Graber cycling

Seminole state park to Amistad Rec area. 33 miles 800 ft

We left our quiet campsite around 8:15 and headed down to the park office to pay for the camping. The office had a museum and incredible views of the canyon. It was 9:30 before we finally rode out.

A nice light tailwind greeted us when we got out on Rt 90 and stayed with us all the way to the campground where Kristal and janet had rented a cabin for the next few days.

It was a pleasant morning and we met another southern tier cyclist. Karl was from SoCal and had a trailer. He rode with us the last 15 miles today.

Sanderson to Seminole state campground. 83 miles. 2300 ft climbing.

We left the Desert Air motel around 9:30. Kristal and janet joined us there since they were close by in Marathon.

It was a beautiful sunny morning in the mid 50s. We generally had a decent tailwind all day. Very clear so that we could see for miles. Some beautiful canyons. It was a stretch of 80 miles without any services(water/stores). We tanked up on water and set out for Langtry, about 60 miles which had a visitor center where we could wild camp.

As we neared Langtry we realized we had plenty of time to make to another 20 miles to a state park. So we did that. There were not many campsites available but we found one. The other campers were very friendly and one couple even invited us over for a beer!

I should also mention that Craig has been feeling much better the past several days. His Achilles is still bothering him a bit but it hasn’t slowed him down.

Alpine to Sanderson. 82 miles. 1000 ft climbing. 2500 descent.

We left alpine after first stopping at the TSC store( did you know they have live ducklings for sale!) for some glue for our patches.

A nice tailwind out of town quickly disappeared when highway 90 turned to the southeast. We fought the 25mph head/side wind for about 30 miles until we reached Marathon. Finally after about 10 miles later we turned more eastward and the wind switched to west. The last 40 miles were fun with the tailwind and a slight downgrade for about 20 miles of it. Craig once again wanted to go farther (we already had 82 miles) but we had no lodging options after Sanderson in the 40mph wind forecast tonight. Staying at the desert Air motel tonight.

Valentine to Alpine. 63 miles. 1050 ft climbing.

Okay bear with me cause I’m going to mention the wind again. It was a strong SE wind while we were heading east. Very hard work the first 35 miles.

We had committed to reach Marfa by lunch and it was after 1:30 when we reached a Dairy Queen. French fries, PB&J sandwiches, and a dipped vanilla cone later we were back on the road. About 10 miles out of Marfa the highway turned NE and we enjoyed some tailwind the rest of the way.

Craig wanted to ride another 30 miles to Marathon but with 65 in already I booked a room at the holiday inn with my CC points. We also didn’t want to pitch a tent in 25-40mph winds!

Sierra Blanca to Valentine. 72 miles. 920 feet climbing

Today was a very grey day. Overcast and cool when we woke up. 36deg start! But it warmed up quickly.

We got back on our service road by interstate 10 for several miles and then had to get on the highway the last 10 mlles till we reached Van Horn. after some lunch and stocking up on supplies at a grocery store we headed south.

An annoying headwind greeted us for the first 20 miles. After some hard work we finally were rewarded when it shifted to a side/tailwind for the final 20 miles. Can you tell that winds are a big factor when cycling? lol

Fabens to Sierra Blanco. 66 miles. 1388 ft climbing.

We left the Fabens fire station around 8:15 and headed east on some long straight flat roads. More pecan groves. We followed the Rio grande most of the morning and saw the border wall a few times.

We were about a mile from our lunch spot when the tire that went flat yesterday flatted again. It was the same hole. The patch that we used didn’t hold. I had bought a new one and installed it. Hoping we are done with flats for a while!

After lunch we rode alongside I10 on a service road until we reached our final destination the town park in Sierra Blanca. It was a long hot climb but we had a nice tailwind. Nice park that allows cyclists to camp! Also has bathrooms and electric to charge our devices.

Mesilla to Fabens, TX. 83 miles. 800 ft climbing

A great pancake breakfast by our warmshowers host, Ken got us off to a good start. We easily made the 5 miles back to the route thanks to the downhill most of the way there.

We followed the Rio Grande into El Paso working against a moderate 10-15mph headwind. We passed through many pecan groves. Lunch was on the bike path by the river.

Traveling through ElPaso was the most climbing we had all day. Once we had made it most of the way thought the city we found the wind had shifted to a nice tailwind.

Thanks to the tailwind we were able to make it 83 miles by 6:30 pm. We stopped at the firehouse and they let us pitch our tent besiege the firehouse and use the restroom. they were very nice!

Deming to Mesilla 66 miles 940 ft climbing

Back on the road again. Woohoo!!

A nice hotel breakfast delayed our start until 9:15. We had a strong tailwind most of the day along with fairly flat roads. Sunny and 40-65 degrees.

I had a flat tire midday that was the first one I’ve had touring including the whole 2017 TransAm cross country ride. Then it flatted again when I didn’t find the wire that caused it the first time.

We found a warmshowers host in Mesilla. Dan was very welcoming and showed us our own guest house and provided an evening meal for us. He is from Michigan and a Michigan State graduate so we had lots in common.

Pinos Altos

I’m still in our cabin at 8am dressed in my riding gear. I opened the door to four more inches of snow!! Looks like no 🚴 today either. We will probably drive south to Deming to get off of this mountain and away from this snow. Start riding from there tomorrow.

Duncan to Pinos Altos 0 miles riding.

After booking a cheap motel room in Duncan ($55) because of the approaching storm of high winds and rain(and snow!)we considered riding to Lordsburg without our bags and were just about to when another snow squall came through. We decided to load the bikes on the car and head to the campground where we had reserved two cabins.

We stopped at Dennys in silver city on the way for a late lunch at 2pm.