The following morning, I packed the bike heading across West Texas and into New Mexico in some of the most windy riding ever. On to see friends in Truth or Consequences, NM
I wanted to ride toward NM without getting back onto I40, so instead I went through several small working farm towns and once to the border, I headed to Rosewell. [url]http://www.roswellufomuseum.com/[/url] thinking only of the 1947 UFO incident. As much as I would have liked to visit the UFO museum, I kept on to Ruidoso and some mountains. I was ready to have a change of flat straight roads and Ruidoso is a beautiful mountain town.
Somewhere in West Texas…wind stirring up a massive dust storm.
The hills around Ruidoso
Dropping into NM
The lava beds where from adversity grows beauty.
It was a long ride, much longer than I thought when I looked at it on a map.
430 miles.
I spent the next couple of days hanging with my buddies Annie and David, who I had know from living in Homer, AK. David and I worked together at KBBI radio and Annie was a hair client of mine, who was forced to leave AK and relocate to NM due to having Rheumatoid arthritis. She is doing much better in the desert and started her own business making salves and balms. They are organic, smell wonderful and most importantly they work. Check out her site, Annie’s Salves
A fine breakfast of fritatta, homemade bread and salsa and fruit.
Then off to explore the area, first stop the Rio Grande to see some fisherman.
Hovering above the city of TorC is Turtleback Mountain.
Savor one left his tag on this old deserted water storage tank.
Truth or Consequences is a strange little berg. The area is fraught with poverty, people living on disability, and those that just decided to retire in a warm environment. It’s a totally mixed bag, but one thing is consistent. Behind the closed walled homes that don’t look like much from the outside, are some treasures!!
This is a friend of Dave and Annie’s, she is standing between.
Her yard was amazing hidden behind weathered wood walls on one side and aluminum on the other!
Salt Cedar to hide the wall.
It was an extrodinary adventure into color, texture and aroma!
A gong made from a propane tank.
This yard gave me lots of ideas of what we could do with ours, in Sacramento. The climate is much the same.
While in TorC, I also visited the Germino Springs Museum.
What an inexpensive treat harboring both the sublime and ridiculous! The museum has some amazing American Indian relics, pottery, fossils, and then there is the Ralph Edwards room who upon offering a sum of cash the town was renamed Truth or Consequences from Hotsprings, NM based on his TV game show. Yep, did I mention ridiculous?
On the outside of the museum is a fountain installation which has caused lots of controversy. Though there are many excellent artists in the area, this sculpture was created by one brough from the “outside” the town. It was dedicated in March 2001, and features colorful ceramic mountains and waterfalls, and benches with tiles reflecting the history of the area. It was created by New Mexico artist Shel Neymark. It has had its fair share of defacing and some problems with the system that pumps the water through, but I found it fascinating!
I had a wonderful couple of days visiting friends, and had every intention of going next to Tucson, however when I realized that my son and grandson would be arriving in a few short days, I knew I needed to head home to get my house ready for their arrival. I decided to abbreviate my journey.
Before packing the bike, I tried to turn it around in Dave an Annie’s dirt driveway, I sort of gently laid it on its side. Dave helped me pick it up, and there was absolutely no sign it had tumbled. It was the first time I had dropped the bike in an age, a very humbling experience, I might add!
I left TorC midmorning with my route going over Hwy 152 one of my favorite routes, with a plan on stopping in Hillsboro and Kingston, two historic towns I had previously bypassed. Both were cute, but there wasn’t much in either to see or do!
Hillsboro
Kingston
A cool wall
I didn’t get many shots of Hwy 152 as it’s an blast to ride!!
I also wanted to stop in Glenwood and walk up to the Catwalk.
In Glenwood, NM there was a big sign saying that the Catwalk was re-opened. HA! After a 5 mile side road with two water crossings and a hike, I discovered that the catwalk was indeed closed. Sigh…
Here’s the trailhead of the catwalk. The fall colors were lovely!
I gassed up in Alpine, AZ and was determined to make Holbrook for the night. I thought about my friends, Dean and Pam who had just sold their awesome Motorcycle Cafe Bed and Breakfast as I skirted around Show Low. They will be missed!!
I was about an hour behind schedule from my catwalk excursion, so I ended up riding in the dark something i never like doing in the open desert. I did see (or barely see) a couple of coyotes and a very brilliant sunset. Sadly, shooting of the fly wasn’t the way to capture it. Gut you get the idea.
I arrived in Holbrook one tired rider, grabbed some sandwich makings at Safeway and settled in to watch the presidential debate. My scotch laid the way to an early evening and I slept like the dead.
Only 350 miles today, that seemed like many more.
