Blog Action Day -- #Inequality

ABQ, the North Valley

I took a bike ride along the acequias of Albuquerque's North Valley late this afternoon.  Armed with a $350 mountain bike and $2000 of digital equipment, I peddled along the centuries old water courses that irrigate the city.

With this year's Blog Action Day topic in mind, I expected to be able to reflect on and photo-document the wealth of the landed gentry in ABQ.  I did not expect that I'd take a turn that would lead me to some of the best street art in the city and some of the dingiest neighborhoods on the "wrong side of the tracks," quite literally.



The route itself, as tracked with MapMyRide, took me north along the Griegos Interior Drain, a favorite thoroughfare that easily takes me into the North Valley without much vehicular interaction except crossing a few streets.  It's the leftmost red line below.  

The first 3 miles are through pastoral farmlands in the middle of a city of nearly 900,000.  The old money of Albuquerque is still here, families who's conquistador ancestors settled this valley a couple centuries ago.  Within a few 100 meters of my route there are multimillion dollar mansions with acres of alfalfa for a front lawn...

... and lovely old haciendas reclaimed as B&Bs.  

But as I turned eastward along the Gallegos Lateral, I did not expect to find the North Valley to change so remarkably.  At 4th St. I lost the Lateral when it went underground near a large commercial establishment.  The locals will all recognize the name, Sadie's.  I took a side street, Vineyard.

By the time I crossed 2nd St. and cycled to the end of Vineyard, I was near the northbound railroad tracks.  A small break in the fence led to the rails. 

From lovely pastures and huge mansions, in a few minutes of peddling, I was in the city's underbelly where junkyards, derelict lots, blown out rancheros, and stormwater drains make up the neighborhood. 

The RailRunner, our commuter train to Santa Fe and Belen, came by while I was there.

On the return, I thought to find the acequia and found it just south along the tracks.  It led me back west to 2nd St. and along an access way behind a large set of self-storage units.  The graffiti was amazing.  You can see below that the walls were painted by street artists (and protected with an acrylic overcoat) while the ditch itself shows the more informal activity. 

The pieces on the walls were excellent.

I was left wondering, who made this possible?  In an obscure corner of ABQ that very few ever see, someone had encouraged and protected some of the city's best street art.

On the return home, peddling south along the Harwood Lateral, I passed young men walking incongruously small dogs.  I moved from small, beat-up lots to more moderate residences.  One fellow probably mistook me with my helmet, gloves, and mountain bike for one of the city's bicycle policeman.  He was extremely polite as we exchanged comments about the weather.  It's been ages since anyone called me "sir."

In an hour and 17 minutes, I'd gone from affluent to rock bottom, but with glimpses of the creativity that bursts forth whenever there is the slightest crack in the pavement, wherever a seed can reach moist soil and grow.  The app on my smartphone tells me I burned 665 calories.