Final Day

Today's ride to Taos ski area --  9400 ft. and distance of 25 miles.   Final lunch

At the summit:  Kori and John





biking buddies John & Peg -->










A great trip!!  Met some really nice folks.   
  - Kitty


biking buddies Mark & Susan -->











Taos Pueblo - a World Heritage Site

Red River Valley

Flashback to our family camping trips to the Red River, the red chipmunk, fishing in the cold stream, and musty sleeping bags.

The Two Faces of Taos Mtn.

Ride around Taos Mountain-- started with clear blue sky and ended in a hail storm!  Mark O. did the full 85 miles using two bikes - a tandem and a single. The rest of us did fewer miles (between 50 and 63). There were a couple of major climbs- one to 9820 ft.

I was moving at the blistering pace of 4 mph, then I had a flat at the top of Bobcat Pass, then I had a second flat on the downhill about 1/3 mile away.

Rain/ lightning moved in at lunch (with 35 miles to go). Some charged on. Lightning made me nervous ... so I took a lift to the top of Angel Fire Pass and biked the rest of the way.

Kitty, Beth and Lindsay (from Hawaii)  and John (from Oregon).

'Enchanted Circle' ride

Today's ride is the 85 mile ride around Taos-- the Enchanted Circle.  5669 feet of climbing  and 2 passes of 9000+ feet.  Jeff of BA and Mark are the only two doing the entire route. Andiamo!!

Funyaks

6 mile kayak trip on the Rio Grande river -- two in our group got dumped in.  Class 2 and 3 rapids and great fun.

After a vegan lunch (kale smoothie and pumpkin pate), a small group of us went on a lovely bike ride around Taos.

Cassandra

Back stretch or nap time?

Chimayo to Taos

Had a great day from Chimayo to Taos -- 42 miles.

Lots of hills, and some pretty terrific downhills too. Had lunch at a disc golf place. Beer and bath provided a new perspective at the end of the day.  

New Mexico Vista

Hiking at Bandelier National Monument

Hiking at Bandelier National Monument, with my roommate Cassandra.






Frijoles Canyon and Tyuonyi Ruin



Mark scales the 140 ladder steps at Bandelier's Alcove House

Chimaya base

Our room at Casa Escondida -- very cute , complete with fireplace and a cat that wanted to spend the night.  

After getting physically removed, the cat howled outside our room for some time. 

Next to the bed were some earplugs and a white noise machine...to drown out the cat perhaps?

Shakedown Ride

Our shakedown ride took us into Sangre de Cristo Mountains, just outside Sante Fe.

Part of the ride covered a portion of the original Santa Fe trail. 

Oldest house in the U.S.A.

Toured 2 museums today-- Palace of the Governors and the New Mexico Museum of History--and learned about the ancient people, Pancho Villa, Kit Carson, the code talkers, Manhattan Project, and other things.

The last event of the day was Kakawa Chocolate, where we had chocolate elixirs-- wonderfully decadent and probably going to keep me awake all night with the caffeine although I only sampled two (americano and chili).  I did however, buy the two elixirs to make at home.  

On the way to the chocolate house, we passed the oldest house in the United States. 

   - Kitty

Tandem bicycle

Bike assembly went pretty well until Mark realized he left one essential wrench at home.  No worries, BA will have wrenches!

Dale Bell Trail trials

John, Peg, and Kitty hiked the Dale Bell Trail outside of Santa Fe -- until we heard thunder and returned to the car.  The storm caused a loss of power across the entire town.  We sought shelter in a bar ... only to find out that bars aren't serving during a storm -- can't serve alcohol without food because patrons get looped or our credit cards can't make charges-- really???
We finally find a working bar-- no lights but still serving.  We get IPAs, margaritas, and wine.  All is well. Another storm comes through. 

The O's and Herring/Keogh hotel develops a fire in the bar chimney.  We ignore it and go to dinner. Following dinner, the fire is out-- everyone goes back to their respective rooms. Kitty offers her room as a backup in case rooms at Inn of the Governors aren't habitable.  All is well. 

  - Kitty

New Mexico bike trip

Start point for bike trip ... will go to Bandelier, Taos, and the Enchanted
Road.  This morning is cool and crisp. Can feel the altitude.  Enjoying the low humidity.