That’s All She Wrote

A Perfect Ending to a Great Trip

Day 11 Howard to La Veta to Trinidad
200 Miles
8 Hours

Woke up at 5 am but goofed off and didn’t get the bike loaded up and on the road until about 7 am. I followed the river on 50 toward Sam’s TAT route, which I planned on taking backward toward Trinidad. I’m as excited to get home as I was to take off for this trip, which is probably a good sign. I’m ready to be back with my peeps. I had sketched out this trip to last 14 days and it turned out to be 11. I skipped a desert portion from Carozizo to Truth & Consequences and the passes not working out, and I’m not sure what else. Oh - I had given myself a day for one of the sections of the NMBDR that was only 80 miles.It’s not surprising - my plan has never matched what actually happens.

The ride up the river was great. It is high and raging right now, and someone at the bar/restaurant next door to the motel told me that 14 people have drowned in the past two months. As part of the festival going on in Saliva, they have a contest where you have to build a raft out of weird stuff, and they’re all rickety, which is part of the fun. But falling in as it is now would not be good.

I’ve been second-guessing not trying Cinnamon Pass. Last night I looked at the different Trans America Trail Facebook pages and I don’t see that anyone has gone over yet. Usually, folks post a bunch of photos because it’s an epic thing to do. It makes me feel a bit better that there were no posts. Maybe I made the right decision for once.

It’s been great being back on Sam’s route, and I was looking forward to some more of it. I spent the morning in this valley and had a little race with this guy.

Then his cousin wanted a turn.

Sam takes you to some nice places.

I always prep for these trips with a big build-up of what I’m after and what I hope to get out of it. I enjoy that anticipation, it’s part of the fun. But I obsess about the whole, spending time in my brain, thinking weird thoughts, etc. And to a varying degree, I really and truly do get some of what I’m looking for. That’s why I keep doing it. But I never meet the expectations 100%. I get some of what I want, but not all. And honestly, what good is getting everything you want? Then what? You have to be left with more to go after. Getting everything. you want would suck. These trips also give me the opportunity to zoom out and get a wider, more objective view of my day-to-day life. It’s a great reset to remind you to appreciate what you’ve got and who you’ve got. Because when you’re in it, it’s easy to take it all for granted.

As I was scrolling through the Facebook pages looking for anyone who had done the passes last night, I came across a post that said something like, “We’re on day 5 of the TAT…” and there was a photo of a 1940’s Harley. And I was like, “What? You’re doing the TAT on that bike? Who are you and where do I send you money hero worship!” Then I read a little more - and they were at the Wheels Through Time motorcycle museum. It wasn’t his bike, it was the museums. Okay - that makes more sense. But that got me to thinking about how that 1940’s Harley looks like a bike that should be taken on an adventure. Old school. Back in the day - they did go on epic adventures on bikes just like that. Let’s use Georgia O’Keeffe as an example since we rolled through Abiquiu.

© Georgia O’Keeffe Museum.

That is what a motorcycle should look like. Which let me to think about how much I dislike most ADV motorcycles. The KTMs and the BMWs and the Honda Rally’s, and all the other bikes that are simply better than mine in theory. Whatever. Mine looks cooler. It just does. It looks like a bike should look. If you’d like a dissertation on this subject, click this link.

Then I entered a section of pure enchanted forest.

On my Trans America ride in 2021, Bret had sent me a waypoint marker and said, “Go here.” I can’t remember what happened - but we missed it. I didn’t miss it this time.

This is Bishop’s Castle. Look it up - there’s a good doc about it somewhere. This was built by one man who was like, “I need me a castle.” He had no plans other than what was in his head and he built it alone. I love it when people do weird things simply because they’re compelled to do them and this is the weirdest and most amazing thing I’ve seen in a long time. I explored this place from top to bottom. But I could not, I repeat, could not get myself to cross that bridge you see in the photo. Nope. I was having enough trouble on the iron balconies.

As you climb around this place, you think to yourself that there can’t be one code violation that was left to violate.

I spent a very long time here.

I can not believe this place exists. It reminded me of Salvation Mountain near the Salton Sea and Howard Finster the artist from Athens. But much grander. Seeing this made me extremely happy for the rest of the day.

And then I started climbing again, and Sam brought me through another incredible area.

And here’s the update on Big Boss and Ass. Big Boss received an extremely lucrative contract from the US Military to provide them with Terrorist Gravel Underarm Deodorant. (If you have not watched the YouTube Channel - just don’t worry about this.) He’s charging the government $20/unit just for the deodorant itself and another $20 for the packaging. I don’t think anyone at the government actually reads these contracts so he can charge whatever he wants. His financial worries are over instantly and all of his gambling debts have been paid.

Ass on the other hand is heading for a fall. Ass started a secret relationship with Carla from Cheers (we couldn’t remember the actress’s name at the time). Apparently, there had been some quadrupling going on with Ass, Liz, Danny Davito and Rhea Pearlman - all consensual and above board. But Ass and Rhea started this secret relationship and Danny and LIz do not know. First of all, I was trying to imagine what an Ass, Liz, Danny, and Rhea quadruple might look like in the bedroom. Then I tried not to imagine that instead. So from thruple, to quadruple, and then add a secret affair. When I talked to Ass, I warned him that Danny Davito likely has mob ties, and he is not going to be happy about this and that they should be careful as hell. Honestly, I don’t understand. Ass and Liz Phair were the perfect couple. They were so cute together. And now they’re in this complete mess of complication and intrigue. It’s going to end in disaster. Ass doesn’t know what they want. And just from a selfish perspective - so what, now if I want to have Ass over for dinner I have to invite the whole four of them? Jesus. I don’t even have that many plates.

Then a crazy steep climb got thrown into the mix, which thankfully ended all of this Ass/Big Boss nonsense.

I got to La Veta and gassed up and decided to take Johnny Pow’s suggestion of taking Route 12 back to Trinidad from there. I want to try to stop in Little Rock on the way home to see Bret and  Jo Ann. Brett was the fellow who responded to a plea for help when I was riding through on the TAT and had four flats in one day. He drove an hour with a trailer to come save me. A perfect stranger. And now a lifelong friend. So this route will give me some time to deal with organizing the truck, getting the bike loaded up, and I might even put some hours in headed East.

Route 12 was fantastic flowy curvy pavement. And all of a sudden, I had to pull over because I’d been here before. What the hell? I finally figured out that in my stupidity of Day 1 of this trip - I’d headed south toward New Mexico, came to that locked gate, tried to get around to the west and failed - and I’d ended up having to come all the way back up here, north of Trinidad where I’d left from to get around to the east. So I was familiar with the rest of the ride!

I made it to Trinidad with no issues, the truck was still there, the camera gear and footage were still there, and it was hot as hell. I got it all together - and headed East. The trip is over. It was a good one. Hope to do another one soon.

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