We awoke to another hot day and set off into the old part of Sante Fe to a famous restaurant called Pasquals for breakfast. This was something else. Southwest (texmex) American style food with an emphasis on hot chilli. Bloody marvelous! We then wandered around this historic part of the city and I have to say it was really quite special. Markets, adobe buildings, and...the Ole Sante Fe Trail The trail is now a street and forms part of Old Route 66.
We set out from Sante Fe for Colorado, having eaten well and in good spirits. This leg had us heading for Colorado and the beginning of the Rockies. It also meant that (finally) the temperatures would start dropping. Riding out of New Mexico was another one of those great experiences. New Mexico is beautiful in a hot stark sort of way, and you are left wondering where the 300 million odd yanks actually live. Certainly not where we are riding.
This leg of the ride had us going from 40+ back down to around 20+ as we began to gain altitude. One of the things that I am really getting to enjoy is the food they serve up in the old diners that dot the roads we are travelling It is really tast the staff are always friendly and helpful and the food is verry very cheap. The meals are so big that Sarah and I share just one most of the time and they never cost more than $8 kiwi. Bloody marvellous. Some of us got to this on (The Elk Horn) in Chama in Northern New Mexico early so we had the place to ourselves. Having said that I could not see any houses or civilisation for that matter so you wonder how they survive, but they do.
From Chama we left New Mexico and entered Colorado and the bottom of the Rockies. We are trying to stay off the Inter States as much as we can but even the back roads leave our main roads back home for dead. We are in 6th gear most of the time and travelling at speeds around 120kph without a problem.
Tonight we arrived in Pagosa Springs at the bottom of the Rockies late in the afternoon. This is another beautiful town and we will be taking some photos in the morning to give you an idea of what we mean. It is a resort town with a strong farming community arounbd it. The temperature tonight is expected to drop below zero but that will just remind us of what we are missing back home.
We arrived in Pagosa Springs at the foot of the Rockies intending to camp somewhere in the Mountains, but the weather forecast was for thunderstorms and temperatures down to zero. After stopping off at the general store to buy some cold weather gear for the next leg (we get up over 11000 feet) we had some time to kil before the RV team arrived so we headed for the Bear Creek Saloon. We opted for a cheap motel and parked up the bikes and the RV and settled in for the night. Right behind this shot of Dino is a small lake where Bo and Laney were fishing for trout while the rest of us busied ourselves with a fire and a beer. Ain't life great.
It has been a great ride today. Bo has just been fantastic and is riding her great big Harley like a pro. It is always interesting to see the look on the men's faces when they spy the bike (because it is pretty awesome) and then see Bo! Women do ride over here but we have only seen one other so far. I am off for a few (read lots) beers and something to eat. Wonder if Bo has caught any fish?
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