Day 20 - Over 1,000 Miles

We surpassed 1,000 miles today!

Fort Hancock to Van Horn TX

74.4 miles, 1,791 ft. of climb The wind died down during the night and today promised to be a good day of riding. Early on, for about the first 20 miles, we were on a very rural blacktop with almost no cars or trucks on it. Parts of the desert were green where it had been irrigated, and parts were sand and brush. Instead of riding single file, we were able to ride side by side. James put on some Janis Joplin and we talked about a wide range of things, philosophers like Kant and Wittgenstein, a bunch of different writers, including the Polish writer Stanislaw Lem (who wrote “Solaris”) and the Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky who did a film version of “Solaris.” (Not the American version with George Clooney)

After 20 miles of idyllic riding, we started the big climb of the day. It was not like the mountains, the grade was less, but a long climb is a long climb. Part of the time we were on the shoulder of Interstate 10, and part was on a service road. This road appeared to be the original highway and it was peppered with closed gas stations, cafes, and other defunct businesses. Before riding onto the Interstate, I did pick out a piece of glass in my front tire.

We are also in the lookout for Goat head thorns. The goat head thorn is a vicious plant with sharp, spiky seed pods. The spiked pods somewhat resemble a goat head. Bicyclists are not fond of these thorns and thus far have taken out two cyclist's sleeping pads.

We ate at a Mexican restaurant in Sierra Blanca. Riding into town with its closed businesses, including the largest remnants of an old movie theater, was like a scene out of the film “The Last Picture Show” which is about a dying west Texas town. Five of us stopped at the restaurant for lunch. The food was excellent. The group is provided with lunch fixings every day but sandwiches can get a bit tiring so an interesting restaurant is a welcome diversion. Most of the remaining ride was either on this service road or on I-10. We've been on I-10 before and it is a stressful, dangerous ride. We went for about 40 miles and the surrounding desert and farm ground became monotonous. Miles and miles of the same thing. However, the wind was at our backs and the crosswinds helped instead of hindering our progress. There was a big downhill which was fun. The interstate shoulders were wide and relatively free of debris. Tomorrow we head for Marfa, near where Jeff Bezos has a Blue Origin spaceport.

Here's a video of our campground for the night. We are still in pretty desolate country.