[Window, Santa Fe; 9am, 3/7/09]
Spring in Santa Fe (if judged by the appearance of crocuses) arrives just ahead of Boston, even though its latitude is over 500 miles farther south. The city (capital of New Mexico, population around 70,000) is 7,000 feet above sea level, and thus 7,000 feet higher than Boston. It's also much drier; the humidity wasn't much above 10%, and that combined with winds gusting into the 50mph range made for fire hazards in many areas.
[Crocuses and cactus; 11:30am, 3/6/09]
The weather in early March in the high desert can reach the 60s(F) during the day, and down into the low 30s at night. The week before I came it was warm and sunny, but turned rather chilly and windy during my visit (it was quite the fun-house ride flying in over the Sandia Mountains into Albuquerque on Thursday!), with a fair amount of clouds. The clouds were often spectacular, though. I'm not sure my photographs do them justice.
[View from the porch outside my hotel room; 6pm, 3/7/09]
Saturday morning, I woke at 6am to the sound of thunder and something pelting the building. I looked out to see hail bouncing off the porch railing, from mostly pea-sized to a few grape-sized pellets. It all melted within a couple of hours and was sunny and beautiful, in the 50s, the rest of the day. Monday morning, the day I left Santa Fe, I woke to falling snow. At the airport later that morning, the security agent looked at my itinerary - connecting through Chicago to Boston, where it was also snowing - and shook his head at me. "In the winter months, you go to Puerto Vallarta, ma'am."
[In Santa Fe, even the snow is artful; 8:30am, 3/9/09]
I didn't mind the chill, or the snow, which was pretty and melted quickly on the ground. The days held plenty of sunshine for me, and it was far far away from work and stress. I had art and nature to nourish the eye, incredibly delicious food to nourish the body, and friends to nourish the soul.
Love that last sentence, a perfect holiday then!
Posted by: marja-leena | Wednesday, March 11, 2009 at 11:29 PM
7,000 miles above sea level would put you in outer space, I think.
I once went to Utah on Christmas vacation. It was just the right temperature in the canyonlands then, I thought, and hardly any other tourists. The weather was fairly clement, though.
Posted by: Dave | Wednesday, March 11, 2009 at 11:35 PM
we have never been to new mexico, and i can hardly wait to see it. hoping you will post more about your visit and more photos. it sounds like a wonderful retreat from your routine. i am glad you had the time away to replenish your inner self. we all need that.
Posted by: sky | Thursday, March 12, 2009 at 05:08 AM
Marja-Leena: Yes, a good break.
Dave: Oh duh. Thanks - I fixed the distance! I haven't been to Utah or Arizona (of the 4-corner states). There's an amazing amount of open space in New Mexico - not only sparsely populated but the landscape opens up to the sky so much more than back east.
Sky: Thanks - and I'll be posting more. You can also check out my Flickr set.
Posted by: Leslee | Thursday, March 12, 2009 at 07:43 AM
I love, love, love the Santa Fe photos. I looked at the others on your Flickr site. Thank you so much for sharing. I am incredibly homesick for Santa Fe. It seems that whenever I call my mom these days she is making or has just made a fire, it's cold she says. Michael misses hiking the Windsor Trail in Tesuque. Did you have some good meals?
Posted by: Roberta | Thursday, March 12, 2009 at 11:02 AM
Beautiful photos, Leslee. And yes, did you have fantastic food?
Posted by: Pica | Thursday, March 12, 2009 at 11:57 AM