In the morning, I spoke with the owner of the Budget Motel as she was watering her plants. She has a peach, apple, and pear tree, and grows mint, too. Didn’t get her picture, unfortunately.
The first 15 miles or so were all up, but not steep.
I noticed an RV park that was not on my map, so investigated. Ridgepark RV park turned out to be a nice place. I got directions from Richard, the host.
There were 6 hills that I had to climb today. The last one before Tyrone was by far the worst. But after that, it was downhill sailing into Silver City. The winds were gusty and highly variable. At one point, I was in dead air, and glanced down at the cyclometer to see that I was going 33 mph. At other times, the wind slowed me to 17 mph on the downhill. For one long, long stretch, the road was smooth, silent, and I cruised downhill at 24 mph. It was almost hypnotic; I had to keep reminding myself to stay alert.
Following the main thoroughfare, I got to Albertson’s, and was able to replenish my cash. Inside, I was surprised to see Richard again, and his (wife? friend?) Mary. Mary was a missionary in South Africa, and had a positive philosophy on people that I completely agree with. She also reminded me of the importance of staying hydrated.
I also saw a billboard for Wendy’s, and found it several miles into the city.
I checked into the Gila Mountain Inn (Rodeway Motel). With senior discount $50 plus $6 tax. Continental breakfast included. Your basic large motel. After a shower and a nap, I worked on this blog. I forgot that the sun sets late here, so it was almost 9 when I walked out for dinner at twilight.
Wendy’s was the only thing in easy walking range. But when I got to the door, it was locked, with a sign saying that the lobby was closed at 9. Probably what I should have done at that point was turn around and use my emergency meal. Or order Dominos. But instead, I walked up the hill, on the main street with no sidewalks and no street lights. At the top of the hill was Dollar Tree. Nope, closed at 9. Walmart was the next thing open, on the other side of the hill.
Miles today: 48.7, lots of climbing, at 6000′
Tomorrow should be tough – more climbing, at even higher altitude. I hope to make it over Emory Pass, or at least get close.
What was Mary’s philosophy?
Pretty simple, that people are the same, underneath.
New Mexico looks hot and dry. We arrived in Israel after a 14 hour flight on El Al. I tried posting on my blog tonight, nothing came up yet. The landscape looked very dry and sparse. Was able to take a dip in the Mediterranean Sea, pleasantly warm.
Yay! Glad to hear you made it in, all right. If you email the post to me at Lycos, I can put it up. The blog is supposed to update every half hour. Something must have went wrong.