Day 25 Ft Hancock to Van Horn 73 miles

Oct 13
Well there is only one motel in in Ft Hancock and it is the worst I have ever been in, smelly room , rubish tv reception, just skanky. The owner is indian (not native american, indian) as are all the owners of motels in america that I've been in, and he's cheery enough, but there is no point in complaining as there is no where else to go!
Funny that about owners of motels being indian , I checked in google to see if it was just a phenomenal coincidece but 60% of mid-sized american motels are owned by indians , well there you go , not seen any of the other 40% of nationalities on my evidence its 100%!
I get up early as I want out of Ft Hancock asap, there are 2 possibilities today a gentle ride to Sierra blanca 42 mile away or 73 mile to Van Horn, the latter would be a long ride so I reserve judgement till I seee how S. B. is.
The first part of the journey is on side roads to avoid the I 10 and is pleasant , for the remoteness of it , I see 3 cars in 20 miles. The next part is on a road parralell to the I 10 so no traffic but I'm climbing and the wind is being unkind again.
Sierra Blanca is closed, it looks like one of those places near chernobyl which have been abandoned 20 years ago, I can't spend the night here and decide to push on to Van Horn. Its a long strech through the Malone and Quitman mountains but I get in at 4.30 after nearly 8 hours, 6 in the saddle, crossed two mountain ranges 73 miles and one time zone.
Van Horn , surely due to its strategic position on the I 10 (remember -america's M6) is festooned with motels , like maybee 25 or so , two gas stations two grocery stores and oddly only two restaurants, but
all those motels, prices reflect this , room with brekkie $29. Motels seem to have a vastly more important position in American life than they do in the UK or Spain.

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