Easy Rider II, Day 16, April 1, 2022

 

Great Hwy 70 shoulder east of Safford AZ

The temperature was on the rise today, but I had a pleasant ride anyway, with the help of a gentle tail wind.

As I was checking out of the Safford Best Western this morning,  a motorcyclist did a brief video interview with me using his phone in the hotel parking lot. He then prayed for my safety and success.

I had lunch at a park in Duncan AZ, former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor’s home town.

As I understand it, she was actually raised on the 250-square-mile Lazy B Ranch 7 miles outside of town. The entrance to the ranch I passed on Hwy 70 was in New Mexico, my third state during this tour.

My boat horn got another workout today, successfully stymieing another attack from a pack of three dogs.

In addition, I saw some sort of very large cat—perhaps a cougar—cross Hwy 70 near the Rafter JL Ranch. It leaped gracefully over a barbed-wire fence.

Also tonight, I had an amazing $8 dinner, featuring BBQ chicken, potato salad and cottage cheese, at the Lordsburg NM KOA, where I am camping.

DM: 79; TM: 782.9; 7:57 riding time; 9.8 mph avg.; 2,453 ft. climbing

KOA restaurant

Lazy B entrance

Duncan AZ park

Easy Rider II, Day 15, March 31, 2022

 

I got my first touring flat ever today in Bylas AZ, just east of the San Carlos Apache reservation.

I got the flat, despite using Schwalbe Marathon Plus tires, which the Germany-based manufacturer promotes as “flatless.”

I think the culprit was a “steelie,” a sharp piece of wire from one of the many delaminated, steel-belted truck tires that litter the highway shoulders, or a short section from a discarded hypodermic needle.

I pulled it out with a pair of pliers.

It was not a lot of fun to perform this operation on the hot, shadeless shoulder of a desert highway.

This is why I have always paid a premium for the Schwalbe touring tires, which in my opinion are the best on the market.

But this is also a good example of why it makes sense to consider switching to tubeless tire setups in the future. Tubeless tires are filled with a liquid sealant that plugs most punctures from the inside of the tire. Tubeless tires do not use tubes.

Speaking of road shoulders, the ones along Hwy 70 through the San Carlos Apache reservation are dirtier, rougher and skinnier than most. In addition, thorny mesquite bushes grow out into the shoulder periodically, forcing cyclists into the highway’s traffic lane.

The desk clerk at the Safford Best Western, where I am staying tonight, said the part of Hwy 70 that I rode from Globe to Safford today was considered to be dangerous by local cyclists. “There are accidents there all the time,” the clerk said.

Thankfully, the section of 70 that I’m riding east from Safford into New Mexico tomorrow is OK, the clerk said.

Dan (below), a westbound cyclist I met this morning, told me the campgrounds in New Mexico are nice.

I hope so, because I’ve been busting my budget by staying in too many hotels.

Dan also said he got chased by a lot of dogs in Louisiana.

“I lost count of how many,” he said.

DM: 81.3; TM: 703.9; 8.28 hrs riding; 9.4 mph avg spd; 2,169 ft climbing

Dan

Mesquite growing on to shoulder

Rumble strip inside shoulder

Abandoned town

Mount Graham

Easy Rider II, Day 14, March 30, 2022

 

The riding conditions were almost perfect today, with temps ranging from the high 40s in the morning to the mid-60s in the afternoon, and the breeze was mostly from behind. 

I had a huge, leisurely breakfast at the Butcher’s Hook in Tonto Basin, where I enjoyed chatting with the unofficial mayor of Punkin Center ( like right out of Schitts Creek), who volunteered to take me bass fishing in Lake Roosevelt if I returned to the area.

Today’s highlight for me was a side trip cycling up a steep, mile-long road to the Tonto National Monument visitor center, followed by a mile-long hike to visit the Salado cliff dwelling ruins there. This is a very beautiful park, and well worth a visit.

I found the monument’s picnic area, overlooking the Roosevelt lake (formerly the Salt River), impossible to resist. So I stopped and had a lunch of peanut butter and bananas on whole wheat tortillas.

Even with a gentle tailwind, the 5.5-mile, 2,000-plus-foot climb out of Tonto Basin was brutal. 

I was originally planning to camp tonight 10 miles further down the highway, at the San Carlos reservation casino RV park.

But it was rush hour on the shoulder-less Hwy 60 in Globe AZ  when I arrived. It was just too dangerous to proceed. So I got a room at a Travelodge on the westernmost edge of town and called it a day.

DM: 51.7; TM: 622.6; 6.58 hrs rdg; 3,726 ft climbing

Easy Rider II, Day 13, March 29, 2022

 

Hiking back from town

With the forecast calling for rain and thunderstorms, and high temps in the 50’s all day—both here and at my next destination 60 miles away—I opted to stay for a second night at the Punkin Center Lodge. 

It was not a difficult call, in part because my room here is $70, less than half what I had to pay in Phoenix.

In addition, the people are very kind here. (The motel manager just volunteered to drive me to the town grocery store so I could buy bananas.)

I also like the bar next door, and the Mexican restaurant across the street is first-rate and very reasonably priced. If you are ever in town, try the juevos rancheros!

Not planning to do much besides hike into the grocery store, catch up on my reading and podcasts, and take a siesta or two.

Easy Rider II, Day 12, March 28, 2022

 

Many Southern Tier riders head east out of Phoenix on Hwy 60 toward Globe AZ instead of turning north onto Usery Pass Road, as currently recommended by the Adventure Cycling Association.

The Hwy 60 option, though less-cycling friendly than the Usery Pass route, is 60 miles shorter.

But I’m glad I took the longer road, because it took me through some of my tour’s most scenic terrain yet.

At the same time, today’s ride, with 5,696 feet of climbing over 65.2 miles, was also one of my tour’s hardest hauls.

Adding to the drama of today’s adventure was a violent afternoon storm. The wind gusts from this storm blew so hard and erratically that I had to get off my bike and hunker down on the road’s shoulder for five minutes until the storm passed.

In one cool move today, two workmen in a truck pulled over to offer me a bottle of water while I was taking a break on the shoulder of Hwy 87. 

By the time I had checked into the Punkin Center Lodge, Alfonso’s, the Mexican restaurant across the street, and the kitchen at the bar next door, were already closed. 

But the bartender thawed me out a frozen pizza in the microwave, and Rick Barr, a Stetson-wearing tavern regular, picked up my tab. Very nice guy.

Among Barr’s claims to local fame, as I learned that evening, is that he hasn’t owned a TV set for 45 years.

He also believed that today’s TV journalism is biased and promotes points of view instead of sticking to the facts as it should.

“Walter Cronkite would turn over in his grave” if he could see what journalism has become, Barr said.

DM: 65.2; TM: 570.9; avg. mph, 7.1; 8:51 hrs riding; 5,696 ft climbed

Easy Rider II, Day 11, March 27, 2022

 

Arizona Canal Trail

It was another hot, sunny day of pedaling for me east through Phoenix and Mesa AZ and then north into the mountains toward Usery Pass.

I rode most of the day with two Minnesotans—Kevin and Mark. I met them on the more-upscale, eastern part of the Arizona Canal Trail.

They are riding with a group of friends from Minneapolis. They are using a van to shuttle their gear between motels and campsites, taking turns driving.

Their ride started in Oceanside CA and will end in Austin.

Tonight, they are staying at an Air B&B in Scottsdale AZ, and I am hoping to continue riding another 20 miles to a campground. They’re also planning to take a different, 60-mile-shorter route toward Globe AZ than I will be taking tomorrow. But I enjoyed chatting with them today and hope our paths cross again farther down the line. 

After we parted company in Tempe, I continued east toward Apache Junction then north to the austerely beautiful Usery Mountain Regional Park campground.

Here I received some very bad news: all of the campsites were booked for the night.

This was particularly disappointing to me, after a long hot ride, because I had called to reserve a site several days ago, and there was an RV site available at that point. Whoever I talked to on the phone, however, suggested that I wait to get one of the campground’s unreserveable but cheaper, first-come, first-served, tent-only sites when I arrived. Shouldn’t be a problem on a Sunday with the temps in the 90s, I figured. So why not save a few dollars? 

Well, the long and short of it is, March is prime time in Arizona, and many of the accommodations in the state are booked in advance, including those at a lot of the nicer campgrounds. Live and learn.

After some sustained whining on my part, it was pointed out to me that we were in the middle of a huge desert and nobody was going to get too upset if I just pitched my tent and crashed behind a cactus somewhere.

So I got the hint, found a secluded spot to set up my tent, and ended up getting a great night’s sleep.

DM: 52.1; TM: 505.7; 1,018 ft. climbing; 5.33 hrs. ride time; 9.2 mph avg spd

Kevin (l) and Mark

Arizona Canal Trail

Mesa AZ shade station

View from my stealth site