day 11 - taos plateau
it took 1 1/2 hours to reach the first town where there was food, la jara. 15 miles. normally, that's closer to an hour. i made a stop for what had become a reliable source of protein and what minimal vegetables i eat, a 6"tuna sub with everything on it, extra mayo (yeah, paul, mayo). unlike in la junta, they ley me eat outside at their only picnic table, building blocking the wind and sun, staring at the old railroad depot.
then it was just ride. put the bike on the 4th largest of 6 gears in the back cluster and pedaled away. a couple of hours later and i was in antonito, just before the new mexico border. i could tell not by how the mileage marker numbers were creeping slowly towards zero, but also that the town, about two treeless blocks long, had several marajuana shops. last chance before the border. i knew there wasn't another stop for almost 30 miles and i'd need at least my two water bottles full, plus the extra i was carrying. a nice guy washing his car said 'i ain't got time to fuck with this'' when i asked if it was potable and would he mind filling my bottle; the health clinic had a notice on the door that you couldn't come in without an appointment, the little city park didn't have water, and the sort of convenience store was closed. finally i went in a head shop and the dude there had trouble filling the bottle, but he gave be one he had to make up for it. and off i went.
i crossed the new mexico state line and just wondered at the emptiness. they call this area the taos plateau, all managed by the bureau of land management. the valley runs north-south, about 25-30 miles wide, mountains on both sides. acres and acres of sage brush desert, no dwellings, no buildings, all fenced with limited points of access. i stopped at one point to sit and rest and realized there were a dozen sheep out there, scattered. then i saw a cowboy on a horse and two dogs come along. they didn't seem interested in the sheep. couldn't see where they came from or where they were going.
at some point i realized that not only was i riding into a steady wind and slowly but surely going up hill, but i was above 8,000 ft. and had been all day. i could feel it in my lungs. either that or i had caught that bloody virus. i had to work to get enough air.
the road in new mexico deteriorated at points, the shoulder disappeared and the pavement crumbled. making it more interesting. but the wind began to shift a little, i started to go downhill more, and then i was there, tres piedres. home to the home of aldo leopald, father of american conservation. it took me a while to figure it out, the signage was terrible, but i found the ranger station for the national forest about 1/4 mile off the road. and it was perfect. it's legal to camp almost anywhere in a national forest, so you don't have to hide. the ranger station was closed due to the virus, of course, but there was a fabulous pine grove behind that.
there was even a small restaurant the chili line depot, back at the highway where i could pick up a burito and some home made cookies.
the only downside was it was freezing that night. literally, it went below freezing. i did not sleep well at all, too cold. and getting up to pee in the middle of the night like an old man takes an act of will power. the second time, i went ahead and pulled my sleeping bag liner out of my panier and slip into that. it helped.
its good to see u wizing up a bit, glad you had second urge to water the pines
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