Goodbye New Mexico

OVER THE TOP.
Emory Pass stands 8,228 feet high in the Rocky Mountains.  It also stands between the west coast and the east coast in the path of someone trying to ride a bicycle between the two.  What to do?  Bicycle over it of course.  The climb from San Lorenzo, the starting point for the day's ride, is a little more than 3,000 feet.  Nothing to sneeze at but still not the biggest daily climb of the trip so far. That honor is still held by our second day's climb of over 3,400 feet up to Julian, California.

Now Mount Everest, after a little tiff between China and Nepal, stands at an official height of 29,029 feet.  So you say, big deal, Emory Pass is puny in comparison.  Indeed, but get this:  the climb up Everest from the base is 15,620 feet. Ok, still nearly twice the height of Emory Pass.  But get this: by the time I reached the peak of the pass I had climbed 20,957 feet.  Simple math to me, I have bicycled more than the equivalent climb up the world's tallest (arguably) mountain, all without the aid of oxygen tanks!  This information is presented not to impress you but rather me.

A picture is worth two words

Here's Joe and Greg on the climb up Emory Pass.  We met Greg at Gila two days before.  He's headed for Florida on the same route we are.

FULL DISCLOSURE.
Ok, ok, you know who you are.  Seems as if I've been getting a few rumblings of late about my "cheating".  Hey, I never promised you a rose garden.  Did I bill this adventure as a ride from the west coast to the east coast?  Well, maybe I did.  But still (my two favorite words in succession in the English language) what I meant was: "I'm going to start riding my bike somewhere near the Pacific Ocean, finish somewhere near the Atlantic Ocean and do some riding in between."  That clear things up?  Want to know what is really happening on this trip?  Read the blog of Rhonda and Joe Thompson who are traveling with us at southernbiketour.wordpress.com.


HOME SWEET HOME.
Well, yeah, I do miss home.  I've been on the road now for six weeks.  But that's not what I came here to talk about.  I came to talk about other people's homes.

The folks around these parts have been building cave dwellings for quite some time.  Spend a little time around here and you begin to understand why.  What else are you going to do, build a house out of cactus?  In Tonto Basin the Salado people built a nice little community overlooking what is now Roosevelt Lake.  Apparently they cut out of town some 600 years ago.  Too bad.  Imagine what that real estate would have been worth after they made the lake.

A little further down the road (east, that is) the Mogollons decided to try their luck at cave dwelling building in Gila.  An impressive collection of dwellings exist on this site as well, although the Mogollons also took off long before they had an opportunity to meet Chris Columbus.  Rumor is that they were headed to Las Vegas to open a casino.  Remember, they didn't have cars so it would have taken them a while to get there.

Not much for paint or siding but here's a view of the Gila Cliff dwellings

Here's Bev checking out a loft apartment for rent

Found this inscription in the caves at Gila.  Jim- your attempt to say hi?

On a little more recent note, Frank Lloyd Lincoln Wright decided to try his hand at building in the desert.  We visited Taliesin West on the east side of Phoenix.  Why such a strange name?  Easy, someone else had already built a house in Wisconsin and named it Taliesin.  That someone was Frank Lloyd Lincoln Wright.  Go figure.   Anyway, Taliesin West was his attempt at a house/school/guest house.  Typical F. L. L. W.  Organic materials and a reflection of the surrounding country.  If you like F. L. L. W. architecture you will like Taliesin West.  Now about the man.  From all accounts Mr. Wright (ironic) thought quite a lot of himself and his ideas.  Seems as if these days I have less patience for people with over-inflated egos.

Here's Frankie's place

This is a vast, varied and beautiful country and I am blessed to have had a chance to see a portion of it.  But I am equally blessed to live where I do, in my experience and mind, one of the nicest places that this country has to offer.

THOSE CAVERNS ARE NOT BAD CARL.
Wow.  We took a side trip by automobile to Carlsbad Caverns in New Mexico.  Wow.  Neither words nor photographs come close to describing/depicting the caverns.  That, of course, will not impede me in the least from attempting to do so.  To walk down 800 feet into the earth and view the vast caves, the stalactites and stalagmites, is an otherworldly experience.

Here's the entrance to Carlsbad Cavern.  The rest of my pics just don't do justice.  It's well worth checking this out on the internet or some other source if you haven't had the opportunity to visit. 

We returned to view the nightly exodus of the cave bats.  Wow.  Thousands upon thousands of bats leave the cave entrance, swirl around and head off for parts unknown for their evening meal leaving what looks to be a black contrail as far as the eye can see.

Get out you Weekly Reader from fourth grade or go on line to really find out what this place is about.

We are in Marathon (pronounced "Marathon"), Texas today.  Stay tuned.