonwoods, cafes, a few vineyards and a long history. The Sandia Mountains stand to the east, with a ridge that turns watermelon pink at sunset, which is what the name Sandia means in Spanish. The town has about nine thousand people and holds a festival of San Lorenzo each August, with traditional dances.
Francisco Vásquez de Coronado came this way in 1540, in search of the fabled cities of gold, and wintered in a Pueblo village near here. The ruins of that village, Kuaua, are preserved at Coronado Historic Site, where the restored kiva walls contain colourful painted murals that are hundreds of years old. The Spanish settled the valley in the following centuries, and the old plaza and the church still reflect that heritage. The region is also a mixture of cultures, with several Pueblo communities nearby, each with its own traditions.
The Jemez Mountain Trail heads northwest from here, through desert and canyon country of astonishing colour. The red and orange cliffs near Jemez Pueblo, the white gypsum bluffs, and the green river valley make a series of vivid contrasts, and the road, narrow and curving, follows the Jemez River up into pine forest. Hot springs bubble up at Jemez Springs, and farther on, the road climbs to the rim of the Valles Caldera, a huge volcanic crater formed about one and a quarter million years ago, now a green grassland where elk graze.
Bernalillo has fuel, supermarkets and several well-known New Mexican restaurants, so it is easy to start. The local food is built around chile, red or green, and the question of which one you want is asked at every table, and the answer, Christmas, means both. Try a breakfast burrito or a plate of enchiladas. Summers can be hot, with afternoon thunderstorms, and winter can bring snow on the high road, so check conditions. Autumn, when the cottonwoods turn gold along the river and the air smells of roasting chile, is a good time.