Part 3

1-7-19
Still At Fort Davis State Park---Texas

 

I got up at the crack of dawn and got my bicycle out and wanted to climb the 3 miles climb
to the overlooks atop the mountain adjacent to our campsite. It was nice and cool and off I went.
I knew how steep the climb was as I've climbed it before on my motorcycle----It's as steep as any
paved road you'll find and bicycles aren't allowed---it's too dangerous the park lady said.
Well..............she obviously didn't know who I was and what I was capable of !!!!!!!!!

 

 

 

 

I made the paved climb and found the dirt trails.
I didn't ride them-----after all the park lady said it was dangerous---and I'm an old man.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Overlooking the valley below and Fort Davis-----the town and the fort.

 

 

 

 

I did walk this---no way could I ride that.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Where did that sign come from---------honest I didn't see it with my old decrepid eyes.

 

 

 

 

Back at camp Debi was up and ready to hike up that same mountain I just rode up.
But.............not on the paved road----a really tuff rocky trail.

 

 

Indiana Jones I am "NOT"

 

 

 

 

 

Looking down from where we came

 

 

We made it to the top and a nice couple up there took our picture.
Man it was windy up there and we had to hold on to our hats.
The couple had drove up here in their van on the pavement and didn't offer a ride down.
So.............we had to walk-------it was good for us and didn't kill us.

 

 

This is back at camp---and that is the mountain we climbed.
We were beat and I don't know how Debi had the energy to cook the chicken dinner she did.
I offered to eat cold cereal but she was having none of that.

 

 

 

It was almost impossible at camp to not see deer all around us.
That's a cool 4-wheel drive Sprinter van in the picture---never saw anybody around it the few days
we were there ???? Newlyweds????

 

 

 

Didi was always on guard---nothing got past here nose, eyes and ears.
We had to keep an eye on her as this place is full of Javelina's...and there were bears.
The Javelinas walked thru our campsite a few times---at one time I counted 11 of them in the herd.

 

 

 

She's Hungry........good girl.............how bout a treat ???
No.........how bout a chicken dinner ??? Rufffff.

 

 

 

 

January 8th, 2019
We left Fort Davis, Texas and headed West.

I had promised Debi to take her to the Prada art Display just the other side of Valentine Texas.
The fence around back was full of locks------------hundreds and hundreds of them.

 

 

 

It's a well known tradition for the woman that come here to pose.
So Debi went to work-----she's a professional at this.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Got a much needed oil change in the motorhome in Van Horn.
It was a basic shop and he just changed the oil beside the road....Crawled under it and got'er done.
He came out from under my motorhome covered in dirt and grime---just slid under there.
I don't know how he did it--didn't need no stinkin' lift-----I left the nice Mexican fellow a big tip.
Try to get that done in your hometown----I don't think so.

Carlsbad Caverns and Guadalupe National Parks were closed due to the Guvment shutdown.
I had mistakenly thought Carlsbad was a state park-----------but no----shut down and we backtracked
some and boondock camped at a really nice rest stop beside the road.

 

 

 

January 9th, 2019
We arrive in Columbus, Texas and stop at this neat little cafe.
We end up eating breakfast 3 times---super nice people and the restaurant got wrote up
just recently in some New York publication we were told. It wasn't good which proves
"what the hell do they know"
Stay away please !!!!

 

 

And before we camp in Pancho Villa state park Debi finds a little Mexican roadside stand
and does some bargain shopping.

 

 

The history here at the state park is amazing and we went thru a couple museums.
Fort Sumter is here and Columbus is the last place in the US to be attacked from
a foreign country-----1914 I believe by Pancho Villa.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Friday January 11th, 2019
A good riding buddy of mine (Alan Anderson) is passing thru town and he camps with us.
He had his KTM 350 EXC in his van and we talked about riding and I had an idea.

 

 

Thousands of motorcycle riders including myself have ridden what is known as the CDR--Continental Divide Ride.
But........there is also a hiking trail from Mexico to Canada called the CDT--Continental Divide Trail.
And I had a waypoint of a monument erected by the BLM at the Southern most end of the trail.
Getting there required riding on some remote dirt roads----which supposedly ended at the Mexican
border miles from Antelope Wells, New Mexico where the CDR ride starts. I remember seeing
a picture of it and this sounded like an adventure and me And Alan took off to find it.
We head South toward Antelope Wells, New Mexico and then Southeast on a little dirt road.
Would we find the monument ?? Or was I dreaming----I know of no one that has been there
on a motorcycle. I'm sure many have.......just haven't heard about it..

 

 

This dirt road had been freshly graded as we past many places that had been previously washed out.

 

 

Knowing the road was a dead end I feared the road would detereorate into an impassable road, which
is what a lot of roads do. It was nice----------and a lot of fun.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We passed some signs that assured us we were on the right track.
As it felt like we were trespassing on some ranchers land----we were not.

 

 

We got to the end of the road at a border fence to Mexico and I didn't see the monument.
Thankfully Allan spotted it a bit to the North of where we were.
The location of the monument was spot on to my waypoint.......and it was spectacular.
The middle of nowhere we were. Put here by the BLM.

 

 

It just didn't seem real that this thing was in the middle of nowhere.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And this is the freshly put up border wall just installed by Mr. Trump.
The dirt road on the other side was Mexico.
And I think the border patrol was watching us............yes they were.

 

 

 

 

Neither one of us could resist stepping in to Mexico.
We both have passports----but not with us.
But.............there was nobody to look at them anyway.

 

 

 

 

When backtracking on a road you had just ridden..........the ride back is just as spectacular.
As the scenery is all different. And we rode the 45 miles back to Pavement North of Antelope Wells, NM
The old windmill that fills this water tank for the cattle was broken down and a solar panel
powered a pump to fill it.

 

 

I follow Alan back out and the colors and scenery are spectacular-------this is why we ride.
Plain and simple !!!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Adventure riders take note----there is once again gas in Hachita New, Mexico.
It was shut down for years but is now back open for business.
This is right on the Continental Divide ride from Mexico to Canada.
And is in a place where gas is badly needed.

 

Here is a map to give you an idea of just where this thing is.

A Little Video of our ride to the CDR Monument

 

 

Heading Further West
1-12-19

We drove straight West---then South from Columbus, NM---it was near the New Mexico Town of Rodeo that this
monument was beside of the road marking the surrender of Geronimo.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Just before we rolled into Bisbee, AZ we go thru the old streets of Lowell.
It was a trip back thru time---the stores and the vehicles tell the story.
Notice the muffler...........a can of WD-40.
This thing ran like a top as later it buzzed thru Bisbee while we were there.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My Personal favorite.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lots to see in Bisbee and I parked our motorhome on a high ridge overlooking the town.
We stayed the night here.

 

 

Most of the towns building were as they were long ago.
The mine is what built this town--I think it was copper and I was told it was once the
largest town in the US ????

 

 

 

Once again---taking Debi to this nice place made her day.
She did some shopping here which also made her day.

 

 

 

So once again.....I could do no wrong.

 

 

 

 

 

Tombstone, Arizona
The Earp brothers still rome the streets.
The town has been kept the same as it was in the lates 1800's mostly.
Some could say a tourist trap to avoid------I love the history of the West and love old Western movies---so
I think it's neat to get a tast of the old West.

 

 

 

 

 

It wasn't 30 minutes after I took this picture-----some of them got shot !!!!!!

 

 

 

 

One passerby thought this was neat----even tho the driver was holding a cellphone and was
talking thru one of those "Garth Brooks" microphones.

 

 

 

We drove by my old favorite ghost town of Fairbanks, Arizona---population zero now.
I don't illaborate much on the history of stuff---some people over do that and it's a lot of
typing-------------so google that town and you can read for days about it-------it's pretty interesting.

We then turned into a camping spot just West of it.
And.................the sun went down in the West as it always does.

 

 

1-14-19

I unloaded my Honda not long after the crack of dawn.
And found some roads on my Butler map that I hadn't been on.
I made me a rough rollchart---an armed with over a thousands waypoints I had in my gps from
previous travels off I went---it was chilly and I ran my heated grips and vest all day.
I was never cold---------just comfy.

 

 

Northeast of camp I went up into the Dragoon mountains alone.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I rode on Middlemarch road, road thru Middlemarch pass..............and lo and behold
rode right thru Middlemarch canyon---------who'd a thunk.

 

 

This road is on an equal to any of the greatest adventure roads I've ever ridden on.
For 60 miles I passed only one vehicle-----a border patrol truck.
I was alone----and tho it was a rough road not suitable for passenger cars----it was easy enough
I wasn't worried too much riding it alone.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We've all seen signs like this---but seeing one out here in the middle of nowhere was way cool.

 

 

 

 

There was a bridge----but I went this way.

 

 

 

 

Nerver been here---it was a cool place.
Google it for the complete history-------my fingers are getting tired.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The few pictures I took of this town is all there was.

 

 

 

 

The Chiracahua National Monument is up in those mountains---a little riff of snow up there.

 

 

 

 

Entrance to the Chiracahua National Monument.
Please keep out as our guvment is incapable of keeping things running.

 

 

 

 

 

Johnny Ringo's grave is near here---the fastest pistolero in the West----until somebody shot him.
I'd been there before and wanted to go by to see if he was still there..........but didn't.
Here is me in 2009 I think----his grave is down a dead in road on private property which the
nice people let you hike to.-------------thank you.

 

 

Snow melt I'd say-----I rode thru slow fearing there might be a washed out ditch or hole.

 

 

I think I rode over 200 miles this day---dang near ran the little 250 (I mean 790) out of gas.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I found another dirt road I'd never been on late in the day that took me back to Tombstone
and about 4 miles out of town I found this monument down a dead end road.
I had the waypoint-------and I found it.

 

 

Wanna know the jillion pages of history here???
Google it-------I ain't typing it out. (smiley face)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wished I had video'd todays ride-----but I took off with a dead battery in my camera.
I felt bad after my awesome ride today---poor ole' Debi spent the day cleaning the motorhome and
doing laundry. But when I'm out she does some of her art work and her and Didi go for walks.

 

 

1-15-19
I wasn't quite ready to leave our campsite yet. I've tried to bike, bicycle and hike to the ghost town
of Contention, AZ. First time on the motorcycle I found out motorized vehicles are not allowed on this preservation
area. On my bicycle I found out that 70 cactus needles stuck in my tire is no fun---flat tire.
So me and Debi make a big attempt at hiking to it.
Why????-------Contention is the town in the movie "3:10 To Yuma" was about.
A ficticous movie I luv-----the first one black and white the second was color with Russell Crow.
Go watch it-------it's an awesome movie. Yeh---it wasn't real but still I had to go there.

And South of Contention was the ghost town of Fairbanks Arizona.
Lot's of building still there.

 

So from Fairbanks we take off on our hike and I remember pushing my bicycles thru here
after my irrepairable flat tire. Cactus needles everywhere.

 

 

 

 

Frickin' rattlesnakes everywhere---so we take hiking poles.........yeh that'll scare em' away.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A lot of years have to pass for a cemetary to deteorate to this.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then we get to the old stamp mill.
I forget what they mined here.............google it.
I'm too busy being retired.

 

 

 

 

Holy crap........it's 2 more miles to Contention....then we'd have to hike back.
There is not enough daylight to this-----failure number 3 for me.
You got to leave something in your bucket list I guess.

 

 

So we turn back to Fairbanks on another trail that is right along the San Pedro river
and that trail was awesome.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We hiked thru 3 ravines.

 

 

 

 

This plane buzzed by us enough times that he wasted enough fuel to pay the national debt
and end the guvment shut down. Our tax dollars at work.

 

 

 

 

 

I didn't know we'd get this close to the old railroad bed....but I spotted a tressel.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I climbed upon it and looked both ways---it was just cool to stand on this historic railroad.
Debi probably thought I was just plain nuts.

 

 

Goes all the way to Yuma, AZ

 

 

I'm not such a good hiking climber----especially in loose shale---but I made it up here
and slid down----gravity works pretty good. Debi waits patiently while I play around.

 

 

 

 

Down the trail she finds an easy to get up there.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I suppose this is where they loaded passengers or freight onto the train in Fairbanks ????

 

 

 

 

Back at the trailhead in Fairbanks we look at all the old buildings in this ghost town.
This is the post office....as big as this building is, it gives you an idea of just how big and
populated this town was at one time---just about 5 building remain standing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We had ridden to Fairbanks from our campground on our scooter---it was time to go back
as the sun was getting low. It was a fun day.

P

 

A short video of our hike

 

Probably headed more West tomorrow----got to find a way around Quartzite, AZ---I ain't gettin' no where near that
over crowded mess. I'd rather chew my leg off.

 

 

 

On To Part 4