Over 20 local restaurants and cafes dished out thousands of samples of their product at the Santa Ana Star Center in Rio Rancho, New Mexico.

Enchantment Helicopters in Albuquerque is the only helicopter flight academy in New Mexico. Located at Double Eagle II Airport on the West Side of Albuquerque, because of the high local altitude, they are able to offer training in flight conditions that few pilots experience. Their program can take a student all the way to a career as a Certified Flight Instructor. The school’s training craft of choice are Robinson R-22 (2 passenger) and R-44 (4 passenger) helicopters.

One afternoon we took a discovery ride over Rio Rancho, New Mexico. We circled the Civic Center, the new Presbyterian Rust Medical Center and a number of subdivisions bordering Unser Blvd. The flight was smooth and fun!

In addition to flight training, Enchantment can provide a great aerial photography platform. If you’ve ever considered a career flying helicopters, but don’t want to go the military training route, give them a call.

This listing went into escrow about the time we finished the video, but we really liked it and wanted to share… Enjoy!

The Tram has carried nearly 9 million passengers in its 43 years of existence. On the way up, visitors can enjoy the ridged rock faces, deep canyons and high cliffs, old rugged oaks, pine trees, and aspen. Commonly seen wildlife in the area includes mule deer, black bears, raccoons, bobcats, squirrels, downhill skiers and snowboarders.

The idea for such a marvelous attraction was proposed by Robert Nordhaus after a trip to Europe. There he saw structures similar to the Tram he would eventually build, and the idea was born. After much difficulty in construction, including bringing up the two towers via helicopter, the Tram took it’s first carload of 50 passengers on May 7, 1966. On average, the Sandia Peak Tramway takes 10,500 trips up and down Sandia Peak every year.

Breathtaking sights are not the only thing the Tram trip provides. The peak and canyons are within the Cibola National Forest, containing 26 miles of trails for mountain bikers or hikers. Skiing is also available on the back side of the peak from December to mid March. If a visitor is hungry, the High Finance Resturant doors are always open for anyone who desires to “dine two miles high.” The Tram guides highly recommend having a meal in the evening and coming down the mountain after dark, to enjoy the city lights from a whole different perspective.

River’s Edge III is the newest and last subdivision of the River’s Edge neighborhood in Rio Rancho, NM. Located between Pat D’Arco Highway (Hwy 528) and the Rio Grande bosque, there are just under 600 homes, many of which have unparalleled views of the Sandia mountains and the river. Amrep Southwest developed the neighborhoods, building about 500 homes in the third subdivision, and selling most of the lots facing the bosque to custom and semi-custom builders for more expensive homes. One of the big attractions of living in River’s Edge is the easy access to the bosque walking trails, although you will find dozens of locals walking the streets of the neighborhood at dawn and at dusk, when it cools off.

Rio Rancho New Mexico’s first full service hospital is open! Presbyterian Rust Medical Center is holding a huge grand opening party for the community Saturday October 22nd, but they have already performed over 20 surgeries, have one patient recovering in their new 68 bed patient tower, and the city’s first hospital born baby was delivered there on Wednesday. We were fortunate  enough to attend a special pre-opening event co-hosted by the Rio Rancho Regional Chamber of Commerce and received the grand tour. The building is stupendous, with lots of natural light throughout, large comfortable patient rooms with a convertible couch/bed for family stay overs, and enough high tech to make NASA  jealous.

Emergency room services were formerly handled at a Presbyterian office at High Resort Blvd and Hwy 528, but they have now been transferred to the new hospital.  There’s even a helipad on the grounds. Services to be offered at the new facility include:

• Inpatient Services
  • Mother-Baby Care
  • Critical Care
  • Neonatal Intensive Care
  • Orthopedic
  • Surgery and General Medical
• Outpatient Services
  • Emergency Care
  • Full Imaging Services
  • Surgical Services
  • CVL/Interventional Radiology lab

The 40^th Annual Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta kicked off with a weekend of perfect weather. The midweek weather suffered from unusual rain and wind setbacks, but by the final weekend the weather cleared up and Albuquerque’s signature event was back on track. It had been several years since we had visited the fiesta, and we had family in town, so it was time to go again. The event did not disappoint.

The mass ascension was incredible. From anywhere on the field, you couldn’t take a bad photo. The color, the shapes and the massive number of balloons in the sky at once was unprecedented. The day we were there, the wind was so calm that the hundreds of balloons that launched hung around for a long time over the field, making for a spectacular traffic jam of balloons.

The Night Magic evening balloon glow provided a surprisingly different spectacle. Dozens of balloons inflated and stayed anchored to the ground, firing their burners at intervals. The result was a flickering show of light and color.  The glow was followed by a dazzling fireworks show.

If you’ve never been to the Balloon Fiesta, we hope our video motivates you to attend next year in person. You won’t be disappointed. Enjoy!

Harris Jewelers and Gemologists is the largest jewelry store in Rio Rancho, NM.  This is not the typical mall jewelry store, but an exceptional collection of jewelry professionals who do award-winning custom design work, engraving, jewelry repairs, appraisals and watch repairs. If you want to know the difference between FL-IF and VVS-2 diamonds, these are the people to see.  The store has grown several times in the last few years, and you will often see their one-of-a-kind designs up for charity auction at the annual Mayor’s Ball. The store also carries product from dozens of the world’s most famous designers of jewelry and watches, including Breuning, Gitani, Seiko, Palladium, Citizen, Claude Thibaudeau and more.  Watch the video below to meet the owners, Karen Fitzpatrick and Marc Guerin, then pay then a visit for some “Wife Insurance”.

The 14th Annual Maize Maze is open 7 days a week now through the end of October at the Rio Grande Community Farm on Manzano, East of the river. The maze is cut into 7 acres of tall corn. This year’s design is a dinosaur. The activity supports the annual budget of the community farm. October 14th and 15th visitors are invited to explore the maze by moonlight. When the maze finishes, the fields will be knocked down to provide food for migrating birds. The video below is from the 2010 maze. For more information, visit http://www.riograndefarm.org .

The 13th annual Bark in the Park special event, sponsored by Enchantment Pet Resort will be held at Olympus Park in Rio Rancho, NM on Saturday, September 24th from 10 am until 2 pm. The video is from the 12th annual Bark in the Park. If you and your family are “doggie” people, you will love the demonstrations, contests, educational booths and pet related vendors, – in fact everything about it! You can adopt a new pet, or even read to therapy dogs. For more information, call 505 891-4100.