A Visit to Tingley Beach in Albuquerque

 

Taking a dive at Tingley Beach. Courtesy of Albuquerque Parks Division.

With an elevation reaching over 5,000 feet above sea level, few outsiders would believe that Albuquerque has a beach.  Or, more accurately, had a beach. No, this is not White Sands National Park, a true treasure located 150 miles to the south (225 miles by car) of Duke City. For a period of time, Burqueños enjoyed their own beach and swimming hole along the Rio Grande. 

The story of Albuquerque's Tingley Beach illustrates the vision of a former mayor and New Deal governor of New Mexico. This beach is part of the ABQ BioPark, a location that includes a Zoo, as well as the Botanic Garden and Aquarium.

The Model Boat Pond at today's Tingley Beach. Photo by Jim Schnur.

Seeking Health, Becoming a Leader

Clyde Kendle Tingley grew up on an Ohio farm. Born in 1881, he married the former Carrie Wooster. During the early 1900s, Carrie suffered terribly from tuberculosis. As her health deteriorated, a doctor suggested that they move to the American Southwest. 

Clyde and Carrie Tingley at the NM Governor's Mansion, mid-1930s, during Clyde's tenure as governor. NM Digital Archive, Univ. of New Mexico. 

On their way to the Arizona Territory in 1910, the Tingleys stopped in Albuquerque in the New Mexico Territory. Carrie became ill, but soon recovered. After discovering the beauty of the area, they decided to stay in Albuquerque. Both Arizona and New Mexico attained statehood in early 1912.

Clyde Tingley joined the Albuquerque City Council in 1916, later becoming a city commissioner with mayoral duties by the mid-1920s. During the Great Depression, Tingley worked with leadership of the newly-created Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District to repurpose lands that once had served as a city landfill.

Similar to many cities during the early 20th century, Albuquerque had a landfill close to the city center. Located along the eastern shoreline of the Rio Grande, south of Central Avenue (now Historic US Route 66), this site was excavated and cleared beginning in mid-1931.

Gov. Clyde Tingley at the Governor's Mansion, 1936. NM Digital Archive, Univ. of New Mexico.  

After removing refuse, workers diverted water from the river to create a lake. They also built a road to this site. By Christmas 1931, Tingley and other city leaders celebrated the opening of Conservancy Beach. 

Diversion canal, Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District. NM Digital Archive, Univ. of New Mexico.

For approximately 20 years, this beach became a popular site for speedboat races, summertime swimming and diving, outdoor recreation, and occasional beauty pageants. 

Clyde Tingley served as New Mexico's governor from January 1935 through January 1939. A Democrat who had helped break down the Republican grip on state politics, Tingley welcomed New Deal programs--including the Civil Works Administration--that enhanced Tingley Beach and other sites, such as at Juan Tabo on the Sandias.

Enjoying the Beach

Conservancy Beach welcomed swimmers and boaters, and became a top destination in Albuquerque. Located a short distance west of downtown and just south of where the main east/west thoroughfare, Central Avenue, crosses the Rio Grande, the site took on the name Ernie Pyle Beach in 1949.

Conservancy Beach in the 1940s. Courtesy of Albuquerque Parks Division.

Pyle, a well-known wartime correspondent during World War II, lived in Albuquerque during the early 1940s. His articles about the lives of those fighting to preserve democracy captured a wide audience. In April 1945, he died while coming ashore along a Japanese island alongside members of the US Army during the final months of the war.

Wartime correspondent Ernie Pyle in his Albuquerque home, 1943. Conservancy Beach was named in his honor in 1949. NM Digital Archive, Univ. of New Mexico.

Use of the beach peaked in the late 1940s and early 1950s. Diving and swimming areas attracted guests of all ages during the hot New Mexico summers. Motorboats frequented this area along the Rio Grande.

Taking a dip at Tingley Beach. Courtesy of Albuquerque Parks Division.

Tingley Beach before its closure in the early 1950s. Courtesy of Albuquerque Parks Division.

Boating along the Rio Grande at Tingley Beach, Courtesy of Albuquerque Parks Division.

A similar view along Tingley Beach today. Photo by Jim Schnur.

Life's Still a Beach!

Swimming ended at the beach during the early 1950s. A polio outbreak more than 70 years ago urged city leaders to exercise caution. Tingley, the visionary who created this desert oasis, witnessed the closure of the beach and the slow restoration of the shoreline. He passed away in 1960.

Approaching the beach along the Rio Grande, November 2024. Photo by Jim Schnur.

A dump a century ago, Tingley Beach now offers access to the bosque (forest) along the Rio Grande. A short distance away, on the north side of Central Avenue, the ABQ BioPark includes a zoo, aquarium, and botanic garden that is not far from the historic Old Town district, the original heart of the city. 

Facilities at Tingley Beach. Courtesy, City of Albuquerque.

Significant renovations took place in 2004. Crews added a new dock, fishing areas, recreation trails, and other amenities. The children's fishing pond and an adjacent pond have fish restocked seasonally by the New Mexico Game and Fish Department.

A pond at Tingley Beach. Photo by Jim Schnur.

Lush vegetation covers the former beachfront. Although people no longer swim at Tingley Beach, the goal Clyde Tingley envisioned of a community destination remains. 

City artwork at the Model Boat Pond, Tingley Beach. Photo by Jim Schnur.

More than boats enjoy the Model Boat Pond in November 2024. Photo by Jim Schnur.

Today, most of the swimming takes place by the fish and turtles that frequent this portion of the Rio Grande, along with the ducks and swans. Most of the diving happens as birds fly toward the water. 

Birds have plenty of places to perch and chill out at Tingley Beach. Photo by Jim Schnur.

Looking north from the former beachfront at Historic US 66 (Central Avenue). Photo by Jim Schnur.

Much of the bosque along the Rio Grande remains a popular recreation corridor in the Albuquerque area. Tingley Beach provides a comfortable location to enjoy nature and reconnect with a chapter of Albuquerque's New Deal history. 

During the fall, migrating birds, such as geese, visit Tingley Beach. Photo by Jim Schnur.

Restoration along the one-time landfill and former bathing beach continues. Photo by Jim Schnur.

A walk on the "beach" today looks different than it did 75 years ago. Photo by Jim Schnur.

Just 10 feet from the beach, with nature on full display. Photo by Jim Schnur.