GDMBR Day 11: Grants to San Mateo Spring We were up and packed fairly early the next morning. We decided to forgo the tasty donut hole breakfast and elected for something a little more substantial. The Grants Cafe served up a good breakfast even if the ambiance was a little heavy on the Route 66 schtick.The last thing we needed to take care of before leaving town was sending an email to Stan at Stan’s No Tubes, the maker of our tires. Willy’s tire had started to deform on the way into Grants and it looked to be a manufacturing defect from our perspective. The nearest Stan’s dealer on the route was about 400 miles away so we were hoping we might be able to have Stan mail a replacement tire out to us. So we stopped by the Mission Cafe to send one final email before heading back into the wilds and then hopped in the saddle, quite happy to be leaving Grants.The suggested mileage today seemed a little light at just over 20 miles but we soon found out why. We were climbing almost the entire day. It was really a pretty uneventful day. Stopping in the shade for a dry tuna sandwich and passing the Northern New Mexico correctional center were the highlights. After some of the excitement we’ve encountered it was good to have a calm day. We made it into camp early and sat around in the camp chairs enjoying the nice meadow of pines and aspen trees. By the time we made cheddar brats for dinner, sat around the campfire and went exploring to find the natural spring down the road we were both feeling a bit antsy like we should have pushed on further. We retired early to another clear night and a spectacular sky of a myriad of stars, satellites and even the occasional shooting star.GDMBR Day 12: San Mateo Spring to Hunter’s CampgroundAfter a breakfast of Maple and Brown Sugar oatmeal we had another early start. The first 10 miles or so were all downhill. We saw more cairns and arrows pointing the way for the group which was in front of us. They were becoming more frequent so I guessed the pack must be splintering. Unfortunately once the downhill ended so did the shade and the trees. We were back to the New Mexico we knew and yearned to leave behind.We only saw one car the whole day. We found it quite funny that the driver stopped to tell us we were going the wrong way. He worked in the area and assured us the road we were on would dead end into the mine and that we had missed a turn. He even reviewed our map and was sure if we were headed the right way we’d encounter locked gates and be forced to turn back. After he drove off Willy and I discussed it and we went with my 6th sense when it comes to navigation and forged ahead. About three miles down the road we turned off on a little dirt road and continued on the route. It just confirmed again how far off the beaten path we are. Tiny roads which people pass by every day without noticing are our everyday route. We spent most of the day riding around some spectacular lava formations and through arroyos. It was sandy at times which made for some difficult riding. Dipping in and out of the arroyos made for some technical riding as you tried to pick the most efficient line.Unfortunately the rough roads also made it a rough day for gear. I had been carrying a 6L MSR DromLite bag which was bungeed on to the BOB bag. Willy was riding in front for a good portion of the day so I didn’t have him as a spotter when it fell out. I didn’t realize until almost 20 miles after it happened. Luckily we had enough water in our bottles and Camelbaks so it wasn’t a serious problem. It would have been a much bigger problem when my BOB broke had we not been able to fix it. Coming through an arroyo suddenly it felt like I was pedaling in molasses — I turned around and saw my BOB dragging behind me through the dirt. I had lost a nut holding the main pivot point together and when it came apart the trailer and bolt had bent pretty severely. We set about pounding things back into shape with rocks and found we didn’t have any replacement nuts. Luckily the lock nuts on Presta valves are the same threading so I twisted a few of those on with LocTite and decided to hope for the best. We’re getting to be pretty good at making do with what we have.A mile before our targeted campsite for the night the map showed a natural spring so we decided to fill up. As we rounded the corner we were surprised to find three other people there. They were backpackers hiking the CDT. They’d done the AT and PCT in the previous two years and were now finishing up the third of the “Triple Crown” of long distance hiking trails. If anyone thinks we’re crazy they should learn more about CDT hikers. They generally hike 20 miles or so a day and are out for 5 or 6 months. After chatting for a while we headed our separate ways but not before Willy decided these three guys could use a bag of Peanut M&Ms more than we could. We planned to be in Cuba, New Mexico tomorrow where we could restock. These hikers still had several days before they got to a town which didn’t even have a grocery store so all they’d have waiting for them was whatever they had packed to be sent to them a month or two ago. They were extremely grateful for the treat. Camp that night was on top of a beautiful mesa with a spectacular sunset. We made a fabulous spaghetti dinner and watched the moon rise both very happy to know we’d be in a town with a hotel the following night. Willy didn’t know what else was in store for him tomorrow, his 43rd birthday.GDMBR Day 13: Hunter’s Campground to CubaFor breakfast in the morning we feasted on some chocolate donuts I had picked up in Grants and had tried hard to ensure they weren’t crushed in my bag over the previous couple of days. It was Willy’s birthday and he loves donuts. So with some makeshift candles made from matches I presented him with donuts to have with his oatmeal before we hit the road.Being Willy’s birthday you’d think we might have a little luck and be free of mechanicals but that would be wishful thinking. Over the past two days we’d had to pump up Willy’s tire about twice a day. Just before lunch today the tire completely broke down and couldn’t be salvaged even to make it the 20 miles into Cuba. We found the first shady spot about a mile (up a hill of course) and set about replacing the tire. We eventually made it into Cuba and checked in to the Frontier Hotel based on their advertised free WiFi. Of course coverage was spotty in our room but the shower almost made up for it. It was hot and had enough pressure to wash off three days of New Mexican desert dirt. While Willy was off doing laundry I called Paula. She’s an event planner by profession and she wasn’t going to let Willy’s birthday go by unnoticed even if we were in a small New Mexican town with a population of less than a thousand people. She had arranged for the owners of the El Bruno restaurant in town to expect us between 7:00 and 8:00.After taking a seat the waitress came out with a bottle of Don Julio tequila. Willy and I looked at one another — if we didn’t find someone else to drink the tequila with us then we might as well plan on staying in Cuba for two nights so we asked for glasses for everyone else on the patio. The dinner was delicious and the next surprise was when all the staff of the restaurant came out carrying a birthday cake and singing “Happy Birthday”. We ate as much of the cake as we could and then left the cake and the rest of the bottle of “Don” with some guys at the table next to us who looked like they’d nurture both of them. Even from a couple thousand miles away Paula had pulled off planning quite a party.

Willy’s 43rd Birthday Celebration

GDMBR Day 8: Pie Town to Chain of Craters Backcountry Byway

We woke up early the next morning. Knowing I had to stop by the post office in Pie Town to send home my big camera and pick up the new camera, Willy had spent all his time riding yesterday contemplating what else could be sent home. We were definitely carrying too much weight so before heading over to breakfast we figured out what could be sent home and redistributed the common gear. It was no longer “What about BOB?” but “ALL about BOB!” and anything we could do to lighten our load.

Items not making the cut included:

• ULock and cables: these weighed at least five pounds and there isn’t anyone around in the places we stay to even steal our bikes (or so we hope).
• Books for pleasure reading: there is so much work to do around camp and by the time we turn in we’re completely spent and the big tomes we brought are simply too heavy.
• Clothing and other miscellaneous sundries: other than cold weather gear, if we haven’t used it yet then we probably won’t need it.

In all honesty, most of the stuff to be sent home was mine. Willy had done a good job of weeding through the unessential items he was carrying in Silver City. We redistributed what remained, repacked with BOB configuration v2.0 and headed to The Daily Pie Cafe for breakfast.

Our server, Barbara, and everyone at the Daily Pie were extremely friendly. They let us spread our maps all over the table, kept the coffee coming and served up a delicious breakfast and pie ala mode. Knowing the pay phone in town was broken and cell phone coverage is non-existent they even have a second phone line dedicated for hikers and bikers to use. We spent the morning gorging ourselves and talking on the phone. If you ever find your way passing through Pie Town, New Mexico definitely stop in for the pie and some of the finest hospitality you’ll ever encounter.

The final stop before getting on the bikes was the Pie Town Post Office. I was excited to get rid of the extra weight but I was a bit anxious about the shipment from Amazon. We checked with the postmaster and nothing had arrived from UPS. She offered to forward the packages on to another post office when they did arrive. I was a bit despondent because I didn’t want to be without a camera but it was the best we could do. We boxed up the gear to send home — almost 17 pounds worth and as we prepared to pay the UPS truck showed up with my packages from Amazon. I was the proud owner of a new Canon SD 800, a spare battery and a few SD cards for all of our pictures. The timing was perfect — serentripity strikes again!

After saying goodbye to the ladies from the USPS and the UPS we pedaled off on what was supposed to be a fairly easy day of mostly downhill. The New Mexican sun was shining and we were going through our water (almost 4L a piece) pretty quickly. The maps and guidebook mentioned several tanks and windmills where we could stop to get water but they were all dry.

After 10 miles of stopping to check out every tank and windmill without luck we came across what we’ve dubbed a “New Mexican drinking fountain”. It was a huge tank in the middle of the desert, standing next to a broken windmill and a strange solar array on top. Had it not been for the solar panels we would have pedaled past figuring it was yet another empty tank in disrepair. As we walked closer we could see water dripping from the top from where the spigot was supposed to be. We found pieces of the faucet on the ground shattered in pieces. The nearby cattle tanks were full so we knew there had to be way to get water out of it. Again, we were two perplexed city slickers who knew water was close at hand but unable to get to it.

After 20 minutes of investigation I decided the only option left was to climb the ladder and see what was on top. I found a small hole and was able to stick my hand inside far enough to find the tank was nearly full of clear, cool water. It took nearly 15 more minutes, with both Willy and I climbing the tank, a rock and some rope to rig up a MacGyver-esque setup which yielded almost 5L of fresh drinking water. Mission accomplished — we could pedal on.

When we stopped for lunch a few hours later, of course there were no trees for shade. The only thing casting a shadow was an old wooden sign for a housing community being built which we had passed nearly 15 miles before. We set up a tarp in the shade, devoured our tuna sandwiches and even took a quick afternoon siesta.

As we packed up the bikes Willy turned around and saw a scene which spurred his creative side.

A Long, Unwinding Road

We turned on to the Chain of Craters Backcountry Byway which is part of the El Malpais National Monument. After a long day of pedaling we stopped at a trail head for the CDT. It was a cool spot because it was the first time, to our knowledge, the CDT and the GDMBR routes crossed. We set up camp, had a dinner of Ramen noodles and proceeded to clean up just as we normally do. While we were washing dishes both Willy and I heard a growl in the distance but neither of us said anything. After the second growl we looked at each other with a “Did you hear that too?” look. We quickly finished the dishes, packed the food and other items of interest to bears and stored them well away from camp. It was a beautiful clear night and a full moon was rising. As we sat in our camp chairs we only heard the growling one more time and it was much further off. None the less the can of bear repellent was within easy reach between us.

GDMBR Day 9: Chain of Craters Backcountry Byway to Grants

Supplies were definitely getting low. I ate the last packet of oatmeal for breakfast and Willy ate Ramen. We planned to make it to Grants by evening but any nourishment during the day would come from gooey PowerBars or whatever we found along the way. During the ride we’ve been making reference to accounts posted by others, mainly Scott and Paula and Mike. Scott made reference to a little cafe at the Bandera Ice Caves halfway through the day’s ride where he and Paula had eaten burritos. We were banking on that little cafe still being around three years later for our lunch today.

We pedaled into the Bandera Ice Caves just as the Schwan’s truck was arriving. We’ve seen a number of Schwan’s trucks on the trips. It seems when you live more than 50 miles from the closest town with a store it is just more convenient to let Schwan’s bring the food to you.

While we waited for the fresh delivery to be unpacked we hiked to the ice cave. After pedaling through desert in the relatively cool (yet very hot by Chicago standards) morning sun it was amazing to walk down a few flights of stairs to find an exposed sheet of ice more than 12 feet thick. The air temperature was a very cool 31 degrees and while it felt refreshing at first we were quickly chilled.

Back at the Tradin’ Post/Visitor’s Center we dined on cheeseburgers and Ranchero sandwiches freshly cooked/thawed in the microwave. It wasn’t gourmet but it hit the spot. Before leaving the ice caves we hiked to the crater of the Bandera Volcano.

The El Malpais National Monument visitor’s center was just down the road. Since I’ve been a kid I’ve collected stamps for every National Park I visit. Since the visitor’s center was six miles off route round trip and it included a two mile climb on the return Willy and I split up. He headed to Grants and we agreed to meet up either at the KOA or the Mission Coffee Shop and headed off in opposite directions.

After getting the stamp in my National Parks Passport. I collected my BOB from where I had left it at the Bandera Ice Caves and set off to Grants. About two miles into the ride I was again on gravel and after another mile or two I picked up the tracks of Willy’s tires climbing to the summit to cross the Continental Divide for the fifth time that day. I couldn’t resist — I felt like I was in the Tour de France and the Director of my team had called out over the radio to chase down the breakaway. I had roughly 20 miles to give it all I had to see if I could chase Willy down. Willy knows me well enough to realize I’d give chase so we both rode hard all the way to Grants. I never quite caught him but when we get a free minute we’re going to compare the GPS tracks. I contend with just another couple of miles I would have caught him. Regardless, we both had a great ride flying through the downhills of a beautiful canyon. I think it was the best downhill yet.

Grants is on Route 66 and since I-40 superseded the “Main Street of America” many years ago it doesn’t look like much has changed. After talking to a few people at the Mission Coffee Shop everyone suggested we stay at the Sands Motel if there was a vacancy.

We checked for availability at the office and they had a room for us. It was supposedly “very clean” and we were allowed to bring our bikes in the room. And at $40 a night it included breakfast. We figured it was a good deal and checked in.

The room actually smelled like it had been painted the day before. However, it might have been easier to just paint over the dirt rather than trying to clean it off. But the room had two beds and the water in the shower was hot even if the pressure left a little to be desired. The room next door was the Elvis Room and not sleeping in the tent after some long days in the saddle counted for a lot.

After we got cleaned up, we asked about dinner and where we could get the film in our disposable camera developed. People suggested El Cafecito and of course there was a Wal-Mart nearby for the film. We had a decent meal and were introduced to sopapillas, a delicious New Mexican treat which is like fried bread which can be stuffed with the usual five ingredients Taco Bell has managed to make into so many different combinations or can be eaten plain with honey on top. Personally we both liked the sopapilla and honey for dessert.

Being a “big-box” store and since Willy and I live in Chicago we don’t get to check out the inside of Wal-Marts very often. It was a bit overwhelming at first but I found the photo drop counter and they promised they would be ready the next morning at 10:00.

I think we felt a little lost not having the usual chores around camp to take care of like cooking, cleaning up and pitching the tent. So we did what we know best when you have a free evening, we stopped by the local package goods store and grabbed a six-pack. Back in the room we enjoyed a beer, watched TV and caught up on phone calls before turning in and looking forward to a rest day tomorrow.

GDMBR Day 10: Rest Day in Grants

After a decent night’s sleep at the Sands Motel we woke up and headed over to breakfast in the hotel office. It consisted of coffee or tea and donut holes. It was lucky neither of us was really expecting much more out of the place but it was a enough to tide us over to take care of the morning errands. We needed to head back to Wal-Mart to pick up the photos and shop for supplies. Again, Wal-Mart was a bit of a trying experience for us both but we were successful. Afterwards we split up and Willy headed off to do laundry while I headed back to the Mission Cafe to start uploading photos. Our plan was to spend the whole day relaxing with coffee, a newspaper and WiFi access.

We met a number of interesting people throughout the day. We shared our story and heard a number of stories of how people ended up in Grants and how most of them were hoping to get out sometime soon. After the cafe closed we walked around town a bit. We’d only been here a day but I wanted out already. Part of it was yearning to get back in the saddle and make progress on the ride but really Grants wasn’t all that nice of a place.

Everywhere there were rundown or completely shut hotels. I walked by most of the places and cringed. It reminded me of the house I lived in at college with nine other guys (as you can imagine that wasn’t exactly a pretty scene). You know that in an earlier time it had been a really nice place but now it was beyond hope and somehow had avoided the wrecking ball far longer than it should have. When my parents came to visit I think my mom only set foot in that house out of motherly obligation and after the super abbreviated five minute tour we headed over to the Student Union. Here in Grants I got the same feeling my mom must’ve had back then and rather than walk a few blocks away a couple day pedal seemed like the only salvation.

Everything about this town made me wonder if all of Route 66 was in this kind of disrepair. This road has such a romantic appeal in American folklore but if Grants is typical then I certainly won’t be looking to get my kicks on Route 66.

That night Willy spent some time working on his bike. We had adjusted the gears for cable stretch back at Beaverhead and it had been shifting fairly well. But in the last day it was getting rough. Anyone who has ever biked with Willy knows it must’ve been causing problems for him to roll up his sleeves and start fiddling with it. I tuned up his old bike once and cleaned off the chain in the process. On his very next ride the chain snapped because the dirt and gunk was all that was holding the bike together. Willy just doesn’t believe in tune-ups. After a while of tinkering he seemed happy and we headed off to dinner. We looked forward to another night’s sleep in a bed and then getting out of Grants early the next morning.

GDMBR Day 5: Silver City to Rocky Canyon Campground

We planned to get an early start. But it just didn’t happen. Willy had convinced me the weight to reward ratio of my Nikon D200 was too low. So before we set out I ordered a new camera the size of a deck of playing cards from Amazon. I knew we’d be in Pie Town in four or five days so I figured I’d send the bulky D200 and with Amazon Prime UPS would have it delivered by the time we got there. The question was where exactly in Pie Town, New Mexico was “there”? I’d never tried the USPS General Delivery system where you can arrange to pick up your mail at a Post Office but I knew hikers on the Appalachian Trail used it to send supplies. It was Sunday of Memorial Day weekend so calling the Post Office in Pie Town wouldn’t help. I proceeded with my “One-click” shopping and decided to hope for the best.

Geno, Willy and I set off to have breakfast together before we departed but every place in town was closed. We eventually stumbled on a severely understaffed restaurant by the name of Grandma’s Kitchen. Even though the waitress was doing her best, service was extremely slow. There were just too many people. To make matters worse, “Grandma” was in the kitchen yelling. The net result was we only received half of our breakfast, it took almost 90 minutes to get in and out and by the time we left the waitress and “Grandma” were no longer speaking. It was 11:00 and the desert sun was blazing but Willy and I were itching to get out of town so we bid Geno farewell and pedaled off.

The first half of the day was great riding. For the first half the road was smooth and paved. It was hilly but we still made good time. After stopping off briefly to see the oldest copper mine in America we hit another dirt road. It wound through the mountains until it finally released us near the little town of Mimbres. The rolling hills and curves were exhilarating. While it was nice to have spent the day in Silver City we were both glad to be in the saddle and having a good day of riding.

We stopped at a ranger station for lunch hoping to get more information about water availability for the next few days. Of course, it was still Sunday of Memorial Day weekend so no one was around. We had already fallen into the travelers routine of eat, bike, sleep and repeat. We no longer knew what day it was. We only knew our routine — eat, bike and sleep.

From reading other people’s accounts of the GDMBR we knew today would be the first hard day. I don’t think either of us realized what hard meant. A few miles into the ride after lunch we turned off to a gravel road warning of steep grades and sharp curves. Suddenly the “Granny Gear” on our bikes became our best friend. We slowly wound our way up the mountain grunting and sweating and wishing there was just one gear lower.

It was an afternoon of hard work climbing and riding the ridges which follow the Continental Divide but we were rewarded with our best campsite yet when the day came to an end. We sat around the campfire and cooked up a gourmet meal of Indian food with Quinoa at the suggestion of our buddy Kurt from the Silver City RV Park. He has been a lifelong vegetarian and camper and assured us we wouldn’t be disappointed. We devoured the meal. While we had only pedaled roughly 40 miles, the huge uphills resulting in over 3,000 feet of climbing made us ravenous. While reflecting on the day after dinner Willy calculated if we are to climb 200,000 feet by the time we get to Banff then 3,000 feet of climbing makes for an average day. Neither of us would survive 50 more days of hauling overflowing BOBs up hills like we had encountered today. This scary fact set us to again thinking to what we could jettison and send home as we crawled into our sleeping bags for the evening.

GDMBR Day 6: Rocky Canyon Campground to Beaverhead Workcenter

We knew the route for today was going to be hilly and the temps were already soaring. After a breakfast of oatmeal we decided it was best to boil some water from the nearby stream so we’d have enough fluids to make it through the day. It meant we again got off to a fairly late start, shortly after 10:00am but it turned out to be the best decision of the day. We again had some monster climbs. When there was a downhill we’d look up to enjoy the scenery but there always seemed to be more uphill.

Around 6:00pm we arrived at the Beaverhead Workstation where Forest Service workers who manage the Gila National Forest live. The place seemed dead. The information center was closed (it still had not sunk in that it was Memorial Day) and we collapsed at a picnic table out front next to a soda pop vending machine and a telephone booth. We scraped together enough change between us to buy a Coke out of the vending machine. Itbarely gave us enough energy to haul our gear 200m as opposed to setting up camp in the ranger’s front yard. Having spent our change on a quick sugar fix Willy investigated making a collect call back to Chicago. The operator informed him the charges would be $30 for 3 minutes and 30 seconds. Outraged and tired we headed back to our tent.

We’ve started to find our groove and the daily ritual involves reviewing the route for the next day before turning in. The next town we would hit was Pie Town. For the past two days when the going got tough the talk turned to what kind of pie we’d order once we got to Pie Town. Now that we took a closer look we saw Pie Town wasn’t much of a town at all. The only reason the town finds its way on to a map is because of the delicious pies advertised by the owner of a cafe in town. According to the guide book it has a population of about 50 people, no grocery store and one cafe. I felt better now that I understood why Orbitz didn’t return any results when I had searched for hotels in Pie Town a few days before. But my stomach suddenly sunk, expecting to resupply in Pie Town we had only bought enough food in Silver City for four days on the bike. It was going to be at least six days on the bike until we reached Grants, the next major town. Six days was optimistic if the hills continued to be so big and our pace so slow. We drifted off to sleep knowing there was nothing we could do about it that evening.

GDMBR Day 6: Beaverhead Workcenter to base of John Kerr Peak

We made good time taking down camp and making breakfast. As we cleaned up one of the residents of the workstation stopped by after his morning run. He was a native New Mexican named Clyde, born and raised in the town of Truth or Consequences (That’s “T or C” to those in the know). This was his 5th season fighting fires for the forest service.

He told us all about what it was like to fight fires and live in the mountains for the summer. He also took a genuine interest in our ride. Somehow the topic turned to food and he offered to set us up with a few MREs (Meals Ready Eat). MREs are the rations given to the soldiers in the Armed Forces but they are also used by the Forest Service when they spend up to 14 days in the forest fighting fires. Willy went with Clyde to the supply shed and chose two Spaghetti dinners, one Beef Roast and one Chicken Tetrazini. After all of the mechanical problems, crashes and other strokes of bad luck it seemed like something good had come our way to help us overcome the issue of being short on supplies. Willy calls it “serentripity” when things just work out for you when you’re traveling. We both owe a big shout out to Clyde at the Beaverhead Workstation for his generosity!

We stopped for a photo about five miles outside of camp and I fell over when I couldn’t get my shoe to release from the pedal — more bruises. It turned out one of the screws in my cleat had fallen out. It took both of us to figure out a way to get the cleat to release. I was happy it happened when it did instead of when I was tearing down a gravel road at 30mph. We eventually got the cleat mounted and managed to get the picture we had originally stopped for.

A few miles later I noticed the GPS on my handlebars was at a funny angle. As I was looking at it the whole handlebar started to rotate. All of the bumps had caused the handlebars work their way loose. While I was tightening the handlebars Willy noticed the screw the guys at Gila Hike and Bike had fashioned for me had come out and my suspension was only a few bumps away from blowing apart. I again found another screw to hold it together and made a mental note to get Loctite when we hit a town with a hardware store. Meanwhile Willy made jokes about always knowing I’d had a screw loose but he never realizing there were quite so many loose. With yet another mechanical disaster averted we continued our ride through cow country.

Shade dictates where you stop for lunch

Most of the day’s ride was flat or even slightly downhill. But it didn’t mean the going was any easier because we had a 10-15mph headwind. Late in the afternoon we hit La Jolla Canyon which might be my favorite bit of biking on the ride so far. The canyon protected us from the wind and you could build up lots of speed winding through this beautiful little section of New Mexico.

After the canyon we rolled out onto the wide open flats of the Plains of San Agustin. This is the site of the largest radio telescope in the world where the satellite dishes are mounted on train cars so they can be freely moved around the desert. It was an interesting site to see such a large, flat and open expanse in the middle of the mountains and mesas but we had more important things to focus on: water!

As we prepared to make camp that night we realized we were low on water. We stopped at a windmill and climbed a barbwire fence only to find the well was dry. We were tired and thirsty and couldn’t find a sheltered campsite anywhere. After taking a side trip almost three miles off the route into the John Kerr Peak area we found a nice flat spot along a creek, which of course was dry. Adding to the ambiance of the site were plenty of cow pies and cows passing through. We didn’t have enough water to make the noodles we planned to have that night and we didn’t even have enough water to activate the heaters in the MREs if we wanted full water bottles for the next morning. We snacked on the other items in the MRE which were pretty good: cheese and crackers, cookies, hard candy. Each one even comes with a tiny bottle of Tabasco sauce.

While I reviewed the maps for the next day Willy went out for a bike ride. When he didn’t return after an hour and it was nearly dark I began to get worried. Just as I was setting off to find him I heard the rumble of the gravel under his tires as he returned with two items of big news:

• He had found water! It was running out of culvert and was very clear. We’d boil it just to be safe but this allowed us to fix the rest of the MREs. He dined on beef roast while I had spaghetti. They hit the spot after a long day and we were able to drink until our thirst was quenched.

• He had seen a bear! Well, in the shadows of dusk he had seen some sort of animal in the dark a little ways up the mountain. In the end he reckons it was a 3% chance it was a bear and 97% chance it was a cow. Seeing all the open range cows wandering through our camp that night I think it was probably a cow. But it is only a few days into the trip so we still plenty of time for Animal Planet moments in the future.

GDMBR Day 7: Base of John Kerr Peak to Pie Town

We made great time in the morning and were on the road by 9:00am. We both felt good and we thought we might even make it to Pie Town for a steak dinner and pie in the evening if we pushed hard enough. But our routine seems to call for some sort of mechanical disaster each morning and this time Willy’s BOB obliged. As we were heading down a bumpy, gravel road the wheel came off his BOB. Luckily he was able to maintain control and nothing broke.

The road turned to a bumpy washboard for the rest of the morning and around noon the sun was again blazing. We weren’t happy bikers. We’d stopped at a church earlier in the day to grab extra water but we had not anticipated how hot the day was going to be. We grabbed some nasty green water out of a pond to use as a last resort but supposedly there was another work center and a seasonal spring just up the road. The work center was closed but the spring was running. The water wasn’t clear like a bottle of Fiji or Evian but we were thirsty and it tasted okay so we filled up and continued on. Now that we had water we felt strong enough to make it all the way to Pie Town. We talked about what kind of pie we’d eat and joked about what we’d do if the Pie-o-neer Cafe was closed.

As we forged on a rancher passed us in a huge white diesel pickup with dualies not unlike we’d become accustomed to seeing on these backcountry roads. But this rancher stopped and asked what and how we were doing. After a few minutes he offered the use of a well just a few miles down the road where we could stop and fill up. He said it would be clean and cold and was there not only for the cattle but for anyone who needed water. He only asked for us to shut off the pump when we were done and then drove off.

Three miles later two guys from the city are standing next to a well trying to figure out how to turn it on. We were twisting knobs, unscrewed the power panel and were just about ready to give up. Finally, Willy tried the obvious, opened the circuit breaker box, flipped a switch and an ice cold stream of water started to shoot out. It was so cool and refreshing we doused ourselves to clean up a little and cool off as well as filled up the water bottles. Now, we knew we were strong enough to make it to Pie Town!

We crossed the Continental Divide twice more that afternoon and our tanks were nearly empty as we pulled into town. The first stop was the campground but it looked to be completely empty and didn’t even have a place to check-in. We headed over to the Pie-o-neer figuring the people there could give us some information since the cafe is destination of both Continental Divide Trail (CDT) hikers and GDMBR bikers alike. As we rolled in we couldn’t believe our eyes. The Pie-o-neer was closed! They were only open from 8:00-3:00 four days a week. And they weren’t open at all today or tomorrow — we were fit to be pied!
We had counted on eating dinner and breakfast at the Pie-o-neer. Not only were we disappointed after putting in a big day of more than 50 miles but it looked like we would again be short on supplies.

We headed back to the campground, setup and made another dinner of Indian food and Quinoa. Luckily on the way back to camp we discovered another cafe had opened in town since the guide book was published and they opened at 8:00 the following morning. We planned to be there when they opened to have big breakfasts and pie. We knew we’d need our strength for such a feast so we headed to bed early.

We posted stats on the first three days of the trip and some details on the preparations to get ready for the trip. Because of the new format of the home page you’ll need to click on the “View all posts” link at the bottom of this post to see the previous posts.

In the future we’ll try to put content with the stats but so many people were asking how the trip was going we at least wanted to update you on the progress we’ve made so far.