Sandia Mountain Wilderness, part of Cibola National Forest, is located east of

Albuquerque, New Mexico Albuquerque ( ; ), ; kee, Arawageeki; tow, Vakêêke; zun, Alo:ke:k'ya; apj, Gołgéeki'yé. abbreviated ABQ, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Its nicknames, The Duke City and Burque, both reference its founding in ...

, and comprises much of Sandia Mountains. It became part of the

National Wilderness Preservation System The National Wilderness Preservation System (NWPS) of the United States protects federally managed wilderness areas designated for preservation in their natural condition. Activity on formally designated wilderness areas is coordinated by the Na ...

in 1978 by an act of the United States Congress and has a total of .

Paths and trails

The Sandia Mountain Wilderness has one of the longest tramways in the world, traveling and climbing nearly to the crest of the Sandias. The Sandia Peak Aerial Tramway was designed by a team of Swiss engineers that had designed similar systems in the Alps. The tram has never had an accident or injury since its opening in 1966. The tram passes two towers along its trip at elevations of and . The top terminal is at an elevation of . Once at the crest of the Sandia Mountains, there are approximately of trail that run along the ridge (known as Crest Trail) at an average elevation of . In addition to Crest Trail, the Sandia Mountain Wilderness has around worth of trails that are maintained by the Forest Service.

References

{{Authority control Cibola National Forest Wilderness areas of New Mexico Protected areas of Bernalillo County, New Mexico Protected areas of Sandoval County, New Mexico