Holiday Inn Express Grants, Nm

... d'une sortie d'autoroute. Quelques milles plus loin, un parc desert sur le haut d'une immense colline. Plus bas, un lac.

Nous sommes bien assis a l'abri d'un bosquet de cypres. Laurelie pratique le lancer du caillou et taquine la sauterelle. Emile observe, apprend, touche... Patience...

Let us just start by saying that everything really is bigger in Texas, including the amount of miles it took to cross it. It seemed like it took forever, but we finally made it out of that monstrosity of a state and now are in New Mexico. Not to say we didn't enjoy Texas, because we did. Austin was great, we will for sure be returning there sometime in the near future. However, today we mostly traveled through the west hills and massive farm lands. There are thousands ...

... rain and hail came through and I was having the worst day of the entire ride, slipping in the mud many times once twisting my knee, bike clogging up with mud every five minutes and scooping it out, rain and snow patterns passing over soaking me to the bone and riding in granny gear as only one was working. It was hell! I now understood what everyone had said about this part of the journey, the New Mexico part! Treacherous and not recommended when wet, even the map and guides said ...

I'm sorry, I grew up with Bugs Bunny cartoons and I always think of him taking the wrong turn there. I will some day explore the city and especially I would love to turn north and ride around the Santa Fe area. Don't think it will be this trip since they are expecting high winds and thunderstorms this week.

... of drinkable yogurt before but I had a bottle of blackberry flavored and it was really good. Goat's milk and it products are supposed to be very good for you. Anyway, we recalled old times and got caught up on current times for a few hours and then I hit the road again.

Next on the list was Acoma Pueblo, Sky City. It is on top of a mesa and is one of the oldest continueously inhabited settlements in the country. In the pueblo ...

... since it had rained earlier that day everything was mud and puddles of water. Everyone struggled getting around it and one couple accidentally dropped their baby's diaper bag in the mud! Our tour guide himself lived at the Pueblo so it was nice getting the tour from him. We walked around and various vendors were selling their pottery and handmade crafts along the way.

Our tour guide told us so many stories that I can't quite recollect them all. He told us about past ...

... Hope I didn't offend the local deities) : P The tribe takes great pride in their culture and heritage, and it really showed in how well taken care of the Pueblo was. The environment, geology, and landscape were fantastic. Add all this together, and you have a real treasure. Well, it's on to Arizona and the family in Phoenix. On the way, I want to check out Meteor Crater. I've seen the crater in so many movies, I have to see it for myself. ~JQ

... was a good move, as it rained all night. I woke up dry, with generally dry gear to slightly improving weather. By that afternoon things were dry, which they have been more or less since. The roads in the deserts I am now crossing are, if anything, even worse. I have to push my bike down and up deep arroyos, which are sandy canyons dug out by flash floods. I have enjoyed the desert though, it is very peaceful. Descending a big hill yesterday I waved goodbye to the ...

I spent about 10 days in New Mexico, which is truly a memorable destination. Peter Howley & Oliver Koehler (sectionmates from b-school) and I started out at MalPais National Park a couple hours west of Albuquerque. We did 2 great hikes: one on a lava strewn path with crevases left from ...

... UFO-themed attractions but it certainly was the biggest town we'd seen all day. We finally arrived in Santa Fe about 6pm - it is a very quaint little town with lots of shops, museums, etc - however, we arrived after they all closed - we were a little disappointed but figured it was probably better on our wallets that way. We settled for a stroll around town and a some dinner at a local restaurant with a nice outside patio. Then it was on to our home-away-from-home, the ...