What a Difference a Day Makes - Marfa to Sanderson

That's Jay heading east!

A grand day for biking!

We crossed over into Central Time Zone a couple of days ago which means it isn't light enough to start biking until 8am. Will headed out soon as light allowed. We caught up with him about 20 miles in and he had a big smile on his face--no wind, down hill general direction and smooth sailing. He finished a record 109 miles. I dropped Jay off at a road side rest and he biked a good 40 miles into Sanderson and was a good day for him also. He even had a slight tail wind.

We lost cell phone contact for a short while today for the first time. May happen again in the next few days as it is long, lonely

stretches of road out here. But for now we are staying right on hiway 90 so not much chance of losing anyone. Internet connections might be iffy also for a couple of days.

Happy Halloween everyone!!

Oct 30-Van Horn to Marfa TX

This is probably the most curious little RV park yet. 14 full hookup sites and even cable tv off the highway in the middle of nowhere near Marfa, TX. No extra amenities, self pay, but what more do we need. (wi-fi would be nice—guess I will be posting this one late.) There are a bunch of Scaled Quail running all over the campground and they are keeping me entertained!

Will began biking with leggings and gloves at 38 degrees but warmed up into high 70’s with clear, blue sky. Winds continue to be easterly and got stronger as the day went on. We are skirting the Davis Mountains so the road is long and strait, little traffic and a relentless gradual incline. Was a mentally difficult 72 miles as neither the wind nor the uphill grade gave an inch. Will also had his first flat tire today. Jay did about half the distance and was a grind for him also.

Now Marfa is a Texas town with character. Its Presidio County Courthouse was built in 1886 and topped with a life-sized statue of Justice. Extensive renovation in 2001 has restored the “grand old lady” to her former glory. I climbed the stairs to the top for a grand view of town and surrounding antelope country. Then checked out the Paisano which is a classy destination hotel built in 1930.
Marfa is most famous for its “ghost lights”. Apparently they are still as mysterious as they were when they were first seen by early settlers in 1880’s. We went to see if we could spot them at dusk but not so sure we know what we were looking for. We saw lights in the desert but expected something more dramatic.

fixing a flat at the end of the day

Van Horn, Texas

I read in a brochure, "Van Horn, the city so healthy they had to shoot someone to start a cemetery." Made me chuckle but quite frankly it didn't look that prosperous to me. Fuel stop in west Texas and that about it. I think this was a place where a lot of things happened in Texas history, however. But it was 80 bike miles from edge of El Paso.

Jay got on his bike today for a short run into Van Horn. Felt good but he needs to take it slow.



What would we have done this trip without our cell phones, I can keep in touch with the bikers. Jay is talking to Will in the picture. The picture is also proof that there are mountains in west Texas.

El Paso, Texas

Socorro Mission

The RV stayed parked for two nights in El Paso. Was nice to sleep in a bit this morning. We got up and found a Dennys for breakfast and then joined a very welcoming local church for morning services.

If I were biking this section, I would simply stop biking at the west end of El Paso and pick up the trail once thru the city. But obviously my logic doesn't work for them because I drove Will back to his stop point this afternoon so he could do the 40 mile loop through the city.

I had time to check out the Mission Trail southeast of town. Three restored old mission churchs with histories dating back to 1680 are quite amazing. And all three are still working parish churchs. Jay and I checked out the pool and a variety of Sunday afternoon sports on cable tv.

San Elizario Chapel Mission

Columbus NM to El Paso

helping Will get off in the morning.

We caught up with Will mid morning. This has been his view of southern New Mexico since he left the mountains yesterday afternoon. It has a haunting beauty.

He stopped to eat his lunch and had an interesting chat with a passing border patrol agent. Arrived in El Paso in time to stop at a bike shop for another tune up -- 800 miles down.
Was so thankful to have Jay with me to find tonights RV park. We both failed "Sign-Reading-101" and if I had been by myself I shutter to think where I would be tonight.

Cliff NM to Columbus NM

Sunrise take off

Will was at his start point at sunrise today and did an astonishing 105 miles from the Continental Divide above Silver City following hiway 180 all the way to Deming and beyond to Columbus, NM almost to the Mexican border. Was 36 degrees when we rolled out of bed but warmed up nicely with the sun. Long, straight roads and a down hill direction made for good long run.
Verna headed back to Phoenix after breakfast (I miss her already) and Jay and I slowly on picked up and headed down the road. We overtook Will about mile 60 and then pulled over a few miles farther to have some lunch and wait for him to come by. He was so focused that he peddled right past us and didn’t see us even though we were 20 feet off the hiway. Is he into this or what!
Spending tonight at Poncho Villa State Park. Wonderful desert campground with a brand new visitors center and museum commemorating a raid in 1916 on the town by the Mexican bandit.
Jay took a couple of nice naps and concentrated on getting his body healed. Tomorrow we will move into El Paso

morning gossip line!

The DeBoer bike ride across the US experienced a glitch this past week. It is certainly continuing on but circumstances got in the way of plans so adjustments are being made daily. I hesitated to blog it all as situation changing continually and did not want anyone alarmed. One day off in Phoenix turned into two days off when Jay woke up Sunday morning with extreme fatigue and a fever. A quick trip to the emergency room ended up with a stay in the hospital and a diagnosis of infection brewing. With his recent medical history, the doctors took it all very seriously, ran a bunch of tests, started a course of antibiotics, and kept a close eye on him. Each day we were all sure he was going to be released but two days turned into three and three into four. Will and Linda went on ahead on third day thinking that surely Jay would follow shortly. Finally, he left with doctor’s blessing—Verna drove him out to Silver City to catch up, she will return to Phoenix to go home shortly. Jay will ride along in the coach for a couple of days and start biking when he feels he can. We all went thru the gambit of emotions—disappointment, fear, concern, uncertainty . . .each of us had our repertoire of feelings, but all thru it we were so aware of God’s arms around us. I know many of you are praying for us and may I say thanks, we have already felt it.

Safford to Buckhorn and Silver City, NM

View back down the mountain from bike from 6300ft

I wimped out this morning and decided to drive the RV an extra 30 miles so that I would not have to drive it through a winding mountain road by myself. So I circled around the mountain range and came into Silver City from the south. Now Will biked over said mountain road heading over Arizona hiway 73 and into New Mexico toward Silver City. I set up camp and then drove the tow car back until I found him to pick him up. Word was I missed a beautiful road (that's ok)
It actually looks like autumn up here at 6000 ft. Aspens are golden and quaking. Air is cool and crisp. Winds diminished for now.

Little post office in mountain village of Mule Creek, New Mexico. Yellow headed blackbirds on a pond, moon over Lake Roper

Globe to Safford -- mountains to cotton fields

Another day of strong headwinds. Still managed to crank out 79 miles. Thru mountainous terrain and then down into agricultural valley filled with huge cotton fields near Safford. Farmers busy harvesting. Spent the night at tranquil Roper State Park in a site overlooking a little lake teeming with water fowl. Almost a full moon.

Tempe to Globe AZ

After two days in Phoenix area it was time to move onto Globe.

Uphill and directly into a strong headwind.

Peddling into Phoenix

Day 5 was an easy 65 ride into southern part of Phoenix. Road from Gila Bend to Maricopa through Sonoran Desert National Monument was beautiful--both scenic and smooth--and weather conditions comparatively comfortable. They made it to the end before midday melting sun heated up. They biked right up to the door of a bike shop in Chandler and had a mechanic give their bikes a quick once over just for good measure. Will needed to purchase a new tire pump and Jay needed new tires mounted and they were good to go. Linda and Verna overtook them about mile 32 and stopped for a quick encouragement kiss (too sweaty to hug!) and they went on into Tempe to set up camp.

Tomorrow is a day off in Phoenix. Jay and Verna have an aunt to visit and niece and nephews they are looking forward to hanging out with.

waiting for bike repairs!

Hopefully this will be time enough to heal some saddle sores.

This is a nice shot of the Sonoran Desert National Monument plus Will's thumb

Day Four

This is the first time that we found a campground at the point where the guys ended their day, which means we did not have to fetch them when they finished last night OR, more importantly for us, we did not have to deliver them to a take off spot this morning. We did send them off with a hearty breakfast but then Verna and I could just relax with our cup of coffee and wave them off!
We took our time breaking camp and then caught up with Will and Jay about 38 miles down the road and enjoyed an ice cream cone with them--what good timing. Morning was cool, road was smooth, winds light--they were energized.
We motored on to Gilla Bend to set up camp again and settled in to anticipate their arrival. Unhooked the tow car to check out the town--which didn't take long, there is not a lot to Gilla Bend, AZ--and stocked up on a few groceries. The bikers' appetites have been ravenous but Verna loves to cook and she has been turning out some grand meals for us all. She is spoiling us, I fear we will not eat so well when she is gone.

Sun heated up in the afternoon and a slight headwind prevailed.

Finished the day dog tired after 88 miles across the desert.

Quote from Jay; "Give me some trees!!"

Calexico thru Yuma to Wellton, Arizona

Today was 90 grueling miles, They were working hard. Even though the topography was mostly flat--except for a short range they had to cross east of Yuma, the wind had changed to a cross wind, and blowing sand was annoying when they reached the sand dunes west of Yuma. Some miles of bumpy road and 90 plus hot sun added to the mix. The pool at the RV park at the end of the long day was heaven.

Linda and Verna found a Starbucks in the morning and joined in a water aerobics class at the pool. We've been enjoying a lot of laughs together.

cogitating in the desert

First two days Ocean to Mountain Top to desert floor

First day from the ocean to Buckman Springs, California was 60 miles and 4000 ft elevation gain. They were undaunted and even had smiles on their faces when we picked them up! Perfect cool, sunny biking weather with a wind at their back. What more could you ask. Pre-trip jitters melting into cautious confidence.

end of the day

Day two started out at 3200 ft rising to 4100 ft in a cold, drizzly rain. Jay thought he was back in the Northwest. About 30 miles into the day they had a thrill ride down to the desert floor. Strong cross winds blowing through the canyon made the decent an exhilarating adrenalin rush! Then a fast 30 miles to Calexico blown by gusting west winds. Big grins today!!

Verna and Linda moved the RV on down the road to tonight's destination and then unhooked the tow car and drove back to meet the
guys just for the fun of it. They biked 72 miles today.

monkeying around