Kent, TX to Fort Davis, TX

---

Shawne and Jo say...
Day 31
Miles Today: 55.8
Total Mileage: 1274.7
Flats Today: 0
Total Flats: 36

We rose early, trying to avoid detection by any ranchers or passing motorists. Jo backed into a cactus while taking the morning camp pictures, and Shawne had to pull a sharp needle out of her leg. We packed up and made it through the gate and onto the road without being noticed. The gas station was open now back in Kent. We backtracked about a mile and ventured inside the store to check what was on the menu for breakfast. Microwaved burritos and milk were the only things they had to offer, so we nuked some food and ate.
It was breezy as we started the ride. The elevation profile on our map showed a 2,100 foot climb through the Davis Mountains on the way to the McDonald Observatory atop Mt. Locke. The map also showed that there was a restaurant at the observatory, which was the only food for the next 37 miles. We remembered that the cyclist we met back in El Paso told us that he camped at the observatory and that it would be no problem for us to do the same. We made this our goal for the day, even though it would make for less mileage and a short ride...or so we thought.
The wind picked up as we pushed through the rolling hills. An occasional ranch would be visible from the road as we rode on. Shawne heard a grunting noise and looked to his right. Two wild Javelinas spotted us and ran along the fence, then disappeared. This really frightened Shawne. He's heard that Javelinas are mean and will attack, and he wasn't sure if his bear mace worked on the fierce swine. He looked over his shoulder as we moved on. A few miles later, something appeared in the road ahead. It was a dark color and was definately moving around. We slowed as Shawne prepared to take the safety off the trigger of the mace. As we got closer, it looked like feathers from the wing of a bird. We thought something was eating a dead bird in the road, but the thing wasn't moving away at our approach. As we neared it, we realized that the wind was lifting the wing of a dead bird, and that was the movement we'd seen. It turned out to be a large, beautiful hawk that had been hit by a passing vehicle. It was sad to see such an amazing creature in the middle of the road, so Shawne picked it up and moved it to the shoulder. At least it wouldn't be a hazard to passing motorists.
The wind turned ferocious as it pushed against us from the front and the side. Our speed dropped significantly as our effort increased. Every few miles there would be a pullout on the shoulder which had a small, two foot tall rock wall along the roadside. We would actually stop and lay down beside the wall to get a small break from the terrible wind. We were drained as we snacked on Power Bars and granola bars...our only source of food. We did this at every single pullout. Once, we even fell asleep right there on the pavement, with our faces buried in our arms.
The hills became steeper and the road more narrow as the day progressed. This was not simply a 2,100 foot climb. Every uphill gain of 200 feet was followed by a 100 foot decent, so it was, in fact, two steps forward and one step back. This went on all day. We saw some odd trees dotting the roadside with interesting stonework surrounding the bases. They seemed to be intentionally planted memorials of some kind, and the trees did not appear to be native. We never found any sort of memorial plaque anywhere, and it was strange to find these miles and miles away from civilization.
Rounding a corner, we came across two cowboys sitting on their horses next to a herd of cows in a field. We said hello, and they tipped their hats to us, grins splitting their faces. We immediately thought of "Brokeback Mountain" and laughed. We passed an entrance to a property with the name "Heaven's Gate" above the dirt road. We wondered if it was the same Heaven's Gate where the kids drank the poisoned Kool-Aid that was supposed to take them to the Mothership, but we couldn't remember if that happened in Texas.
We stopped at the Lawrence Wood Picnic Area to rest. With only seven miles to the Observatory, we were feeling relieved. Little did we know, the steepest grades were yet to come. We were met with horrible switchbacks that we were barely able to climb, even in first gear. Javelinas thrashed and squealed in the brush around us, keeping us on edge. Finally, we rounded a bend and saw the gleaming silver dome of an observatory. Then, another telescope appeared with a white dome...then another smaller one. With our eyes on the prize, we squeezed out what little energy reserves we had left. We noticed that some other cyclist was having a hard time with this pass also, and the evidence was left on the shoulder of the road in the form of empty energy gel packets that were strewn along the route. (Please don't litter, cyclists! Come on! Don't we see enough litter every day without contributing to it?)
A nice downhill took us to the Visitor's Center, a few hundred feet below the telescopes. A shuttle bus waited at the curb to whisk tourists up the road to the Observatories. We were so tired and hungry, but in good spirits that we made it and could now eat and camp!
A woman emerged from the building and approached us. She gave us the bad news as we parked our bikes; the Visitor's Center closed at 5:00, and it was now 5:15...
"But if y'all need to use the restroom, I can probably still get you in," she offered cheerfully. We began to run an inventory in our heads of how many snacks we had left and whether they would take us through the next day. We asked the woman where we could camp. She told us that there was no camping allowed at the observatory at all, and that the nearest food was in Fort Davis, which was sixteen miles of "mostly downhill"-as she put it. She apologized, got into the shuttle bus and drove off. Jo was very reluctant to go, but there was no other option. We needed food, period. Slowly, we climbed back on our bikes and headed downhill...mostly.
The grade was very steep, heating our brakes quickly. We were passed by six 'crotch-rockets' that screamed past us headed uphill. Riding past a small community of homes, we noticed that everyone in the area had their own miniature observatory. Small domes came into sight all over the mountainside. This area is supposedly one of the greatest sites in the U.S. for astronomy due to the extremely low amount of light pollution.
A few more rolling hills led us into Fort Davis, TX (which proudly displays it's "Approved Public Water System" sign at the city limit). We stopped at a service station to ask directions to a pizza place we'd seen advertised on an Adopt A Highway litter cleanup sign a few miles back. Finding Murphy's Pizza, we gorged on an extra large pie, finishing it all. We visited with a few locals, and found one cyclist who lives in Alpine, TX, and a couple who were travelling and looking to move to Fort Davis. Carlton R. Evans and his wife own their own business, and Mr. Evans makes beautiful, handmade pocket knives from damascus steel. (His website is crevanscustomknives.com if you want to check it out!) They told us they were staying in an RV Park in Alpine, the next town. They said we may be able to camp there tomorrow. We thanked them for the info and headed to the local RV Park to set up camp. Even though we ate the entire extra large pizza, we both felt that we could have easily eaten another.
Arriving at the park, we were met by the owner, who seemed a bit sketchy to us. We were very tired, though, and didn't really care. Jo asked if there were hand-dryers in the bathrooms. He looked at her strangely, so she explained that in the state parks in New Mexico, there were hand-dryers and she'd turn the nozzle and use them to dry her hair.
He said, "Ya know what the difference is? THEY have unlimited taxpayer funds! I DON'T! So, I ain't got no dryers! I got paper towels!" He seemed very upset about the question. He made some other statements about how we'd "better do laundry here instead of waiting until tomorrow because it makes more sense to wait for laundry while you shower"...or something. He showed us the fire pit, which we could not use due to a ban on open fires...or something.
He finally left us alone to set up camp. We showered, and we did laundry. We fell asleep quickly after such an exhausting day.

---

Photos

Stealth Camping
Beautiful sunrise

Breakfast time!
Yet another meal of microwaved junk.

The middle of nowhere
This is where the wind started picking up.

Poor guy
he gave us a scare from the distance.

Two non-natives
Notice the stone-work around the base.

Wind break
The only escape was to hide behind the short walls.

Heaven's Gate
No Kool Aid for us, thank you.

Resting in the park
Just around the bend, the hills are waiting.

Yey!
The telescopes finally come into sight.

My...
what big optics you have.

No!
No food for you!

Very proud
What better way to welcome visitors.

Pizza time!
The knife-makers, Mr. and Mrs. Evans.

Comments

[Denise Wright]

Miss You guys
Hey there you two, I just wanted to add a little WE MISS YOU! and HAPPY GOBBLE GOBBLE DAY! When you guys get back, I'll do a turkey dinner for you guys. Love, Denise and the Boys