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On the Road Again Spring '09

Joined
Oct 19, 2006
Messages
8,250
Reaction score
36
Location
Big sky country; Ronan, MT
First Name
Bruce
Last Name
Taylor
I'm heading out tomorrow on the Harley for a six day road trip with a couple buddies and thought I'd just go ahead and start the report now. Reason: I'll be using a SPOT tracker so anyone that wants to can follow our progress and see where we are. If you want to know where we are or where we've been, check SPOT using this LINK. This is the first time for the SPOT so I hope it works. I've tested the system a couple of times and have had some issues with positioning on the bike blocking the signal that I believe I have solved. We're heading west and plan on camping as many nights as possible. We've got a plan but plans will change as needed. I don't have a laptop so I won't be able to check anything after this evening. Sorry, no spoilers. :trust:
 
Have a great and safe trip. I'd never really heard of SPOT before. Looks pretty cool! Seems like one of those things I'd pay for a years worth of service and use once though.

Good luck!
 
I'm jealous! Have fun and be careful. I look forward to lots of pics.
 
Seems like one of those things I'd pay for a years worth of service and use once though.

I thought that myself previously. I've got a couple big trips this year so it was worth it to give the Mrs. some piece of mind.

You suck. Have fun.

Yeah, I know. ;-) Hold down the fort while I'm gone.

I'm jealous! Have fun and be careful. I look forward to lots of pics.

Thanks. Lots of pics is expected and I'll do my best to fulfill that requirement.
 
We made it back OK. A great road trip. I've got several hundred pics to process before I get into the report. I'll start with these.

Final mileage.

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Dirt. I didn't wash anything but the windshield the entire trip. :trust:

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That is how a bike should look! Clean bikes are for sissies. :rofl:

All that wasted time washing could be spent riding!
 
That is how a bike should look! Clean bikes are for sissies. :rofl:

All that wasted time washing could be spent riding!

Agreed! And, the week before we left I got a coupon from Central Texas Harley for a free bike wash to celebrate 6 months of ownership. We'll see how good they do and will add that to this report. :trust:
 
Day 1: Wednesday, April 29

This trip started to take shape last December when it was time to schedule our vacation for the year. As firefighters we have to schedule for the year in January. There is some flexibility allowed by trading days with others that may have what you need and sometimes days become available as time passes and people use time they had scheduled later in the year. Perry and I had locked in this week for a trip, somewhere. We talked about several ideas for rides. East, west, north, and settled on west. The desert is best handled this time of year and the mountains in New Mexico and Arizona are far enough south to not have any weather worse than a little rain and cold. Next task was to see how far we could go in the time allotted, 6 days. I had been wanting to check out US 191 for a couple of years since reading about it on a couple of forums. I used Mapsource to lay out some routes and the plan came together. Chris was able to arrange his work schedule and come along for the ride. Three is a good number for a long road trip.

I was up at 0 dark thirty on Wednesday and eager to hit the road. Really I woke up around 0530. The bike was already loaded so I just did a final check of email and marked all the posts as "read" on TWTexans and waited.

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Perry lives around the corner so we met up and got on the road at 0700 planning to meet up with Chris near his house at 0730. He wasn't at the meet up spot. We were able to find him since he spotted us as we arrived and called. We found him here.

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Chris finished his cup'o and we were off. The day offered a light misty rain to start. Not enough for rain gear but enough to keep the road a little wet. First stop was breakfast. After all, it's all about the food. We rode about 45 minutes to Lampasas and the Yumm Factory.

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This is me.

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Photo by Perry.

As claimed in the name, it was yummy. The bad news, the weather had turned a little to the worse. Now a light steady rain. Time for rain gear. We would have intermittent rain for the next couple of hours.

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The clouds finally started to break in between Snyder and Post.

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It was getting to be lunch time, a little past actually but we were making good time. On the advice of several in this thread we rode into post and pulled up at Holly's Drive In. As we were told, good burgers and grilled chicken salad, quick friendly service, and nostalgic surrounding.

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Hunger satisfied we were back on the road. For me the first day heading west is always, well, ho hum. Not much to look at between Lubbock and the first mountains in New Mexico. It's mostly like this.

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But it's better than being at work. This is Chris.

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photo by Perry

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photo by Perry

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We pulled into Tucumcari, NM about 7 PM and rode the main drag in search of a diner for dinner. We settled on Del's Restaurant. Good food. We ordered guesadillas, chicken fajita salad, and fried fish.

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We topped of tanks, picked up a few supplies for the eventing and head off into the sunset. It was dusk when we arrived at Conchas Lake State Park. There was a large group of trailers at one end of the campground so we headed to the other side. A couple of guys walked all the way over to where we were and offered us some of their dinner. Wings and hot dogs. We thanked them and declined the offer. Nice guys, they were at the lake fishing and doing well. So, why were they eating dogs and wings? We settle in for the night.

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Miles for the day; 584.

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Now I'm off to take care of chores. I'll post more later. See ya!
 
Free wash update

I really appreciate Centex HD for the free bike wash certificate for my 6 month anniversary. It came at just the right time. 45 minutes later, here's the results.

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Pretty good. Not detailed as they didn't remove the saddlebags to get in there. You can see the inside of the pipes are still grungy. I'll take care of that next time I do the wash myself. No more dead bugs on the front. Overall, not bad for a free wash. :rider:

Now I need to go out and change the oil so I'll be ready in case someone offers up a ride. Back with day two later.
 
Day 2: Thursday April 30

We were up early knowing we would have to ride to breakfast. It was pretty cool, temps in the low 40's. As soon as the sun hit the temps began to climb and with the dry air it was really nice. Here is a view of the Lake Conchas. Plenty of boats at the marina.

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We had a little over an hour to ride to reach Las Vegas, NM were we would find a diner for breakfast. If traveling across northern NM this is definitely a great way to go. Hwy 104 winds it's way across broad expanses of ranch land broken by sections with rocky outcroppings and a brief climb up the side of a mesa. Best part was almost zero traffic. A very nice way to start the day.

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You may be able to see the road cut up the side of the mesa in this shot.

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On top of the mesa.

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And Perry's view.

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photo by Perry, duh

Finally we rolled into Las Vegas, NM.

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First order of business was to find a good place for breakfast. We pulled up to the first stop sign wondering what would be best. The Zumo had several suggestions but you never really know what is out there. All of them aren't in the database. I looked down one street and a solution presented itself. When in doubt, ask firefighters for directions.

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photo by Perry

Firefighters are always helpful and tend to really know their neighborhoods. Part of the job don't 'ya know. :trust: They recommended a place called Hillcrest Restaurant. Just a couple blocks away.

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This place was a typical small diner from the 50's. Small booths with seating for maybe 50. Great basic breakfast fare with the owner out waiting tables and pouring coffee. These places are worth looking for. It was full of locals. I think we took the last booth available when we sat down. As we were finishing our meal the firefighters that sent us there walked in for their breakfast. We thanked them again for the tip as we were leaving.

Next stop................

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When in Las Vegas on motorcycles one should stop here for a photo. This location was used as the jail where the boys spent a night in the classic "Easy Rider".



Just to prove we were all really there.

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photo by Perry

From the fire station; the red building.
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With the sightseeing done, we continued on west to the mountains. We rode HWY 518 and 76 over to the western side of this range. Perfect weather with temps in the 60's and clear skies. A little snow still on the peaks.

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We stopped for a short break in a small town called Truchas. Lots of artist studios and this small store. The store was open but no bathroom. It was in the bar which was closed for the season. Opens on May 1. :doh: Can't wait that long so we'll ride on.

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photo by Perry

Nice spot for some posing.

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photo by Perry

Chris isn't as much of a poser so no photo here.

At this part of the trip we were on the High Road to Toas Scenic Byway. We continued making our way south with Albuquerque as our destination. I had a couple things to do there. First stop was Thunderbird HD. One visit to a dealer during the trip is OK. Being a weekday the employee to customer ratio was about 5 to 1. Lots of sales people standing around. And they always have nice bathrooms in the customer lounge. I figured with a name like Thunderbird they might have some cool tee shirts. They did and we bought a couple. Good trip souvenir.

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Next on the agenda was food. It was after 1 and the boys were getting restless. I had a place picked out but for some reason Zumo had lost the location. So I had to try and find it the old fashioned way. First problem, I couldn't remember the name. Memory just isn't what it used to be. I was trying to go off the map of the town and wasn't having much luck. I decided to turn around and head to the other side of town. We turned into a parking lot, no u-turns allowed, and noticed a little late that it was an elementary school. The security guard came running out like the campus was being invaded by a biker gang not just three tourists. I stopped and explained we ere lost and looking for a good place to eat.

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Her answer, they don't serve bikers in our cafeteria. :lol2: I told her what I thought was the name of the place and she sent us off in the right direction. We got to the intersection where she sent us and didn't see anything that looked like the right place. Then I spotted it. Here it is.

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Doesn't look like much from the outside, but this place had been featured on Food Network's show Diner's, Drive Ins and Dives. Here's what was ordered this day.

Grilled tuna tacos for me.
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Portabello quesadillas for Chris.
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Grilled chicken salad, complete with avocado and grilled asparagus for Perry.
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The food was every bit as good as it looks. In fact it was AWESOME! :eat: The folks were very friendly and happy to adapt the dish to personal tastes. The grilled tuna is an example, not on the menu but done at request. And to top it all off, this is the cooks ride.

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According to him this bike is like a family heirloom. Over 100,000 miles on the clock. That's a Honda 550 engine. Most other components are off Harley's. They just keep replacing parts to keep it going. He made Perry's day when he came in and told him how awesome looking his Nomad was.

From Albuquerque we head west on the Interstate. This was a horrible section of about 60 miles. Too many trucks and too much traffic. This was about the only scenic spot.

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Finally off the Interstate we got back on the two lane heading south on HWY 117. Much better.

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Riding along I spotted a sign that said Sandstone Cliff Overlook. I made a quick decision, got on the brakes and turned off the blacktop on the dirt road. First sign said "Impassable when wet". OK It wasn't wet so we ride on for a mile and a half to the overlook. The road wasn't too bad. Just some loose gravel and small groves. No problem for us since we all ride dual sport bikes in addition to the cruisers.



Now for some more posing.

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My new desktop photo.
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Chris even got in on this one.

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Reverse gear on a Harley.


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This photo you see the lava field in the back ground.

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photo by Perry

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taken by Chris on Perry's camera

Looking back to the bikes.

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photo by Perry

I think it turned out to be a good decision. We continued on south on HWY 117.

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I'm always checking my mirrors to make sure they are still back there. After rounding a curve I noticed there wasn't anyone back there. I had passed a scenic turn out and figured they had stopped to take a photo. I hoped they had stopped to take a photo. Sure enough that was the situation. I was met by Perry and Chris coming around the bend as I was heading back to check on their welfare. Here is the scene.

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photo by Perry

Since I was there I took one too.

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This is when the afternoon got a little more interesting. I had researched fuel stops as best I could using internet resources. There is a gas station at the intersection of 117 and 36 at a town called Techado. It was there, but it had closed a half hour before we got there. We still had about 90 miles to ride for the day and Perry's tank only had about 50 miles left before he would run out. I wasn't able to determine if there was fuel at the next stop. But what can you do but ride on and ponder the options that might be needed. The shadows were getting long.

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I like this view of my bike. The fuel cap and the windshield were the only parts of the bike that I spent the time to keep clean.

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Quemada is at the intersection of HWY 36 and US 60. We rolled in with fingers crossed and positive thoughts for finding fuel. We were rewarded with a gas station and topped off for the last stretch on 60 miles west to Springerville, AZ. Arriving at sunset we cruised the main street in search of dinner options and settled on Booga Red's. With a name like that and a parking lot full of cars it has to be good.

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We weren't disappointed. I had Mexican stew and salad while Perry chose the fajita chicken salad.

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Chris chose a more traditional enchilada combo plate.

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Hunger satisfied we rolled off into the darkness to find our camp site for the night. About 18 miles north of town is Lyman Lake State Park. We set up our camp in the dark using the bikes headlights and LED head lamps and settled in for the night.

More to come as time allows. I have some homebrew to bottle this afternoon, baseball game tonight, and more pictures and videos to upload. Day 3, US 191, the main goal for this trip will be coming as time allows.
 
Day 3: US 191 and the Gila

The third day would start bright and early at 0500. :eek2: That's right, no daylight savings in Arizona so sunup was around 5 a.m. And it was cold, mid 30's according to the temp gauge on the Harley's dash. I was first up and took some pics of the site.

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The air was dry so there was no need to deal with moisture on the tents. As soon as the sun hit the temps rose into the 50's very quickly. We packed up and took of for town, after paying the iron ranger for the night of camping.

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I caught this shot of my office while on the road.

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We picked the spot with the most pickups. A hotel restaurant, the Saphire if I recall correctly. Good basic food. After a quick stop at the grocery and topping the tanks off with fuel, we were heading south on US 180. We climbed in altitude from 7000 up to the first pass summit of 8500. In the village of Alpine we branched off onto US 191 and got into some nice sweeping curves, the kind you can take at a good clip and have no worries. Lots of fun.

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video by Perry

There was still some patches of snow along the sides of the road.

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photo by Perry

We found a nice place to stop and take some pictures and play around a bit.

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photo by Perry

Being raised in Canada, Perry had to get into some snow. He's been in Texas a little too long, I think.

Chris with Perry's camera

From here we climbed to the highest point on the road, just a bit over 9200 feet and found a turnout with an scenic overlook of the valley. Being the poser's that we are we set up for a Harley moment.

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Perry's Nomad felt a little left out.

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photo by Perry

Me
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Perry
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Chris
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Time to get down to business. Formerly known as US 666, the highway of The Beast, this road was incorporated into US 191 in 1992 by the Arizona DOT. Hundreds of sharp curves on the side of the mountains with no guardrails. Sounds like fun to me. :trust: Not many photos taken while riding down this section. Perry got some video in one of the straighter sections without a dropoff and I captured some screen shots from the GPS. Here we go!



Check the scale on these for an idea of how curvy it is. First is at the top where we took the photos of the bikes.

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About half way down we all stopped to rest a bit. Some very mean person had abandoned this beagle up there. That's just wrong. Perry tossed him some summer sausage but that wasn't enough to take care of his hunger.

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photo by Perry

We finished the ride into the north of Clifton and came upon the huge open pit mine. The town of Clifton was built around the mines back in the 1800's. Copper and Gold and probably anything else they could glean from the rock.
Visible from Google Maps. Photos don't really capture the immense scale of this operation but his is what we got.

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Look closely at this one and you can see the dump trucks in the middle moving along the road. Those are the monster trucks that stand over 20 feet tall with tires over 8 feet tall.

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We rode on into Clifton and found a place for lunch. It was getting on towards 2 pm and it was time. We found this little place and gave it a try.

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Food was good. But the cook/owner and the waitress were great company. She was very good at customer service. Made sure we had everything we needed. He spent a good deal of time telling us about the area. We were the only ones in the place. He was retired from the mine after 32 years. He explained all about the processes involved and how the workers come and go with the price of ore. There aren't any smelters here so the ore is shipped by railway to El Paso and Globe, AZ for processing. They had recently laid off 2500 workers after building new housing for them so there is a deserted neighborhood of brand new homes on the south side of town. He told us about a spot we should stop and see. The Clifton Cliff Jail.

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He said locals claim it was the first jail to hold Geronimo upon his capture before being transferred to federal hands. Possible. Who knows.

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Enter and go down stairs.

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Two cells, one with a window up above where you could get some air and light, the other just a dark hole in the ground.

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Sightseeing done we continued south to the intersection with HWY 78 which would take us east back into New Mexico. First some nice curvy parts leading into a long straight stretch.

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photo by Perry

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photo by Perry

We would rejoin US 180 and take it into Silver City. A short stop to top off gas tanks and we were riding north in the Gila (Hee la) National Forest. HWY 15 from Pinos Altos is narrower and just as curvy as 191 but not as long. Only about 35 miles ending at the Gila Cliff Dwellings. We met several of the human powered cycles along this route since the Tour of the Gila bicycle race was happening this weekend. Didn't see Lance. We arrived at the cliff dwellings at 4:30 pm. Problem; they closed at 4. :doh:

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So, we cruised back to an RV park we saw at the Gila Hot Springs, about 5 miles back down the valley. The camp hosts hooked us up with a camping spot under the pavilion, there really wasn't any designated tent camping.

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The rest of the RV park.

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We would find out later that almost all of these are occupied by workers at the cliff dwellings. With camp set up, Chris and Perry rode off to the hot springs. I chose not to. I chickened out after seeing the road leading in to them. Several thousand dollars of potential damage in a little fall not worth a soak to me but they enjoyed it.

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photo by Perry

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photo by Perry

Back at camp was the next challenge. Dinner :eat: There were no cafe's, the camp store was closed at 4, and we really didn't want to run the gauntlet of wild game to ride the 20 miles back to the closest restaurant on HWY 35. So we divided up what Perry had in his bag and feasted on gourmet road food.

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Nice little snack. :lol2: We all slept well after a long day of twists and turns.

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I have ridden this strech with my Dad on his Nomad and it's a great area. Keep the report coming. Your helping me deal with staring at my computer all day at work. I need a road trip myself.
 
Day 4: East across New Mexico

We were up with the sun but not in any hurry. First, there was no food or hot coffee to be had. Second the Gila Cliff Dwellings did not open until 0830. So we took our time, packed our gear and wandered over to the parking lot at the cliff. Yep, we were early. Perry's trusty Nomad with 45,000+ miles was giving him a little surging/dying at idle issue so he started tinkering. We narrowed it down to either fuel or air. Air filter clean, fuel filter in the tank had never been cleaned or changed. Fuel filter gets my vote. It'll have to wait.

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Chris was just waiting too.

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We decided to hop over to the Visitor Center to see what was going on over there. They were just opening up and let us in a little early to see the display and watch the video presentation. Geronimo was represented out front.

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Back to the cliffs, about three miles from the visitor center, we took the hike up the trail to see some history. It's a one mile loop with some elevation changes and of course a climb up to the cliff.

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Nice thing about this place is you get to go inside and check it out.

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This was the docent for the day we were there. She explained that the current theory is that this structure wasn't used for dwellings/residence but more for ceremonial and artistic purposes. There is little evidence of daily living and there was no need for use in protection and there was no evidence of warfare during the time the area was occupied around 1300 AD. The site was only active for a couple of generations and then was abandoned. Probably figured out it was too much work carrying everything up the ladders.
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This is a collection of 700 year old corn cobs that were scattered around the site, according to our docent.

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Nice also that the liability lawyers haven't messed with this tour. Climb at your own risk.

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Worth the wait to see.

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It was about 0930 when we were ready to head for some breakfast. South on 15 for about 18 miles, which takes about 35 minutes.



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photo by Perry

We stopped at the first restaurant, The Breathe Inn, restaurant and hotel. At the intersection of HWYs 15 and 35.

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This place had excellent breakfast fare. Perry ordered the vegetarian omelet, add all of your meats. :lol2:

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Chris had the french toast with two eggs on the side.

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I had a chorizo scramble.

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While eating a couple guys pulled up on adventure bikes; a KTM 950 and a BMW F800GS. As they were walking past our table one of them says, "Somebody's wife watching with that SPOT?" :lol2: An immediate connection was made. We talked. They live in Jackson, WY and had trailered the bikes south to CO Springs to get out of the winter weather and were riding the deserts of NM. One gave me his business card for a contact next time I'm in Jackson.

This was the scene on the front porch of the Breathe Inn.

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Appetites satisfied we rode on east on HWY 35. Past Lake Roberts.

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Towards Mimbres, NM on 35.

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We connected with HWY 152 and started to climb over the next range of mountains. More twisties. At the summit of Emory Pass we stopped to check out the view. This guy, Mike, had caught up with us on his C90 Boulevard. He's a flight paramedic out of Silver City. We talked about how nice the riding is in his back yard.

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He directed us to the short drive across the road, an overlook vista of the downhill areas to the east.

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For once we didn't take the time to do any posing. Just stopped and dismounted.

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On the way down the other side, a cool bridge.

accidental video by Perry, supposed to be a photo. :doh:

Finally out of the mountains and back to the straight flats.

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We had to go south on IH 25 to Las Cruces to be able to go northeast to Alamogordo. No other way due to the White Sands Missile Range. As we got out into the open the wind picked up fiercely. This is a time when you can be glad you are on a heavy bike. Even on the 900 lb. Ultra I would be riding with a starboard list. But the weight resisted the tendency to be blown across the lane. I was able to keep my line. Once again, fuel began to become an issue for Perry and I started to look for a place. That place presented itself in the chile capitol of NM, Hatch. Back on the road we made the turn at Las Cruces and took a heading of NE on US 70. At least now the wind was mostly at our back.

Mountains around Las Cruces.

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White Sands Missile Range HQ.

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White Sands National Monument. We had all been there before so we didn't stop this time. Check out the dust storm approaching.

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We were on the edge of the dust storm as we rolled through Alamogordo, enough to irritate the eyes and darken the sky. We took US 82 up the hill to Cloudcroft. We climb about 4200 feet in less than 20 miles and go through a cool tunnel.

video by Perry

At Cloudcroft we started to get sprinkle and very dark clouds so to ensure that it wouldn't rain, we donned our rain gear. And it worked. We took HWY 244 through the Mescalero Apache Reservation to Ruidoso and our place for the night, Inn of the Mountain Gods.

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Only two beds so Perry graciously took the air mattress. :clap: We had to improvise a hair dryer to inflate as all our pumps are of the 12 volt variety.

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We gorged ourselves at the dinner buffet and wandered into the casino. I abstained, Perry cleared 20 on some penny slots, Chris finally came out about a hundred ahead and quit some time around 0300. Nice hotel, a bit expensive but as the only night of the trip inside, it was pretty nice sleeping.

Track for Day 4
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Day 5; Out into the plains.

We took full advantage of our accommodations and slept in late for us. Someone who shall rename nameless ripped open the blackout curtain at 0830. :eek2: Man that sun was bright. The valet guys had let us park our bikes in the valet parking garage under the security cams so all was good there. Thanks. We rode on into Ruidoso for b'fast. Passed by the FD on the way in.

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After breakfast at Chef Lupe's, very good green huevos rancheros by the way, we ventured north on HWY 48 through the mountains to Capitan. My favorite way to leave the area. A little farther but nicer scenery. At Capitan, home of the Smokey Bear Monument, we head east on US 380 through Lincoln County made famous for the range wars glorified in the movie "Young Guns". This is Capitan Gap.

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The town of Lincoln. Several places to stop and learn about the Lincoln County War but we had all done that so we rode on.

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We would stay on US 380 all the way to Brownfield, TX. Many sections of long straight highway. It all looks like this.

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Finally back in TX.

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I planned on Lake Colorado City State Park for the last night. Never been there so why not? We arrived in Colorado City about an hour and a half before sunset hoping to find a diner or BBQ or something good for dinner. Nothing. Zip, zero, nada. We had the choice between Pizza Hut, Sonic, and DQ. We went with Dairy Queen. Not bad for fast food. And, finished with a Strawberry Cheesequake blizzard I was full. :eat: We motored on to the park and set camp in time for sunset. The place was nearly empty. The section we were in had two other spots occupied.

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Tracks for day 5, the yellow line. ;-)

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Day 6: the home stretch

Loaded and rolling our route took us back through Colorado City, again. And still nothing good for breakfast. I refused to eat out of the Gas-n-Grub. :nono: We got on the IH 20 heading east to Sweetwater, about an hour away. Riding along I see a billboard in Roscoe for Retta Mae's Home Cooking. Bingo! We take the exit and are pleased with what we find.

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Check out the pickups in the parking lot. :thumb: Always a good sign.

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We would not be disappointed. The place was busy with what seemed like every retired guy in the county chatting and enjoying breakfast. Perry got his usual omelet. Check out the grin on the guys face behind him. It was that kinda place.

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We also got a great tip on a back road from the old guys. About 8 miles south, just past the Highland School we turned east on CR 147 then on FM 1809 which took us to HWY 70. I never would have picked this road from looking at the map. It was straight but like a roller coaster with little hills. Very fun and it wasn't the interstate. We rode among the windmills for a while.

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More windmills along HWY 153. My mind started to wander towards Don Quiote (SP?) and his quest. How guys riding motorcycles are in search of something, varies with the individual. And may be just tilting at windmills. Thought this was cool with the old and the new.

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In Brownwood I took the tail dragger position since we all knew how to get home from there. Time to relax a bit an reflect on the trip as we head toward home.

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Had a great time. We will do it again. :rider:


One last video from west Texas I forgot to put in day 5.

 
Three Bro's on the road what could be better? Riding and eating and then riding some more. Great report and pix. We hope to be able to visit US191 in the near future. :rider::eat::rider:
Marty
 
Three Bro's on the road what could be better? Riding and eating and then riding some more. Great report and pix. We hope to be able to visit US191 in the near future. :rider::eat::rider:
Marty

Thanks. Every rider should see US191 at some point. I haven't been to the Tail of the Dragon yet but now I may be dissapointed; over to quick. ;-)
 
Thanks. Every rider should see US191 at some point. I haven't been to the Tail of the Dragon yet but now I may be dissapointed; over to quick. ;-)
When you get to go to the Dragon don't just confine yourself to it. When we went in '06 we were only there a couple of days so we didn't ride very much around the area. But last year we rode 129 all the way from north off of 411 in Tennesse to Robbinsville, NC. We also rode 19 from Cherokee to where it connected to 28 then to Deals Gap. We also rode the Cherohala Skyway from Tellico Plains, TN down to Robbinsville. We rode some other rodes that were good too. The only place we didn't get to ride was "the Snake", US421, but that will be another trip.
 
Nice report! 3 guys, 3 bikes, 6 days! Shouldn't we all be so lucky.
 
Excellent report. Thanks for sharing. :clap:

Next month I will be riding on a good part of your trip, from where you started 191 almost all the way to the Texas line. Only difference is, I'll be doing it backwards. Seeing your pictures and videos has me giddy with excitement. :mrgreen:
 
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