Leaps over Emory Pass

Day #12, April 17th: Silver City, NM to Arrey, NM, 79 miles

Today we hit the highest point on our trip, climbing Emory pass at 8,228 ft. It was an exciting day for me -- starting with a bloody nose during the morning, terrible belly aches the entire day, and then the excitment of reaching the top of the pass just before 3 pm in the afternoon. We dropped 3,800 ft over 35 miles after the pass - which made up for the average of 6 miles an hour we made during the climb!

Day #13, April 18th: Arrey, NM to Anthony, NM, 80.5 miles

We had a brilliant breakfast in the small town of Hatch, NM in a small Mexican restaurant. This area is agricultural, so we spent the day riding past cattle ranches, pecan groves, and chili pepper farms. We rode into Las Cruces and did a few errands -- I have been breaking rear wheel spokes so we try to get those fixed in the towns with bike shops. We ended the day in Anthony, NM, visiting a dear friend we met last year in Xela, Guatemala, Patricia. Patricia is doing volunteer work through the Catholic church working with new immigrants and border issues. It was a delight to catch up with her and her friends, another Patricia and Sally -- share good food and to see the small town of Anthony, which although is in the US, feels like Mexico.

Day #14, April 19th: Anthony, NM to Fort Hancock, TX, 76.5 miles

We shared a delicious breakfast with Patricia, Patricia, and Sally, practiced some jumping pictures and then we were off to bike through El Paso. Kon and I have both been struck by the beauty of NM and west TX. There are mountains here!! Our route for the last two days followed the Rio Grande. Along the way, we've seen numerous border patrol vehicles, and stopped at border patrol stations. It is hard to imagine, that just south of the river, is Mexico.

We stayed in Fort Hancock with Street and Melloy Rogers, who were connected with by their sister who is a "warm showers" host. Street and Melloy live in a beautiful home on a farm and treated us like family.

Day #15, April 20th: Fort Hancock, TX to Sierra Blanca, TX, 36 miles

This morning we woke up to a big tasty breakfast and then went to the Fort Hancock Baptist Church with Street and Melloy. We were happy to be able to attend church, sing, and to hear a message. We felt SO welcomed by everyone. We had a great pot roast lunch, said goodbye to our new friends, and then climbed a short hill to Sierra Blanca where we stayed with another family, Cindy and Bill Love, who we had met at church earlier that same day. We spent the evening talking and eating good food. What fortune to have 3 nights in a row in homes with great people, showers, beds, and delicious meals!!

Day #16, April 21st: Sierra Blanca, TX to Lawrence Wood Picnic Area (between Kent and McDonald Observatory), 99.5 miles

We started with a big breakfast to fuel up for the day with Cindy and Bill. Said another goodbye, and had a nice wind at our backs as we traveled along I-10 through Van Horn and Kent. A friendly man in a truck pulled over for us and asked if we wanted a ride. When we told him that we were biking to Florida, he put his hands on his cowboy hat in disbelief and said he could take us to Odessa, TX (about 150 miles down the road!). The people here have been SO friendly and wonderful to us! When we arrived in Kent, we decided we were making such good time that we should continue on ... the wind wasn't as much in our favor and we had some hills to climb. We eventually pulled into the picnic area at 8:30 pm, completely exhausted!