Tuco's desert home proved vexing to find ("Breaking Bad", Season 2, Episode 2, 'Grilled').
At first, I was very confident where Tuco's house in the desert was located. The TV series seemed to show the presence of a rail line nearby, and that was a major clue. The mountain in the distance might be Polvadera Peak, in the Ladron Mountains, southwest of Albuquerque. The small, rather uniform sagebrush vegetation is actually rather unusual in New Mexico: surprisingly scarce! The only place it seems to be abundant is in the Los Lunas/Belen area, and it may be a threatened biome, for all I know. I figured Tuco's shack had to be southwest of Los Lunas, perhaps along Highway 6. So I traveled the length of Highway 6 in August, 2010, trying to find it. The house wasn't out there!
So, in May, 2011, I made a second attempt, and traveled east of Belen, along Highway 47 towards Mountainair, and to the south of that highway.
That area SE of Belen shares several features in common with Tuco's desert house. It has the small, uniform, sagebrush vegetation in abundance. It has the rail line. It has the mountain in the distance, with the base obscured by nearby hills. Near Casa Colorada, I felt I was getting very close to finding Tuco's desert house. But the neighborhood seemed a bit too modern to be the exact site. So, I kept on looking!
Left: The Ladron Mountains, as seen from Highway 6, near Dalies, NM.
Nevertheless, despite the frustration, I wasn't unhappy that Tuco's place was so hard for me to find. You encounter many strange things on the back roads of New Mexico. You may not find what you are looking for, but you will still find something of interest.
Take a look at what I found in the vast desert!
I just know there is an interesting tale associated with this place (34.586666°, -106.691469°), but I have absolutely no idea what that tale might be! I need a "Breaking Bad" script writer, ASAP!
Tuco's desert house (Season 2, Episode 2, "Grilled"). On Dalies Road, west of Los Lunas (34.800059°, -106.849620°).
On my third attempt (October, 2011), I finally located the place!
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