Day 20, TX, Rest Day in Van Horn

A bookend sunrise to match last night's sunset. 

We ate breakfast at the KOA Kafe for less than $6 including coffee/tea. We had a leisurely morning since we didn't have to check out until 11:00 and we're moving to a motel a half mile away.

We were riding up the Main Street in Van Horn and we saw a motel advertising a room for $25.95. We stopped and the owners were outside and said they could give us a double for a total of $37.85. The room looked good enough for the money and we checked in, dropped our bags, and wandered up the street to see what else was here. This town is either truck repair or motel businesses. We got a bite at an un-named fast food joint and picked up a Texas State Map on the way back. 

Dinner at Chuy's Mexican restaurant tonight and early to bed to be ready for the 90 miler tomorrow. 

6 miles but no miles on route today. 

Day19, TX, Tornillo to Van Horn

21 degrees this morning, like El Paso yesterday morning, but we're not inside a heated house. We heated water for coffee and tea and that helped while we were packing. It did warm up faster and hotter today though. We rode to the next town and 1 mile off route to the only restaurant for breakfast. We stopped to ask a woman if there was a restaurant and she only spoke Spanish. I said "comida" and got a lot of response that we couldn't understand but she did point up the street where we found the restaurant. Mexico is still just a mile away, I might add. 

This was our next stop where we stripped off all the extra gear. The temps shot up in a short period and we needed sunscreen. At this point we decided to shave a mile or two from the mapped route and ride on I-10 instead of catching it a little further along. This would give us a better chance of making a push to Van Horn instead of stopping at Sierra Blanca.

We stopped in a gas station in Sierra Blanca (next to this place) and got snacks and drinks. A poor soul got a huge favor from the gas station. They let him fill his tank so he could turn around and drive all the way back to Tucson to retrieve the wallet that he left there. 

In fact, we did make it to Van Horn with the aid of a tailwind, yay! We took a final break on I-10 for the final push-up to the pass and then down to Van Horn. We'll hit the Central Time Zone before Van Horn. 2 hours difference to my home, 1 hour difference for Jim. 

Two campgrounds were listed on our map and the KOA was the best choice despite being more expensive. The shower was wonderful and we ate dinner at the "KOA Kafe".

Grassy but hopefully no goatheads!

The sunset was spectacular. 

84 miles today and our first rest day of the trip tomorrow. 

Day 18, TX, El Paso to Tornilla

We tried to sleep in this morning because our hosts thought we would be better off leaving around 8:30 to let traffic die down. In retrospect I think that was a good idea. We had to ride through downtown El Paso and it wasn't too busy. 

Once again we were treated like family by Harry and Rebecca. We are indebted to them for the kindness and provisions. 

It was down to 21 last night but it's clear and calm so it was warming in the direct sun. It got into the 50's today but was cool in the shade all day. 

Harry rode out with us and got us on the right path to our exit from El Paso. 

I hit paydirt at an ATM and we got a few groceries on our way out. It took us about 20 miles to shed the city and enter the wilds of west Texas. We had our own lane for a lone stretch but just before we ran out of city the bike lane ended and the shoulder ended and we were in the traffic instead of beside it. Fortunately that was only a couple of miles. 

We stopped at this city park in Faben which was the first town we hit outside of El Paso. We ate the goodies that Rebecca had sent us off with and planned our next moves. I sent another package home by post office in the next town of Tornillo. We bought a gallon of filtered water from a vending machine and I called for camping info. 

If those are trash cans then this must be where we pitch camp!

Five miles away was Plain View Lakes and they let us stay no charge. There is a bathroom with a sink (cold water only) and a toilet but no shower. 

It looks like they charge people to fish for catfish here. The lakes were nice In the aridness. 

We could see Mexico, marked by the big fence about a half mile away. 

About 44 miles today with an average speed of 12.7. 

Day 17, Mesilla, NM to El Paso, TX

Up at our usual 6:00 am to the barest blush of daylight and a beautiful crescent moon. It is 25 degrees which explains the ice inside Jim's tent. We had some extra time this morning  because Jim's friend Harry is meeting us at the town square at 9:00. We found a coffee house near the square that had good food and had a leisurely breakfast. 

When we got to the square there was Harry with a dozen other cyclists. We thought we had an escort peleton to El Paso! It turned out to be group ride meeting there too by coincidence. 

Harry led us out of town on peaceful back roads and across the Rio Grande which was running dry here. 

Somewhere we crossed into Texas.

We visited the church where Harry and Rebecca got married. 

Harry led us to the new bike path along the Rio Grande which was largely empty. The only thing better would be if the stiff breeze was behind us Instead of the other way all day. 

We ate lunch at the famous Little Diner. Don Henly and George W. ate there anyway. The food was good. 

Back to the river path and through beautiful neighborhoods to Harry's. 

Jim and I got cleaned up and Harry drove us to get a few things. I needed some drug store items and some bike shop items. I bought a pair of long, thermal tights since what I had wasn't sufficient in the mornings. 

Later we had a fabulous dinner at their house and relaxed in great company. 

43 miles today. 

Day 16, NM, Deming to Mesilla (Las Cruces)

The wind died off and it's calm this morning. It makes it easy to break camp when you're not struggling to keep things from taking off. 

We rode west, back to town for breakfast since there was almost nothing to the east. We had the $4.99 special which worked for us.

It took a long time to get light this morning due to the cloud cover but it also kept the temps higher. We used the old road paralleling I-10 for about half of the 60 miles to Las Cruces. 

We ran into Ron who was heading west. He started in Sacramento last May and headed north to circumnavigate the US and Canada by bike. He passed 10,000 miles awhile back. He had used duct tape he found to fortify the tread of his rear tire in an effort to keep the thorns from flatting the worn tire. I will probably never meet a man who has done more solitary outdoor adventures. 40,000 miles around the world In a 33 ft steel sailboat is one example. Too many others to list!

Another tourist trap provided us with a short break. Our third in the chain of ten stores in the Southwest. 

Jim is pitying me here as I just finished fixing my third flat. I pulled one large goathead thorn and three small pieces wire from a radial car/truck tire out of my tire. You don't realize how many motor vehicle tires get shredded on the road until you see all the debris on the shoulder when riding a bicycle. 

We split a subway sandwich again today for lunch about 8 miles from Las Cruces. The joyride the wind gave us yesterday turned into a killjoy ride today. We had headwinds about 90% of the day today, dragging our average speed down to about 12. 

We got to our intended RV park for the night and another touring cyclist, Wade, arrived just after us. He is doing part of the southern tier starting from Flagstaff. 

We walked down the street to eat $5 pizza with a $5 glass of wine. 

63 miles today. Tomorrow, Jim's cycling friend Harry will meet us here and lead us to his place in El Paso. 

Day 15, NM, Lordsburg to Deming

We went to bed plenty early so we got up at 6:00. We were packed up by the time the free breakfast opened at the Econo Lodge. It was more than a standard continental breakfast, there were waffles, hard boiled eggs, bagels with cream cheese, along with the normal cereals and pastries. 36 degree low this morning but warming quickly. 

We were right next to I-10 and it was flat, and straight for nearly 60 miles, broken by a few over/under passes. It started out dead calm but shortly after hitting the road the wind came up and it was behind us. 

We got snacks and drinks at this gift shop. 

This guy didn't realize it's a self serve gas station now. 

This sign announcing the Continental Divide was the most dramatic section of this flat, featureless, straightaway. 

This was by far the biggest push we've gotten on the trip and it was heavenly. We averaged about 17.5 mph and the top speeds in the high 20's. Jim could easily have gone the next 60 to Las Cruces but my shoulders and back told I shouldn't. 

We stayed at the Roadrunner RV park in Deming and it had the most amenities of any we've stayed at so far. We got a hot tub in after setting up and cleaning up. We discovered later that our camp site was infested with large goathead thorns. I was ready to crawl In bed when I found some under my tent, as did Jim. I moved my tent to a bare dirt patch and Jim put some cardboard under his air mattress. It may be a miracle if our mattresses still hold air in the morning. 

Another 60 to Las Cruces tomorrow and then Texas!

Day14, Duncan, AZ to Lordsburg, NM

Slept in until 6:45! We only had 36 miles to get to Lordsburg so we weren't in a big hurry this morning. The movie theatre in Duncan has been closed for a few years. 

If you can see it, the "coming soon" advertisement is for "Raiders of the Lost Ark". A mere 33 years ago but hey, a great flick!

We went to the bakery where we ate lunch yesterday for egg, bacon, and cheese burritos before hitting the road. The price with a large cup of coffee was $4 including tax. 

Once we climbed out of the valley and rode about 15 miles we entered New Mexico. Apparently, it's a popular spot to party and dump trash as you can see. Further on, the road was straight and flat for miles. 

There was very little traffic so we didn't have to use the shoulder often. A lot of the semis passing us were hauling slabs of copper. Two short stacks of copper comprised a 50,000 lb load. 

We rolled into Lordsburg about noon and had time for lunch before our room was ready at the Econo Lodge. The town looks post apocalyptic  with few businesses still open. 

Day13, Thatcher, AZ to Duncan, AZ

42 degrees and windy.

It's hard to get out of bed with such luxurious accommodations. 

Obviously this is before I got myself all made up. 

 The wind came up when we arrived yesterday and blew hard most of the night. Since we went to bed after dinner we had plenty of sleep by 6:00 am. Hitting the road after 8:00 am, we rode the 4 miles to the next town, Safford, for breakfast at Denny's.

 The sun was shy today and we rode into a stiff, 45 degree headwind all the way to the next town and our destination, Duncan. I wasn't really warm enough on the 43 mile ride and the hills served to heat me up a little, even with Jim pulling me. 

The Simpson Hotel in Duncan offers a warmshowers opportunity. We got to occupy a little old trailer with a mattress and a cot. 

Duncan is busy now since the copper and gold mining is experiencing a resurgence. Still a lot of buildings are abandoned. 

 

We ate a late lunch at this bakery. 

They were sold out of most food by the time we got there. 

We went off the Adventure Cycling Association route today. We wanted to avoid the major climbing and the weather that goes with it. The route through Silver City, NM tops out at 8228 feet! We are staying on hwy 70 until we hit I-10 and take that to Las Cruces, NM. 

Day 12, Globe AZ to Thatcher, AZ

Below freezing this morning. Jim had a water bottle in his tent that had some ice in it. It's weird because I had a water bottle on my bike with no ice in it. We had no shower last night but it was opened up early this morning and Jim took a shower. I figured it's too late for me since I was just getting right back on the bike again, and sweating. We left at 8:15 and it hadn't warmed much yet but I dressed for the heat that was coming, which meant I was COLD going down the first hill. We headed out of town without stopping, taking hwy 70 east. We knew it was a long day and didn't want to waste any time. It was reported to us that the route was flat but I think he meant there was little net change in elevation over a long distance. It was definitely not flat with rolling hills for over 20 miles. 

We rode for an hour and a half until we came upon an "Apache Burger" which was on the Apache reservation of course. I had a spam, egg, and cheese burrito which was okay.

We pushed on and it did flatten out for the most part though the light wind was against us. We stopped again at the Mt. Turnbull apache market for more road fuel. We made it to Pima for a drink and had less than 6 miles to the RV Park in Thatcher. Before we got there I got a rear flat from cause unknown. It could've been from the flat proof liner like the front flat I got earlier in the trip as I didn't find anything in the tire to cause a flat. 

The Red Lamp RV Park was another prime example of a really poorly run business. We had to pitch our tents in a trashy bare dirt lot with the ambience of a desert ghetto. Not what I wanted after pushing hard two days in a row. At least the Mexican restaurant across the street was good. 

76 miles today. 

Day 11, Mesa, AZ to Globe, AZ

After a great breakfast with Bill & Gerri we hit the road. 

Bill rode with us for about an hour showing us the best way out of town and then riding up Highway 70 with us for a while.

 We had an easy climb to Florence Junction and then a more serious climb up to Gonzales Pass at 2652 ft. The scenery was really pretty as we entered the Tonto National Forest. 

 We had a small down hill after the pass but more climbing was in store. We climbed up to Superior and got some drinks while I girded myself for the road ahead to tilt skyward, and it did. It was incredibly beautiful but really steep with lots of traffic including semis. We did alright for a couple of miles until we hit a construction area just before a tunnel. The construction took out the passing lane so that it was too narrow for the big trucks to pass us. Both of us got a truck stuck following us a few feet away until it opened up again. 

We took a breather on the uphill side of the tunnel before continuing. Climbing steeply again I was down to less than 5 mph, the sweat pouring off me. Eventually the passing lane ended which meant it was leveling out. We passed a sign saying "7 % grade downhill next 12 miles". That was a total lie. The downhill was 2 miles max and then back to a grinding uphill. We hadn't even crested the 4660 ft pass yet when we had another downhill to lose some hard fought elevation. 

We did summit and headed down to Miami, AZ but that was wasn't the fun it should've been. There was no shoulder and no passing lane and once again semi trucks couldn't safely get around us and had to follow us for awhile. 

We got almost to Miami (and out of downhill) when Jim's chain got wrapped around his crank arm twice. I think it took us about a half hour to un-knot the chain and push off for Globe. 

We got a few things at Safeway, shopping with my riding clothes covered with dried salt rings, and went three miles through Globe to the community center where we can camp for free but without showers. 

65 tough miles today. Wishing for break tomorrow but not seeing one.