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Published: October 2nd 2015
Northern Chihuahuan Desert
The Rockies are well behind us now.We made it to Mexico! Last Wednesday, after 2400 miles and 123,000 vertical feet of total ascent, Fi and I finally crossed the border from Columbus, NM into Palomas, Mexico. Within 5 minutes of rolling into town, we pulled up to a storefront that sells souvenirs and also serves as a bar and restaurant, where a woman working there saw us coming and immediately thrust a beer and margarita into our hands. "You made it from Canada!" she exclaimed. "You deserve a drink, first ones are free!" We didn't have the heart to tell her that we had started out a little south of the US-Canada border, lest we jeopardize our newly awarded free drinks.
Our path to Mexico led us south from Silver City, through the sleepy desert town of Hachita, NM, where we met up with Jeff Sharpe, who not only opened his home for us to stay the night, but also cooked us a great chicken dinner and breakfast the following morning. A great host with a big heart, we really enjoyed meeting Jeff. From Hachita, we rode the final 50 mile stretch through the northern Chihuahuan Desert to the small, pretty border town of Columbus, NM
Northern Chihuahuan Desert
Typical of the scenery that we rode through during our last few days, the blooming wildflowers in this area were very striking. (our field guide advised us not to travel through the area at night due to drug smuggling traffic that shares the same terrain) and then into Mexico at the Palomas border entry. With passports in hand, we rolled up to the Mexican customs officials, nice guys who poked through our gear mostly out of curiosity rather than for any official purpose. Moments later, after we left their charge and were rolling through town, we realized that no one had even asked us for any form of identification, let alone bothered to check our passports. Getting back into the US proved to be far more officious, complete with a drug-sniffing dog that went absolutely bezerk when we pedalled past him and his handler. I was pretty sure that a full body and cavity search were forthcoming, but luckily they just let us pass. We spent the night in Columbus at a very nice, small, and inexpensive inn called Martha's Place, a Spanish mission-style inn with very friendly staff. Our terrace faced the night lights of Palomas, where we had just spent a couple of enjoyable hours, reminiscing over the miles, mountains, mishaps, and memorable experiences that this expedition had provided us.
Our last Continental Divide crossing
During our trip, we must have passed back and forth over the Divide about 20 times. Unlike most of our crossings in Colorado, Wyoming, and Montana where crossing the Divide entailed monstrous climbs up steep mountains, this final crossing was pretty benign where the Divide (near the southern New Mexico desert town Hachita) is but a shadow of its former self. But we weren't done riding; we still had 2 days to cover 100 miles, where we had plans to meet up with my friend, Brian, whom I served with in the Coast Guard over 15 yrs ago. Brian, who is an avid cyclist and mountain biker, took us out to dinner at a great Mexican restaurant (La Posta). It was great to get together, and I hope we didn't keep him out too late, as he was planning a big road ride the following morning (Saturday) and a day of singletrack mountain biking on Sunday. Doesn't sound like a bad way to spend the weekend.
So that's about it for now. After arriving in Las Cruces, we rented a car and drove to California where we spent a few days in one of our favourite places (Idyllwild, CA) before heading to San Diego. That's where we're at now, awaiting our flight to Santiago, Chile, where we'll do this crazy bike riding expedition stuff all over again. Our bikes are stuffed back into big cardboard boxes, and we're stuffed into a little motel room sorting out the final details of our next adventure. Our plan is to spend a
Another day, another rattlesnake
A day of riding in the desert wouldn't be complete without at least one close encounter with a rattlesnake. This guy, near Hachita, looks like he'd been run over, but was still rattling and hissing when we rolled past. couple of days in Santiago before heading south, where we'll eventually enter Argentina (maybe at San Martin de los Andes) then turn north towards Mendoza and Salta. Apparently, we haven't suffered enough abuse from riding our bikes in this country, or haven't smartened up to it yet, so we're travelling to South America to endure yet more suffering by bike. We'll post some blog entries here from time to time, but probably not as frequently. We'll try to post plenty of photos, especially as we get into the Andes. We hope you'll stick with us as we go.
Lastly, we have to publicly thank some folks who have supported us during this endeavour: First, my parents, who have let us use their home address as our own mailing address, and who have been very gracious about accepting packages of discarded gear that we've periodically sent back to them to put aside until I eventually visit them, at which time I'll probably toss most of it into the trash.
Secondly, thanks to both of our families and friends for being supportive of what many would describe as a hairbrained idea: to voluntarily become jobless, car-less, and homeless in order
Fellow long-haul cyclists
From left, Tim (grey shirt, who also rode from Canada, now on his way to San Francisco), Scott (red shirt, also riding from Canada), Margo (whose husband Frank is on the far left, both from Holland). We met up with them in Hachita, the night before we departed for our final day of riding before reaching the border. Margo, Frank, and we headed eastward towards Palomas, while Scott and Tim headed south to the deserted border crossing at Antelope Wells, NM. to go for an excruciatingly long bicycle ride. Your support has been very much appreciated.
Finally, but certainly not least of all, we have been very fortunate to count Ron and Marion Herndon among our friends. Ron and Marion have provided a wonderful 'foster' home for our beloved little mutt, Goldie, during our trip. We've only been able to do this trip knowing that our furry little friend has been well cared for; in fact, I think Goldie has had such a good time with Ron and Marion that she'll be a little disappointed to see me when I come to collect her. We really are grateful for all that they've done for us.
And thank you all for tuning in and for your emails along the way. We really appreciate your support. So long, until our next posting, from somewhere well south of here!
~ Ken and Fi
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Ann and Allan
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Fantastic !
Well done. An amazing achievement and still you want more ? At last Fi, your dream has materialised and so wonderful that you found Ken to share your enthusiasm and expertise on wheels ! Very proud and thrilled for you both.