Westward ho! That’s the cry for this trip. Like last year, April is a good month to travel west. The plan is set. Meet at Roosevelt. A small town 20 miles west of Junction. A feed store with a cafe and bar. Fits the bill for us. As usual, I am an hour or so ahead of the pack. Not to worry, cold cervezas, are not a bad choice. Some of the same riders as last year, “Easy G”, and “Roadrunner”.
We’ve added a couple of new ones. Doug, we’ll call “Redi” and Arron, We’ll call “Happy Hour”. Doug is always the first one on the bike to depart. Arron is ready to “pop a top” at 9 am. Anyway, everyone arrives, and we depart, heading west on I-10. We travel to Ozona, exit on hwy 137. Stop in town for a quick bite to eat. Like last year, we go to “Easy G’s’ deer camp for the evening. Nothing but pump jacks and jackrabbits. After a few drinks, we settle in for a good night’s rest. At first light we roll west, stopping in Irann for breakfast. We travel on hwy 190 West until we intersect I -10. Easy sailing to Ft Stockton. Gas stop. We add ice to our coolers. We must have cool drinks in this heat. Traveling west, we exit at our favorite rest area, about 20 miles west of Ft Stockton. The groundskeepers said hadn’t rained in a year. Looks the part, not a blade of green grass in sight, only tumbleweeds. After a bloody mary, we continue west with nothing but hot and dry conditions. We forge ahead to Van Horn. The last bigger town in Texas before leaving the state. Gas stop, pit stop, more sunscreen!
Happy Hour, Easy G, Dad and Redi Doug
Traveling just west Sierra Blanca, another rest area. Must stay hydrated! Next town El Paso, Lots of traffic, but I think less than last year. Maybe because of high gas prices. At least no dust devil this year! Just west of El Paso lots of dairies, not sure why! You would think they would be close to alfalfa hay. We stop in Las Cruces for gas. Continue I-25 towards Hatch. What strong wind. Must be 50 to 60 mph gusts. I’m driving at an angle down the road! Got to hold on. Make our usual stop in Hatch. Wanted a Hatch Burger, but didn’t want to wait. Settled for a butter finger malt. Hit the spot in this heat!
Travel west on hwy 26 to hwy 27, which kinda runs north for a while. We past the stretch of road where “Roadrunner” slid into the ditch last year. Thank God no harm no foul! Make it to Hillsboro, hard left on hwy 152 to Percha Creek, right out of town. Our usual stop, Creek barely running, a super drought!
Continue on 152, lots of “S’ curves, 10 to 15 mph, got to stay alert! WE had planned to go to Silver City, but fires in the area closed off Turning south on hwy 180 thru Bayard and Hurley a nice scenic drive down to Deming. Almost dark, time for a room. Rooms are hard to find. We search the town. Finally success, Dinner is next door at the Sonic Drive-In. Not my first choice, but the only thing open. Also walking distance. Next morning continue west on I-10 to hwy 70 Run 70 to Clifton. Stop for gas. Get a $3 honey bun. Wow, the last one I bought was 39 cents. Talking inflation! Enough bitchin!
Traveling north through the Morenci mine. One of the largest copper mines in the world. Employs around 5000 people. These earth-moving trucks are huge. The tires are 15 feet tall. Out of town maybe 5 miles is a great turnout, super view of the mine and points south. This hwy is called Coronado Trail. A great ride of twists and turns all the way to Alpine. No gas from Clifton to Alpine This hwy was also called the Devils Hwy or hwy 666 years back. I guess a lot of people lost their lives on this road. Kind of a mystery!
We continue on this road north, a great picnic area on the top of the mountain. A great stop for pics and refreshments. Next stop Alpine, gas, and a few souvenirs. Continuing north to Edgar, we hang left on hwy 260 to Baldy Peak. 11,203 feet elevation. Quite the view, very windy, better hold on to your hat! On this loop, there is still a lot of snow. Plenty of elk, and not much traffic, but that’s nice. Weaving through the hills we end up in Pine Top. Our destination for the evening. The Log Cabin Motel is locally owned, by friendly folk. The big porch on the front feels like home!
Dad
We unpack our gear and head up the street, a local eatery and bar within walking distance. Can’t ask for more than that! The band cranks up, we have food and drinks, and call it a night! The next morning, “Redi Doug” first one loaded up. “Roadrunner”. “Happy Hour”, Easy G”, it takes awhile. I was up at the crack of dawn! Found a coffee shop down the road. Texas people run it all well. Found a good restaurant down the road, home cooking, good breakfast!
Traveling west we make it to Show Low, and connect with hwy 60. What an incredible ride, it’s all downhill to Salt River. What a beautiful canyon, with incredible pull-outs and overlooks. The rest area at the bottom is always a mandatory stop. I would like to fish that river, the problem is, you would need a helicopter. Continue to Globe on hwy 60. Gas stop. We had planned on going to Mt Lemmon. Getting short of time. We abort this idea. We want to make Tombstone today. At Globe, we catch hwy 77 and continue to Winkelman and Mammoth, Tucson. What a mass of traffic! I-10 is in our sights. Left at I-10 to Benson. No rooms in Tombstone! We choose to secure a room in Benson. Check-in and unwind on the front porch for a bit. Pretty warm, we wait till it cools a bit. Everybody is in agreement, let’s roll to Tombstone.
Happy Hour and Dad
We roll to Tombstone, Still got the old West flavor. You can almost hear Doc Holiday say ‘I’ll be your Huckleberry” We walk through town, but not a lot of people! Hard to believe all the rooms are filled. Saw the old boy I met last year. Still working the front door, retired from the “Red and White”. We chatted for a while. He remembered last year’s meeting. We move up the street to Doc Holidays place. Meet a few folks, and took a few photos.
Dinner time! We move up the street. Nice restaurant, one of few left open for the evening. Soup and salad for me. Been a long day! Wrap up and head back to Benson. Finish up with a cold brew and hit the sack.
Next morning, Sunday, Head back east on I-10 to Las Cruces. Gas stop. Fill up and notice a brewery next door. How convenient! Let’s check it out! They have Hatch chili burgers! Been wanting one the whole trip. Excellent, starting the day out right. Roll out and connect hwy 60 to Alamogordo. Hit hwy 82 through Cloudcroft. If you haven’t ridden this road, you missing out! Winding road down past Mescalero Indian Tribe Reservation. Continue to Artesia. We had planned on visiting Chief Sitting Bull Falls. Luckily we called, and they close at 5 pm. It was 6:30, oops!
Dad
Ride hwy 385 to Carlsbad. Check into the StageCoach Motel, Restaurant adjoining. The only problem, they are closing as I walk up. Plan B. Pizza! The only option. Call up for pizza, only takes 30 minutes to order! 1-hour wait. They finally arrive! 2 pizzas and wings, $ 76.00, wow, inflation, a rip!
Next morning, continue east towards Hobbs, Seminole, to Lemesa. We connect hwy 87. Roll toward Big Spring. Nice picnic area just out of town. Meet a guy from Tucson, on a 2-month road trip! Must be nice! Retired from his job and hit the road! That’s the way to spend retirement. Sterling City, gas stop. Refreshment stop. City park at the edge of town, shade trees, all good. Roll into San Angelo, food time! The Western Skies Steak House. Awesome food. And good service.
Eden’s next gas stop. “Happy Hour” splits off to head back to “Aggie Land” The rest of the crew heads south on hwy 83. Travel to Junction and catch I-10 Another great trip. No crashes or mishaps, approx. 2500 miles. Like I” ve always said, “Live life to the hilt” Never know when it’s your last trip!
RIDE FREE , RIDE OFTEN ‘DAD’
Roadrunner, Easy G, Happy Hour, Redi Doug, Dad.Elatum
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