Day 58- Columbus and the end

It definitely was not a very restful night, and I was glad morning light was on the horizon. I went back into the community center to get some breakfast, and get ready to leave this “Bug” town. Michael claimed he had a peaceful night, but I knew he must have been lying. He had already packed up and was ready to ride to the end of the road at Antelope Wells, only to have someone pick him up, drive back through Hachita on the way to El Paso. There is absolutely nothing in Antelope Wells other than a sign and fence. Hmm…

I went to get my tent, and as soon as I lifted it off the ground, hundreds of those fat black beetles came scurrying out from under my ground sheet. They must have thought that was a great place to hide. No wonder it sounded like bigger creatures being right below me. Maybe they did it to keep away from those swooping bats.. I shook out the tent good to make sure I didn’t have any stowaways before putting it away in my pannier.

I didn’t linger around much longer, and got on the road that led directly to Columbus. It was a pretty desolate section, with really nothing but a Border patrol station halfway in that 44 mile stretch. There were many remote, solar powered cameras on posts along the way, scanning the horizon for those “nasty” Mexicans wanting to sneak in. In the distance you could see Trump’s “beautiful” wall. Yep, I can see why they all want to come to the US to live in a place like Hachita.. Ok, enough commentary..

There was no traffic other than some large oversized transport trucks with these huge wind turbine blades. Someone later told me they are made outside Juarez, Mexico, and then moved into the US to where there is wind (with the exception of Wyoming where they think these are the devil’s invention)..

I was making good time, and could “smell the hay” at the finish in Columbus. I could finally see the town on the horizon, and had a great feeling of relief and satisfaction. The ride was almost done! I stopped at a small cafe at the entrance of town, and had a real Mexican style breakfast to make up for the dried up bagel I had in Hachita. The young Hispanic ladies working there, enthusiastically greeted me. One spotted my bike outside, and asked if I was doing that “Divide” thing. I nodded and then I got peppered with all kind of questions. An elderly woman, who I presumed was the cook, looked a bit puzzled until the other woman rattled something in Spanish with the words “bicicleta” and “Canada” somewhere in between. Her eyes just lit up..

Proper Breakfast, Mexican style

I had one more thing I needed to do, and that was to bike another 3 miles south to the actual border to take photographic evidence that I was here. It was amazing to have cars and trucks wait for me to give me more room on the road before passing. I doubt they knew what I had done, but it still was a good feeling. I had to wait a bit before someone passed near the terminus plaque to take my picture. It ended up being a US border patrol agent, so my beef with them is over. 😄

I rode back to Columbus and checked into the hotel where I would stay two nights before I would fly home from El Paso. It was a warm and welcoming place, done in Hispanic style. It almost felt like my parents old home in Chapala, Mexico. 🥲

I really wanted to cross the border with my bike which I did the next day. There is a small town just across the border called Puerto Palomas, and everyone recommended that I stop at the “Pink Store” to get something to eat. I rode back to the border and walked my bike across with me. No documents needed. I just got smiles when I did. The history is that Pancho Villa led a raid of Columbus from Palomas and then went back across the border. The US led a yearlong search for him without success. He is hailed by Mexicans (note statue) and was reviled by the northerners across the border as a bandit. Although the hotel I was staying in had lots of old photos of him on their wall…

Pancho Villa

The Pink store was just a block away from the border, and you couldn’t miss it. I found a safe place to park my bike and went inside. It was a huge space divided into a restaurant, bar, and mostly retail of nice Mexican made items like art, jewelry, and lots of pottery. The colors were overwhelming and made me happy to see it all. I had a nice meal with several waiters dropping by to ask what I was doing with the bicycle, and if I wanted a complimentary drink or desert. What a change.. I did browse around the store, and wished I had our van with me to take more stuff back home. I think we may just need to come back here another day to do that. I ended up with just a few small items to take back. A lady behind the desk (ended being the owner) wanted to know more about the trip and then would ask some questions in Spanish to me to see if I could converse back. I could for some, but I will definitely need to catch back up on my Spanish DuoLingo tutorials. I felt somewhat honored that she did that.

I did have a bit of a challenge finding the right way to cross the border back into the US. It was clear for vehicles, but no signage for pedestrians or cyclists. I would ask some of the official looking folks in my broken Spanish, but they all seemed to be pointing in different directions. I think I circled the block in front of the Pink Store at least 5 times. The locals sitting on the curb must have thought I was a gringo on a bicycle gone loco. A Mexican soldier who was armed to the teeth, finally pointed in the right direction. He looked intimidating with his guns, uniform, and dark sunglasses. In the end he gave me a big smile and a thumbs up.

I had just cleared US customs and had gotten on my bike to ride back north to Columbus, when I saw what looked like two cyclists with large panniers in the distance. Sure enough it was Hamish and Jess finishing their trip, and coming to take their pics at the signs. It was funny that Jess had mentioned a few days ago that maybe they would see me in the end crossing back from Mexico into the US. How luck would have it! I was glad I was there to take their photos, and we even got a selfie shot of all three of us.

The stats for my ride were that I rode for 53 days, and had 5 rest days. That is pretty close to the “guesstimate” I gave Linda before leaving. The total distance was 2,830 miles, and climbed 165,248 feet in elevation. I won’t give you stats on the number of coca-colas, or chocolate milks I drank. Or, the number of hamburgers, PB tortillas, snickers, ice creams, etc that I ate. All I know is that I will need to transition back to a more normal diet. As one of the GDMBR cyclists said: “What a great 4,000 calorie a day way to lose weight”.. 😂

Thanks for following along and have yourself your own great adventure!

Day 57- Hachita

I had met Hamish and Jess yesterday evening for dinner after they rolled into Silver City. They did have to cut one of their days short between Pie town and Silver City due to mud and rain. They wisely decided to camp immediately, and avoid what had happened earlier to us up north. They were planning on three days to Columbus, while I wanted to get it over with in two.

I got up while it was still fairly dark and biked south out of Silver City. I chose the main highway instead of the dirt road, especially since it was still dark. A nice wide shoulder and not much traffic made it a pleasant ride. I could also watch the sun rise above the horizon to the left of me.

After 10 miles I turned on the dirt road heading towards Separ, and the scenery immediately changed. Lots of yucca plants and cactus along the way. It was really spectacular riding on the ridge with mountains in the distance, smooth sandy roads, and nobody else out for the next 30 miles to Separ. I will remember this as one of my most favorite sections. I was feeling great, and was riding faster than usual.

It didn’t take me too long to make it to Separ, which is basically just a small souvenir shop on a remote exit of the I-10 freeway. I was able to get a coke and ice cream sandwich, and just sat on the picnic table outside, staring at the steady stream of trucks on the freeway. I-10 is the most southerly, east-to-west freeway that goes from Florida to Santa Monica, California. We had traveled it by van before , and it wasn’t the most scenic way to see the USA.

There was an old Buick car parked in from of the Separ store that looked it had been there for a while. The place looked a bit like a scene in the movie, “No country for old men”. I think those who have seen the movie remember the part I am talking about. Looks like it is time for this old man to head down the road before Chigurh shows up..

The next 10 miles was on the gravel access road next to I-10. Not bad since there was nobody on it, but not the most inspiring. I thought whether I could reach Columbus today since I had made such good progress, but that would still be a 120+ mile day to do that. That idea was quickly squashed when I turned south towards Hachita, straight into a stiff wind. It was a straight stretch of 30 miles of paved road with nothing in sight. This was one of the only times on the whole trip where I wished I had aero bars to help me a bit more aerodynamically. Kind of silly since I have a couple large bags hanging on front of the bike. Hachita would remain my destination for the day.

Last Divide crossing

The road to Hachita

I rode into the little town of Hachita which was like many of the other sad, depressed towns I had been through on my ride. There was a small convenience store that didn’t have much, but did have a large cold chocolate milk in the fridge. This is also where I would check in if I wanted to stay at the community center. No other choice really. I rode to the center, passing mostly abandoned, and partly demolished homes and businesses. Another sad sight and reinforcement of my decision to end my ride in Columbus instead of Antelope Wells.

Michael from the UK was the only other person in the community center, and seemed eager to talk to someone. He said that he really had not seen another cyclist since leaving Pie town. I was scoping out the community center to see where the best place to sleep was. The place was full of crawling and dead bugs. I didn’t look forward to having them crawl over me in the middle of the night. Michael was planning to end his ride in Antelope Wells the next day. I asked him why Antelope Wells, and he simply replied “It is tradition, right?”. Give it to the Brits to keep tradition. I, on the other hand wanted to end in a more vibrant and uplifting place. To each his own I guess..

In the end I decided that I would rather sleep outside in my tent, protected from those crawling bugs. It was also a bit too warm and stale inside. I went ahead and set up my tent next to the community center, and wished Michael much luck with the bugs. It started ok initially with a bit of breeze to cool things down a bit. I noticed that a large swarm of bats were circling the building, hoping they would be reducing the number of bugs around. I wasn’t worried about them. At about 9pm a large and bright overhead light came on above my tent. Great! Luckily I had my eye mask readily available, and took care of that problem. The wind then died down and it was eerily quiet with the exception of small scurrying animals around. I couldn’t tell what they were, but would hit the side of the tent every so often to hopefully scare them off. Then a couple minutes later I could hear the shuffling again. I decided that ignorance was bliss, and that I would try to fall asleep instead.

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Day 55 & 56- Silver City

It did rain quite a bit throughout the night, so I was happy I was safe and dry in my little tent “cave”. I tried to keep things fairy dry as I packed up, but knew I would hopefully be staying in dry accommodations in Silver City, or otherwise something went wrong.

I had a climb to do right away from the campground, and was hoping it wouldn’t be through peanut butter mud. I did notice mud sticking more to my tires, but not to the point where it would stop wheels from turning. I just focused on making progress up that long hill upwards. The mud situation got progressively better the higher I went up, partially due to more sun shining and drying out the road. That was a big relief.

I will say that I was pretty focused on getting to Silver City today, and didn’t take as many pictures as I should have. I was hungry for real food and a cold coke. I finally reached the little town of Lake Robert’s, where I hoped I could find a little cafe for lunch. In the end I only found a small country store that did have cokes, but no real food to speak of. The old man at the counter told me I would find one 20 miles further in Pinos Altos, but that I would have to tackle some big hills first to get there. Thanks for that encouraging news..☹️

I got to the intersection where I would need to turn left towards Silver City. There was another sign pointing right to the Gila Cave dwellings monument. “Wait”, Linda and I had been there a few years ago touring in our camper van! One thing I do remember from that trip is seeing some cyclists on those twisty and hilly roads, and thinking how miserable that must be. Well, turn the page a couple years forward, and you have me on a fully loaded bike doing the same thing! Had I only known back then..

That first hill was a beast for at least 4 miles. I was in my lowest gear spinning away. Barely faster than it would take walking up. I just didn’t want to face the indignation of passing vehicles stopping to ask if I was ok. The rest of the ride wasn’t so steep, and I had a number of downhill sections to let the bike “stretch its legs”, and me pretending I was on a motorcycle instead. 🤪 I felt I was making good progress and could “smell the hay” in Silver City. It was also good knowing I would have a final 9 mile downhill into town once I got to Pinos Altos.

Pic borrowed from Google

I reached a group of homes that had a lot of quirky art in their yards and many progressive signs. This must be Pinos Altos. I came to what looked like the center of town with an old, dusty looking building called the “Buckhorn Saloon and Opera house”. Hah, that was the place mentioned by the old shop keeper at Lake Robert’s! There was a fully tattooed lady with a guitar about to enter when I asked her if they served any food. “After 4pm they do”, she replied. It was 4:06pm, so I leaned my bike against a post and went inside. It was pretty busy, with all tables taken, so I took a seat at the bar. Folks seemed to be fashionable dressed like it was a fancy restaurant. I looked a bit out of place in my dusty bike outfit. The waitress was very nice, and I ordered a large glass of cold orange juice and their steak sandwich. Nobody really payed attention to me which was perfectly fine. That steak with fries was heavenly!! Just what the body was screaming for.

I left the saloon fully charged and got on the bike to ride to the top of the hill at the edge of town, and ready to let it fly downhill for the next 9 miles into Silver City. I was on a wide paved road and there was hardly any traffic. I am sure I must have set the highest speed record of the trip on this section. 😁

One of the first houses I saw in Silver City. I like their style..

The downhill lasted all the way into the old downtown part of Silver City. Linda and I had been through this town in our way to the Gila Cliff Dwellings, and didn’t think much of the place. I found it much more enticing this time, maybe because we never went to the old downtown section. I had booked a room at one of the two motels which was really tastefully done in art deco style. One of the better places I had stayed in on the trip, and reasonably priced.

Hotel I stayed

I showered up and decided to walk around a bit before it got too dark, and maybe get a beer. I was standing outside on the sidewalk looking at Google maps to find the brewery place the hotel desk person told me about. Another gentleman was walking out of the hotel and asked what I was looking for. I mentioned the brewery, and he immediately said to follow him. It was right on the corner.

David then asked if I would like to join him at one of the tables inside. Really nice guy, and somewhat in disbelief what I was doing in town. He said he had just riden his motorcycle from Pacos, Texas, and felt “bad-assed”, until now. He was exactly the same age as me, and was teaching at the local college in town. It did turn out that he probably wanted to talk to someone, which was perfectly fine with me since I was tired. He seemed like he wasn’t sure at 69 what he wanted to do with the rest of his life. In the end it made me feel very lucky to have the life I have with Linda and the rest of the family. It was 9:30 by the time I got back to my room, and I hadn’t done all the things I needed to do before heading out in the morning like laundry, groceries, and some bike maintenance items. I decided then and there to just stay an extra day.

Pics of some of Silver City on my day off:

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Day 54- Black Canyon

Nice and peaceful this morning when I got up. Ready to tackle another day here in New Mexico. I would be entering the Gila National Forest today. Amazing how much forest I have seen so far in this state. I imagined more desolate and open countryside instead. New Mexico is typically referred to as the toughest state to ride on this route and I can confirm that. Not the highest passes to cross, but lots of steep, up and downs, on rough, or muddy terrain.

I didn’t have a particular place I wanted to stay tonight. It would either be in a primitive campground, or wild camping. Really no difference from my perspective.

Dried up mud road

It was a similar ride as yesterday, although I was feeling a lot more energetic and positive. I stopped at a bridge at a stream and found a good place to sit and have a second breakfast. Three cars pulled up at the other side of the bridge and got out to walk around a bit. One of the guys came over to ask me about my trip. He has genuinely interested, especially when he told me they were following the Great Divide themselves, and wanted to do as much off-road as possible. Two of the vehicles were capable 4x4’s. One a Jeep, and the other a Ford Bronco. The third was what looked like an old VW hatchback wagon that needed a new paint job. I spoke with the driver who said that he rescued it from a junkyard in Moab, Utah. It had been sitting there since 1989. He replaced the engine with a Subaru one, and changed out all bushings, rubber mounts, and suspension. It still however was still two wheel drive. I was impressed with his enthusiasm and desire to take his project on such a grueling trip to the Canadian border. Wise of him to do it with his friends who could pull him out with a winch if needed. I warned them about the “mud” too. I liked their spirits about taking something like this on!

Converted VW

The afternoon started to bring on dark clouds earlier than expected. I was in the Canyon part of the forest with those rocky, up and down roads. I had passed the flatter section earlier that had that dried up, mud full off deep ruts from vehicles trying to get through. I was thinking about the trio I had met earlier, and how they would fare if it got wet there. I could hear thunder, and the dark clouds were to the sides of me and behind, but still relatively clear straight ahead. I was not in a good section to stop anyway, so I kept pedaling.

Later that afternoon I saw a sign for the Black Canyon campsite, so I pulled in to take a look. It was right at the bottom of a long downhill I had just done, and the start of a steep, and long uphill. There was a pretty good size creek next to the campsite that had water flowing nearby. The place had picnic tables and even a small portable toilet which was unusual. As soon as I stepped off the bike it started to rain. Well, that made it clear I should stay here for the night, and not tackle the muddy uphill in the rain. I got my tent pitched pretty quick and put all my stuff in the vestibules on the side. It was still only 4pm, but it made no sense standing outside in the rain, so I climbed in, put on dry clothes, and had an early dinner. I never got out until the following morning.

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