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If you're looking for property, the area referred to is called the East Mountains. You're on the other side of the Sandia Mountains that tower over Albuquerque and the only way into town is on I-40 (unless you count the almost goat path on the north side that puts you in Placitas). Placitas has hilly, rural living and is a straight shot up I-25. As for the length of commute, it makes a big difference where you're working in town, but it's basically the first stop outside of town just up the hill from Bernalillo.
Albuquerque is a valley, bordered on the west by a volcano bluff of sand, and on the east by the Sandia and Manzano mountains.
To the west, upon the sandy bluff which runs from just north of Albuquerque, to south of Albuquerque, about as far as Belen, is now Rio Rancho.
To the east, in the mountains, are small communities of residential areas but the mountains retain that 'Piney' atmosphere.
The commute, depends on how far into the mountains, or over the mountains into the mountain valley, you happen to be. It can run anywhere from 20 minutes to 40 minutes, depending on the weather and traffic.
"in the hills" - if you truly want to live in the hills, look around "south 14" - aka NM337, in Tijeras. East to NM217, then it gets flat, very flat. It is also hilly in Sandia Park (not as rural but still not suburban), but if you are looking for rural, hard to get cell phone reception type areas, surrounded by trees and wildlife, check out Tijeras, "south 14". Depending how far south you go, it could be 20 minutes to the east border of town, or maybe a little more. Oh, and you can also take rt 66 (nm333) into town, but it runs parallel to I40 so its pretty much the same commute, just with a lower speed limit.
If you want flat and rural, look at the areas around Edgewood and Moriarty, even Estancia, or Belen. Call that commute more like 35-50 min. I'd give myself a good 50min to 1 hr to get to town from Estancia.
Check all these areas with Google Maps Street View. Downtown Moriarty is a real spectacle. If that adobe ever collapses folks won't know where they are. Street View includes the goat trail to Placitas as well.
The problem is that the east mountains isn't really rural. It is more sparsely populated but I would consider it exurban. By rural I assume you mean rural economy (people making a living off of agriculture) for that you need to get out toward Moriarty, though even parts of the south and north valley within city limits qualify as well as Los Ranchos, Corrales and the Rio communities.
<edit: oops, I see lisdol already made my point>
ABQConvict
Last edited by ABQConvict; 11-13-2008 at 10:33 AM..
Reason: I don't read anything I just go shootin' off at the mouth. Oh, and I can't spell 'within' apparently.
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