I took advantage of a favorable weather window recently to visit all of the historic markers on this years Riding Challenge that are north of I-40 and east of the Rio Grande. Day 1 took me up the east side of the Sandias through Galisteo then I-25 to Las Vegas and north to lunch in Mora. From there I headed east across the wide open grasslands of northeastern New Mexico, punctuated by a crossing of the Canadian River near Roy. After staying the night in the historic Eklund Hotel (
http://hoteleklund.com) in Clayton, I survived a rather chilly early morning ride to Raton (thank god for heated gear). The ride through Cimarron Canyon and over Palo Flechado pass to Taos is one of the best rides in New Mexico, especially when the surrounding mountains are blanketed in snow (and the road is not!). The High Road to Taos is always a treat, even if the subsequent slog down I-25 back to Albuquerque is not. All in all, it was a great early season couple of days out on the road.
Here is a link to a map of my route:
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1DuTJCRFQIh5-i5UVJNWP8SWqwjZapYdr&usp=sharingand another to a photo album with a whole bunch of selfies of a wonky dude standing in front of historic markers:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/hfFhH1qBExy5L7XN9Many thanks to richard Strohmeyer for organizing this years Riding Challenge:
https://loebmwr.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=5237Ride on!
Sandy
