Cloudcroft New Mexico ride - Memorial Day Weekend 2010

[Tourmeister]

Great ride report guys!

So I got to ask Scott, or maybe I missed it? Where was the deer, four wheeler, or other unwanted smack down for you on this trip? Still got all of your fingers and toes?

Running lead for 3 of the 4 days, I did see my share of wild life. There were multiple cases where anywhere from 3-8 large elk crossed in front of me, causing me to have to get on the brakes pretty good. You would think they would be easy to spot at a distance, but they can be pretty sneaky! There was also a cool looking fox. There were some ATV's, but for the most part they stayed on their side of the road and I stayed on mine (as I always do!!). There were several turkey encounters. One flew across the road in front of me at about chest height and he was a big one! I saw him coming though. Another time, there were 5-6 of them running down the side of the road in a pasture at an amazing speed. They came to a large gully and all of them flew across instead of across my path, which was a pretty cool site. Then there was the deer in that burned out area where Bill went down and I had to go back to look for him and Roger. There was also that wide load 18 wheeler... Given my past experiences, you can bet I look REAL hard for stuff like this, hehe. However, on this trip I managed to return without any kills and all my bike and body parts intact

 

[The Bruce]

 

[Iceman Jack]

Just an FYI. The fellow at the Summit said to tell you guys ,and that he enjoyed having y'all stay there.
And the place is for sell just in case you're interested?

 

[Tourmeister]

Yeah, he mentioned wanting to move back to the El Paso area where he apparently has some family.

 

[Iceman Jack]

Yeah, he mentioned wanting to move back to the El Paso area where he apparently has some family.

He told me he was going to buy a trike and see the country. Maybe all us motorcicle riders gave him an idea?

 

[Vinny]

Thanks for describing what roads you rode. It'll make it easier to find when I go up there. Nice ride report.

 

[bpayne13]

Please let me know if you are planning a repeat ride up around Cloudcroft in 2011. I did the 2010 MexTrek and had a ball on my KLR-650 and am looking for additional trip opportunities.

Thanks,

Bill Payne
San Santonio, TX
bpayne13@aol.com
(210) 521-1580

 

[sanderjavant]

Great shot!

Where was it taken, near Pinon?

John on his brand spanking new KLR, less than 500 miles so far.

 

[Tourmeister]

Great shot!

Where was it taken, near Pinon?

No. It was somewhere NE of Ruidoso, heading into the Capitan Mountains.

 

[Has Been]

R squared and tourmeister ---Good on ya. I did that ride in 1973. Mine was only two days...but i was on an expence account. Keep the LOtF in riding form. R2, is that grey hair in your beard? oh my!

 

[Rsquared]

R squared and tourmeister ---Good on ya. I did that ride in 1973. Mine was only two days...but i was on an expence account. Keep the LOtF in riding form. R2, is that grey hair in your beard? oh my!

Hello Has Been, it's been way too long. It’s hard to believe this Cloudcroft ride was 9 years ago. And now gray is all there is.
I was just riding the Cloudcroft area a week ago.
We need to get back up to Montana for another “Legends of the Fall” ride. LOF 5 has to be one of my favorite rides of all time...

 

[Boulder Ed]

And the KLR is still running despite getting tossed onto the rocky ground. Just goes to show you how hard they are to kill! Great report, and now I want to go trail ride there. Those trails with the bikes laying all over them remind me of riding back home in CO

 

[Tourmeister]

It's been a long time since my last trip out to Cloudcroft. After this trip, I got my KTM 530 EXC and we went back for another trip. It was MUCH more fun, especially when we tried that nasty climb again! My KTM is probably feeling a little neglected. It hasn't been ridden since July 2018 when we spent a week in Ouray, Co.! When I get the chance to ride, I usually end up taking one of my kids with me, so that means I take the 1200 GS. I did do a bit of riding out at Cloudcroft a few years back on a family trip where I brought my 07 1200 GS. Daniel rode with me from Alamogordo, down the Sun Spot highway and then East on dirt roads until we ended up in Weed for lunch with my wife and daughters. Then I ran a bunch of back roads over to Artesia with my daughter Sarah on the back. We got soaked in a nasty storm. Good times!