March 28, 2023 to March 30, 2023
Wrapping it up
Last gasp on the trails
After our wonderful hike in Chiricahua National Monument on Monday, we pressed on to Truth or Consequences, New Mexico for the night. That left a little over 500 miles to drive to Colorado Springs to see our son Daniel, and two days to get there. The halfway point around Santa Fe was a no-go with a forecast calling for overnight lows in the 20s. We had no desire to risk freezing the plumbing in the trailer again after our experience on the way to Arizona in January.
Just north of Albuquerque, Bernalillo offered friendlier weather at the very nice Coronado Campground, an inexpensive place run by the city. It's adjacent to the Coronado Historic Site that preserves the remains of a pueblo village on the Rio Grande. Francisco Vásquez de Coronado visited here in 1540 on his quest to find the mythical Seven Cities of Gold. Sounds interesting, but when we arrived early Tuesday afternoon we found that the site is open every day except Tuesday. Good to know for the next time we come through here.
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The campground offered the best wifi we've had on the whole trip and I made some good progress on the journal. Still, limited data service, time, energy and sense of urgency over the last week had piled up the backlog. This seems like a fine time to wrap up our account of the last couple of rides and a few takeaways from our time in Tucson.
With a chunk of the afternoon free in Bernalillo Tuesday, I looked around to see what the options might be for a ride. The Trailforks app pointed me to the mountain bike trails at Placitas Open Space, just five miles away. In our travels around the southwest, single-track trails often seem easier to find than comfortable road rides. It's been one of the motivations to get past my hangups about mountain biking. The Placitas trails looked to be within my reach so I drove over there for some exercise while Barry hung back to chill and read.
The terrain at Placitas is not as rocky or technical as Tucson Mountain Park; it's more sandy and hilly with some good turns to practice on. Elevation was the biggest challenge. At 6,000 feet, Placitas is 3,600 feet higher than Tucson and boy did I feel it. The thin air had me gasping on every climb.
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For a little extra adventure, several times the trails crossed a non-barbed wire cattle fence that I had to lift the bike over. I didn't think to get a picture of that, what with the depleted oxygen supply to my brain. I managed five miles of heavy breathing before calling it a day. Five miles is better than no miles.
On Wednesday we reached Cheyenne Mountain State Park near Colorado Springs in time to meet Daniel for dinner at the Broadmoor. It was quite a splurge, not my best idea. Honestly we would have been just as happy at a taproom for much less; noted for future reference.
The bugel call of Reveille from Fort Carson roused us at 7 am Thursday, excited to try the trails at Cheyenne Mountain. Winds were in the 20s and gaining strength when Daniel called to see if we were still hauling around Barry's old hardtail. The valve had snapped off the rear wheel on his bike. Eager to get going, he opted to ride the old bike and fix his wheel later.
Right from the get-go as we set out on the trail from our campsite downhill to the trailhead, Barry and I were baffled by the narrow curvy terrain. The rocks looked bigger and hairier than what we dealt with in Tucson. So much for any notions of impressing Daniel with my new skills. It was easy stuff for him, even with the front shock bottoming out on the older bike.
We muddled through long enough to reach some relatively easier trails. They weren't technical but hilly, and another day of ups and downs at 6,000 feet made for a decent workout. Considered the Taj Mahal of Colorado State Parks, Cheyenne Mountain is a beautiful place, and for the most part the mountain shielded us from the winds that were approaching 30 mph.
Even with our bumbling, it was a fun outing, and more fun for Daniel when Barry offered to switch bikes with him. That Rocky Mountain bike that Barry found in Sedona is pretty sweet. Barry and I watched him take off, back up the same challenging trail that we survived coming down from the campsite. We bailed out on the park road to meet him back at the camper for lunch and a fond farewell.
That last six miles brought our total close to 200 miles on the mountain bikes for the trip. It's been great fun to ride around the desert and hang out with the sociable folks on the trails. While we're still pretty much beginners, I feel better prepared to explore more of the trails at home.
We've still had plenty of time to ramp up the miles on the recumbents, even getting in a couple of 60-mile rides, so the trails haven't been too much of a distraction from that goal. Now we just have to keep up the pace over the next couple months, do some loaded trips and a shakedown ride or two before our Northwest Trails tour in June.
While I enjoy touring on a recumbent, the next time we get to Tucson I’m bringing the gravel bike instead. It will work fine on the Tucson Loop multi-use path, and open up a lot more low-traffic territory, especially in Santa Cruz County. Barry will be happy to bring his gravel bike but bristles at any notion of leaving his beloved recumbent at home. No problem, we can carry five bikes.
We made it home safely Sunday after some delay waiting out high winds in Kansas, and spent some time discussing the future of the RV. We love traveling with our own familiar living space. It’s great for shorter trips, but two months in the little travel trailer pushed the limit for harmonious co-habitation. We're also weary of dodging freezing weather to avoid damaging the works. Before venturing out on another long RV trip, we’ll probably trade up for something that has a bit more elbow room and is equipped for four seasons.
Many thanks to all who have followed along and especially for your comments, suggestions and encouragement. It's wonderful to have found such a supportive bicycle travel community. Looking forward to having more time to dig into your journals.
Today's ride: 11 miles (18 km)
Total: 977 miles (1,572 km)
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Thanks for the great photos!
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