A GREAT Divide Pandemic Adventure

[GreenHornet]

Day0.0

I made it to the outskirts of Lost Wages at dawn and it was hot. High 90's hot.
I needed to get gas and some caffeine and nourishment. I was in the middle of early morning work traffic, so I figured I'd stay on the freeway until I was on the other side of Vegas and I'd pull off at the first gas station near the freeway.

Covered in ash and bug guts.

At this point, I was a bit tired. The gas station complex had a hotel and casino and I considered getting a room. The problem was that I wouldn't have enough time in the room because checkout would be in about 5 hours. Then I'd have to ride through extreme heat in the middle of the day, so I decided to push on.

I had to repack my bike, due to extreme discomfort and inability to properly utilize my seat. I had to move my sleeping bag and tent out of the way of my back and butt.

As I was tearing my bike apart, while ingesting sustenance, the manager of the complex came by to see what was going on. He didn't say so, but I could tell he probably thought I was on drugs or something. He made some small talk, then seeing I am from California, tried to start discussing topics that are divisive. How bad a job Biden is doing, the Afghanistan withdrawal, Covid. I was polite and didn't take the bait.

Repacked and ready to roll.

 

[berth]

He made some small talk, then seeing I am from California, tried to start discussing topics that are divisive. How bad a job Biden is doing, the Afghanistan withdrawal, Covid. I was polite and didn't take the bait.

So interesting that someone would dive in to that with a complete stranger.

"You know what I love about the US of A? The diversity of opinion."

 

[mjj]

My U-Haul broke down once on Hwy 50 so I had to get a tow to Austin. A replacement truck was towed to me overnight. When the driver got there, he said "God that's a long drive." I knew he'd come from Sparks which is 170 mi. away so I was a bit surprised. He said that after dark, a black cow in the road is completely invisible until you are about 50 feet away from it, and he had seen enough semi cabs destroyed by cows that he was motivated to make the trip at 40 mph.

 

[GreenHornet]

So interesting that someone would dive in to that with a complete stranger.

"You know what I love about the US of A? The diversity of opinion."

That sort of thing happens to me all the time. Maybe I'm a magnet for trouble.

 

[GreenHornet]

He said that after dark, a black cow in the road is completely invisible until you are about 50 feet away from it, and he had seen enough semi cabs destroyed by cows that he was motivated to make the trip at 40 mph.

So true. I would slow down even more whenever I got to an open area. I did see some black cows on the shoulder, and you couldn't see them until you were really close. I also had my clearwater lights which are pretty bright.

 

[GreenHornet]

Day0.0

By late morning, I made it to the outskirts of Pheonix. At this point I was pretty beat. It was high 90's with super high humidity and threatening to rain. I pulled into a Starbucks and found a Comfort Inn that would let me check in early.

Rock Star parking.

And just in time.

The manager was an enthusiast, so he let me park by the office where there would be an attendant overnight.

 

[GreenHornet]

Day0.1

The plan for today is to make it to Lordsburg NM. I decided to roughly stick to the GPS Kevin sections. He seems to stage his ride from Silver City NM, but since I wasn't meeting anyone, it didn't make sense to me to go to Silver City first. I decided to stage my ride from Lordsburg NM, which was much closer to Antelope Wells and the true start of the CDR.

But first things first. Better than Starbucks.

Skimpflation would be a recurring theme. Of the major chain hotels I stayed in, only La Quinta and Hampton Inn had anything resembling breakfast, but all the room prices seemed pretty high.

Luckily, there was a Black Bear Diner in the same parking lot as my hotel, so a proper breakfast was in store to fuel the day's ride.

Only having packed at most 3 sets of riding clothes, I would wash my dirties in the hotel sink. Even though it was 90 degrees by 8:00 am, it was so humid, that my clothes wouldn't dry.

I made reservations at the Hampton Inn in Lordsburg and tried to find the funnest route across AZ into NM.

 

[1962siia]

That one item per guest sign would have annoyed me to no end. I bet they’ve lost more in room sales than they’ve gained in cost savings on yogurt.

 

[berth]

By late morning, I made it to the outskirts of Pheonix. At this point I was pretty beat. It was high 90's with super high humidity and threatening to rain

Monsoon season. I love monsoon season. Mind, I would be in the Tombstone area when it hit, but even with the humidity it was nice.

Luckily, there was a Black Bear Diner in the same parking lot as my hotel, so a proper breakfast was in store to fuel the day's ride.

Is that maple syrup on a bear claw?

 

[GreenHornet]

That one item per guest sign would have annoyed me to no end. I bet they’ve lost more in room sales than they’ve gained in cost savings on yogurt.

 

[GreenHornet]

Monsoon season. I love monsoon season. Mind, I would be in the Tombstone area when it hit, but even with the humidity it was nice.
Is that maple syrup on a bear claw?

Never been to there but I like their pizza.

I think it was fake maple syrup on a fruit filled bear claw.

 

[BillSmith]

I made reservations at the Hampton Inn...

Good hotel choice, as there is always a port cochere under which to park the bike. Became my go-to when traveling to east coast-and back-a few years ago.

 

[GreenHornet]

Good hotel choice, as there is always a port cochere under which to park the bike. Became my go-to when traveling to east coast-and back-a few years ago.

I wish I had stayed there exclusively. Most of the time I was just at the mercy of whatever was available and somewhat reasonably priced when I got to a city I wanted to spend the night in. Most hotels let me park under the cover by the front entrance, but some wouldn't allow it.

 

[GreenHornet]

Day0.1

Alright, looks like fun beckons ahead, looks like a good enough spot for lunch.

Yum. Leftover dinner Black Bear Diner meatloaf

I bought a GoPro for this trip, and had 3 batteries and a charger that can charge 3 at a time, but after testing it out this day I gave up. I'm no influencer, and each battery only lasts about 45 minutes of continuous recording. If I could have hard wired the camera i might have recorded more. I also didn't fell like editing hundreds of hours of footage.

Here's a clip heading thru the pass ahead.
[youtube]O3IaYOysDI8[/youtube]

The real adventure is nigh.

Made it to Lordsburg before dusk, checked in to the hotel, and went to a nearby restaurant for dinner.
These looked much better than they were. I carried these all the way into Montana before deciding they were just taking up packing space and then tossed the remainder.

Warning graphic image. My legs were itching really bad after 2 days of riding. This issue was solved by daily liberal application of Gold Bond medicated powder.
https://i.imgur.com/r3nEy0O.jpg

 

[GreenHornet]

Day1 Antelope Wells To Silver Springs NM

Here is the link to GPS Kevin's CDR. I planned to follow the Canonshot tracks and roughly the GPS Kevin sections. Most of the Cannonshot tracks correspond to the Kevin Blue tracks and my goal was to ride all of them. I would be reversing the direction of the sections, and skipping the Canada section as the border was still closed.
https://www.gpskevinadventurerides.com/self-guided-rides/great-continental-divide-motorcycle-ride

Now that's a good hotel breakfast.

I read that the Shakespear Ghost town was near my hotel and I just love a good ghost town (so far nothing beats Bodie), so I decided to make that a stop on the way to Hachita. Hachita is basically the last civilization before the US / Mexico border.

Turns out that the ghost town is a privately owned business and you can only go on a tour to see it. I didn't feel like waiting around for it because I had no idea how long it would take me to ride the first section.

W00tW00t!!!!

Basically a whole lot of nothing. Well besides the Great Divide.

Speeding out here wasn't an issue as there was seldom even another vehicle on the road. I did see a herd of antelope which crossed the road and saw some cows. There were signs for bison but never saw any. Maybe they ran out of cow signs. Eventually I saw a lone border patrol here and there sitting watching weeds grow.

The official start of the CDR. The shuttered and deserted border

Don't think any helicopters have landed recently

The big beautiful wall

Fresh hot water stashed for the souls brave enough to attempt a crossing?

The only game in town

This would be the first of several low octane unleaded only options on the trip. Still better than Baja barrel fare.

 

[GreenHornet]

Day1 Antelope Wells To Silver Springs NM

I made it to Silver Springs with plenty of daylight to spare and went straight to my hotel. This was probably the least expensive stay on my trip. I think it was just about $80. It was clean but not very luxurious. I made the reservation in the morning based on Google searches.

The office closes at 9pm so I would park just outside my room.

Always a comforting sign

The decor was very Army barracks

The welcome party

 

[1962siia]

 

[greenmonster]

Great stuff!!

 

[budman]

Awesome... including the much required beep beep in the tunnel!

Enjoying it!

 

[gixxerjeff]

^^^^

So much this