If m’lady is hankering to pedal her penny-farthing down a bucolic country lane, I’d advise her to stay away from the North Diversion Channel. This trail runs alongside the enormous eponymous arroyo, and the views are all concrete and desert sky. The trail starts at Balloon Fiesta Park, but you can pick it up at Paseo del Norte and head south, looking out over that mysterious industrial area around Jefferson where you’ve never had any reason to go in your car. (Has anyone?) After you cross Menaul, the urban terrain gets really interesting when the North Diversion Channel converges with another massive arroyo. You’ll negotiate a swoop, twirl and dive through an underpass on your bike. I like to pretend that cars were never invented and all roads look like this miniature version of a mountain highway. You’ll start to gain altitude and crest near the Big I. Gaze down upon all the pollutey motorists and enjoy a surge of smug cyclist’s superiority. The trail ends at UNM’s North Campus, but you’ll be so close to the Frontier, it’d be foolish not to go get some huevos. You have to fortify yourself for the ride home, don’t you?
The opinions expressed are solely those of the author. Betty Sprocket has a Ph.D. in pedaling from the University of New Bikexico.A map of Albuquerque bike trails
