Day 14: Rodeo to Columbus, New Mexico

This picture is of the "drag road" that the Border Patrol maintains along much of the regular highway.  They drag it with heavy truck tires so they can see tracks where smugglers cross.  After dinner in Rodeo last night we had two guest speakers.  One of them was "Captain Rick" of the BP who gave a fascinating talk about their work.  He was intelligent, articulate and humane-- in my estimation the kind of guy who goes plugging along doing a thankless job while politicians and the populace make naive and preposterous pronouncements about how things should be done differently.  I am especially sensitive about this because in Catalina we had a guest speaker I haven't previously mentioned--"Cowboy Joe" who was supposed to be a humorist but turned out to be an especially egregious example of a wingnut who gave a sexist, racist and highly offensive "speech".

The picture below is of a "street" in Rodeo.

Our other speaker in Rodeo was a young woman who is doing research work on Big Horn Sheep, studying lamb mortality.   Also very interesting.  Bubba learned of our 32nd wedding anniversary and called us up for applause and a bottle of wine.

Our ride yesterday was 97 miles (not the advertised 94) and  much more challenging than the ride to Rodeo.    We did not have a really favorable wind and the scenery was much of a muchness.  The road was good, however, and there was very little traffic-- the ride took eight hours.  We are now in Columbus-- a more desolate place than I have ever seen.  Our housing is in a spanking new elementary school-- certainly the nicest building in town and once again we are sleeping in a gym.  We have the day off.

1 comment:

  1. Dear dear Dereka and John: Man, I am sorry you are suffering so much on this ride. You see how the wild, wild West is - challenging, almost uninhabitable. I love the desert when you are in the right places at the right times, but it can be brutal otherwise. I would drop out of this ride and head back to Maine civilization. But, you may be tougher than that. I'll be following along, and feeling spoiled here in San Diego. Don't feel badly if you do decide to bail. Just be careful!
    Your friend, Phillip White

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