September 16, 2017
Day 5: Rest day in White Rock
Today is a non-travel day in White Rock. After a late breakfast at the excellent breakfast buffet I spent most of the day in my cavernous motel room with a view of the Sangre de Cristo mountains to the northeast.
I did a few chores such as repairing a slow leak in the front tire. But mostly I rested. Never turned on the TV, though.
There is very little to see and do in White Rock but there is one excellent attraction, the Rio Grande overlook. At 2:30 PM I left the motel and pedaled 2 miles downhill to the overlook. I spent an hour there enjoying the views.
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The main view is looking down at the Rio Grande river. To the north is a great view with the Sangre de Cristo mountains in the distance.
To the south is an open river view but it looks into the sun and has no giant mountains in the distance. The river appears to have good flow right now. The late summer "monsoon" rains have been good this year.
To the west is a a cleft in the plateau rim with a distant view of two waterfalls. The upper waterfall is far away and difficult to see. It's just below a complex of baseball fields and the city's wastewater treatment plant.
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The lower waterfall is closer and easier to see.
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The overlook was never crowded but a steady stream of visitors came and went while I was there. The weather was perfect. Mostly sunny, 75F/24C. Cooler than expected.
After an hour of savoring the views I pedaled back to Hampton Inn. Instead of backtracking I made a loop around town, adding 1.5 miles to the ride. White Rock is uniformly upper middle class. Much more prosperous than than the typical rural New Mexico town. White Rock is a planned city built specifically for employees of Los Alamos National Laboratory.
Unlike the previous four evenings, there was no thunder and lightning this evening.
The day was quite restful but by the evening I had 20 more itchy bedbug bites. Bites acquired during my second night at La Cueva Lodge. The swelling and itching begins 36 hours after you get bit.
I had a miserable night even after taking Benadryl and putting Cortizone creme on the bites. Benadryl reduces the itching somewhat but makes me feel very strange, almost hallucinatory. Worst night of the trip. I tried my best to NOT scratch the bites. The bites make an oozing mess for several days if I scratch too much.
I'm always careful not to put my luggage on the bed, so I'm confident that the beg bugs didn't come with me. But I will itch for the remainder of the tour. Bed bug bites take much longer to heal than mosquito bites.
Distance: 5.4 mi. (8.6 km)
Ascent/Descent: +199/-199 ft. (+60/-60 m)
Average Speed: 9.5 mph (15.2 km/h)
Today's ride: 5 miles (8 km)
Total: 148 miles (238 km)
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