Day 12: April 11, 2009

Day 12 - Kingston, NM to Las Cruces, NM: Down the mountain

Saturday April 11, 2009, 89 miles (143 km) - Total so far: 842 miles (1,355 km)

Weather: Partly cloudy, windy, winds from the west at 15-25 mph and gusty, temperatures 44-62.

Black Range Lodge had a HUGE breakfast this morning - omelets, home fries, lots of fresh onions, peppers and cilantro, fresh fruit, waffles, homemade bread, and great cowboy coffee. What a great place. Nobody wanted to leave. From the Lodge, we coasted 9 miles down hill to the neat little town of Hillsboro. It had the last scheduled stage coach service in the US. After Hillsboro, we had a wild down hill ride with a 25 mph tail wind, all the way to Lake Caballo on the Rio Grande River. We were averaging over 30 mph for a 10-mile stretch. The rest of the day was mostly flat, with a cross-wind, as we turned south, following the Rio Grande all the way to Las Cruces. About , 20 miles from Las Cruces, we passed a rodeo going on in an arena next to the river. Several of us stopped and watched for awhile, amazed at the skill of the calf-ropers. Las Cruces, our stopover for the night, is the second largest city in New Mexico with a population of about 75,000. Tomorrow we enter Texas, our 4th state.











Part of the Rio Grande











Open Range










Our group!



Have a great Easter!
Barry, Flat Stanley and Share Bear