Nancy’s Travel Journal

It never ceases to amaze me what a good night's sleep can do for one's physical and mental state!  I  had so much more energy leaving Vanderpool and the Foxfire Cabins, than I did Camp Wood.  Of course, I had planned to ride only 24 of the 51 miles today.  Since the 111-mile day, I have been suffering from some sort of nerve problem in my right hand.  Michelle, one of the guides, looked at the configuration of my handlebars and determined that I was leaning too far forward on the handlebars, thus putting too much of my body weight on my hands.  Now, I have had this bicycle for quite a few years, and never knew why my hands would go numb.  As a  temporary fix, we raised the stem a bit, but there was not much space to raise it and still be safe.  She also turned the handlebars up, thus causing me to sit a bit higher.  Since there is a great bike shop in Kerrville, I decided to ride in the van, get to the shop early, and try to get a new stem.  Michelle suggested that I might want to ride the first 24 miles to Medina because it is such a beautiful ride.  Before the beautiful part, we had to cross another "hill" with a 6-10% grade, a 1.3-mile climb.  It seemed straight up to me!  After only a few yard of huffing and puffing, it was evident that I would have to resort to some cross-training (aka walk up the hill).  The advantage was that I saw some beautiful rock strata where the road was cut. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Even some of the strongest women had to walk part of this hill.  Then there was the downhill.  All I could do was "feather" my brakes and say to myself…"hold on tight"!  My maximum speed was probably about 35 mph!

After the downhill, we were rewarded with some of the most beautiful farm country I have seen on this trip.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The landscape is lush and green.  There are farms with cattle, llamas, horses, and even some kangaroos! Yep, my friend Anne saw them and has photographs to prove it.  We are told that there are some exotic game farms in the area. 

Another highlight of this day was the array of wildflowers, particularly the Texas Bluebonnets.  One of our SAG stops was beside a lovely sea of "blue", spotted with some Indian Paintbrush.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then there was Medina, home of Loves Cree Cidr Mill and Country Store, http://www.lovecreekorchards.com/  They had everything "apple", from cider to pie, to strudel, to apple pie ice cream, and even trees ( a bit hard to carry on bicycle)  Anyone who cycles, knows that a place like this is a virtual paradise!  Just about everyone stopped here for a rest and some "energy" food. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I walked down the street to an art gallery where I found some gifts for the Porter family.  Polly, Melissa, Howard, and Mariann, look for something in the mail!  There was even an ACE Hardware store in Medina, Pernal!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In Medina, I loaded my bicycle on the van and rode the rest of the day watching folks struggle up the hills, and enjoy the scenery.  We passed the "Thunder in the Hills Church", a church for bikers.  While I could not stop for pictures, a friend did manage to visit the church.  We might have stopped for a service if it had been Sunday.

Arriving in Kerrville for two days, we went immediately to the Hill Country Bicycle Works. http://www.hillcountrybicycle.com/index.htm  Adam, the owner, agreed with Michelle about my stem and handlebars.  So I left it there for a "make-over".  Of course, just about everyone on the tour ended up stopping there for repairs or new merchandise. 

When one is on the road for over a month, there are other necessities that must be addressed.  Two goals for my layover day here were to get a haircut and a pedicure (a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do-especially if she wears sandals when cycling).  I am not sure it was planned that way, but there just happened to be a nail place next to the bike shop.  So I addressed one goal while waiting for the other women at the bike shop. 

Upon arriving at the hotel, I asked about places for haircuts.  As luck would have it, the first place was booked because of Easter.  But, I managed to reach Lisa, who agreed, not only to cut my hair, but to pick me up from the hotel the next morning (and anyone else who needed a cut.)  At the arranged time on Friday morning Lisa was here to pick Bobbi and me up.  She not only did a great job cutting our hair, but took us to the post office and to Wal-mart before dropping us off downtown for lunch.  She was a gem.  One of her classic statements about Texas women was, "the bigger the hair, the smaller the town"  That quote is a keeper.  She offered to pick us up later from the restaurant and take us back to the hotel or anywhere we wanted to go.  We thanked her profusely!  What if the other hairdresser had not been busy!  We never would have met this angel of a woman.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We met our friends at Jefferson Joe's St. Restaurant, reviewed by Kinky Friedman, on NPR.  Great home cooking, with black-eyed peas, squash, potatoes, buttermilk pie, and the list goes on and on.

Then it was back to the bike shop on Friday afternoon to pick up all of the bikes.  Of course, mine was the real challenge of the day.  It was not quite ready.  The owner had worked until midnight last night to accommodate all of us.  He said he would bring it to the hotel later in the evening, which he did.

And, speaking of hotels, we stayed at the YO Ranch Resort, an interesting hotel in Kerrville.  This was our home for two days.

Although it was a short day from Camp Wood in terms of mileage, the day did not start well for me.  The road was “chip seal” (aka shake and bake) the wind was in my face and I just could not find a place to sit that felt comfortable.   At about mile 5, I was about ready to catch the SAG to our next stop.  And, I knew that we had very tough hills ahead.  But, I decided to press on until I saw the SAG, as I began to climb the first serious hill.  Folks have said that if you look down instead of ahead, the road is always level.  That was my strategy in climbing this hill.  Finally, there was the top of the hill.  It was a tough ride, but I was not winded when I reached the top, nor did I have to get off and walk.  Then there was the ride down, quite scary for me.  I always worry about crashing.

This picture tells the story

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then there was the second hill, much like the first.  At the top, our reward was a beautiful vista

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then came another downhill.  The cuts in the mountains are amazing.  This is just before we made our final descent into Vanderpool. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After a short stop at a country store for ice cream, we arrived at our home for the night.  The Foxfire Cabins remind me of some place in the North Georgia mountains. Of course there was no cell signal and no internet.   I shared a cabin with Linda and Carol. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As soon as I had showered, I fell asleep for a while on the bed.  Then, it was laundry time (a necessary evil) At one point later in the day, we were sitting on a deck of another cabin and spotted this beautiful moth.  Linda Lamb, can you identify it?  I was told it was gone the next morning.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There seems to be some sort of intestinal virus going around.  It has attacked some folks worse than others.  So far, I have been spared that malady.

In bed by 8:30 PM, I had no trouble falling asleep after a short but really tough ride today.

 

 

It was a bit warmer when we left Ft. Collins Springs, no need for jackets and arm warmers.  The night before our guide had told us that there had been heavy rains, causing some roads to be closed because of water across the roads  (a common occurance here).  In some of the "dips"  there is a gauge to show how deep the water is over the road. The road we were to travel was to open around 10:00 AM.  We did see a "Road Closed-Local Traffic only" barricade and sign, but we felt confident that we could make it.  Before getting to the high water, we passed some incredible wildflowers.  This is one example of God's beauty.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then we came to the river.  A sheriff's car was parked on the side.  I assume he was there to make sure we could make it.  We had been advised not to try riding through it.  So, we had two choices, walk through with or without shoes.  Here we are.  Actually, there were a couple of the women who rode through it without falling.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

At mile 45, only a few miles from Camp Wood, we came to this wonderful swimming hole.  Shades of BRAG!  So, we just had to jump in.  What a site! All but one of us over 55!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We saw this on a truck at the river.  Enough said for the day.

 

After the long ride into Del Rio, at breakfast I wondered if I would be able to ride today.  I still seemed exhausted.  After some eggs and pancakes (pancakes always cure what ails you) I decided to try it.  I needed to get back on that horse! And, after all, we were going to make a run to Walmart on the way.  I needed some necessities like sunscreen.  This might be my last chance for a while! While going through Del Rio we ran into Irv and his riding partner.  Irv was the fellow from GA Tech who was Robert Hulsey's roommate some years ago at Tech. 

The ride to Brackettville (Ft. Collins Springs was our lodging place) was uneventful.  Cool weather, overcast skies and flat roads made for an easy ride.  When we arrived, the ladies of the Chamber of Commerce had lunch waiting for us at the old officer's club, now a place for social gatherings. Ft Collins is an old cavalry base from the 1850's that was abandonded in 1944, when the army decided that the cavalry was obsolete. Its buildings have been mostly converted into private residences.  The picture below is the Ft. Collins United Methodist Church minister, a retired Kindergarten teacher who went to seminary after retirement.  This is her first church.  Sound familiar Jimmy?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The barracks were converted into nice hotel rooms.  General Patton was here at one time.  We found out that the movie Arrowhead was made here. For more history see  http://www.texasbeyondhistory.net/forts/clark/saddle.html 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

During World War II, German POWs were kept here for a while.  We saw a picture painted by one of the POWs in the "brig".  They built a water tower for the enlisted troups that still works today. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

But, perhaps the most impressive site was the swimming pool.  It is spring-fed, 68 degrees all the time and larger than an olympic-size pool  Polly, you would love it.  Not sure if any chemicals ever came near this pool, just plain old spring fed water.  Remember the Lakeside pool in Metter?  The water was just as cold.!  While, I didn't actually swim, I did put my feet in the water.  Ramsay from Nashville was my roomie for the evening.  We enjoyed talking "southern" stuff.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Well, I made it!  All 111 miles.  Actually my odometer registered 112.  I'll take all the miles I can get.   We got an early start, as soon as the sun came up, from Sanderson.  I was in the first group to leave, and felt really great for the first 20-30 miles.  There were several interesting sites.  Elon, I saw the Terrell County airport.  It looked like a little airstrip from the road.  Maybe there was more to it than I could see.  We passed an overturned semi on the other side of the road.  Another trucker was calling for help and didn't seem too excited.  We were all concerned about what would have happened if he had been on our side! We may never find out the end of that story.  Even the train engineers are friendly to us as they blew their horns in greeting as we passed. Deer are not only a problem in Georgia. Two jumped out in front of our group and nearly hit the first cyclists.  

The good feeling of the morning was soon replaced with some cramping in my back…first time for that pain.  After some Advil and a back massage from the SAG driver, I was on my way.  The van was at mile 60 with lunch waiting near an abandoned gas station.  There was an old couple there who had tales to tell and music for our dining.  When was the last time you heard "tra la la twiddle de de de it gives me a thrill, to wake up in the morning to the mockingbird's trill"?  A couple of our group had on jerseys that said it all.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There was a side trip to Langtry Visitor's Center, http://www.texasescapes.com/TOWNS/Texas_ghost_towns/Langtry_Texas/Langtry_Texas.htm that I elected not to do because of extra mileage.  (Anybody heard of Judge Roy Bean?) In hind site, I should have eaten more at lunch.

Our next SAG was at the mouth of Pecos River, which flows from the Rio Grand at this point (mile 78).   Again, I neglected to take advantage of more than one snack.  Big mistake!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

At mile 91, I was really struggling.  At the first convenience store of the day, I had Gator Ade, V-8, bananas and cookies.  The SAG driver was very supportive and encouraged me to sit for a while until I felt better.  I must have had a serious drop in blood sugar.  It's called "Bonking".  Because of this delay, I was the last one to leave the store.  But, I did catch Outrun (our 70 year-old amazing woman) after a while.   Even at this point, there was a bit of humor. Just after passing the Border Patrol checkpoint the SAG driver came back looking for us.  Not thinking about how it would look, she made a "u" turn just in front of the checkpoint.  Needless to say, the border guard came after her with lights flashing.  When she got out of the car, she told him she was from Hawaii and they didn't have border patrol there!  After a bit of explaining he let her go.  For the last 6-8 miles, I would get ahead of Outrun, then stop and wait for her.  Our final challenge was the Reservoir Bridge over Lake Amistad (http://www.nps.gov/amis/), a reservoir shared by the U.S. and Mexico.  The bridge was narrow with no shoulder and very rough pavement.  Fortunately, it was late in the day and little traffic.  I waited for Outrun at the end of the bridge so we could ride the last 1 1/2 miles together into the motel.  The group had already started eating their pizza, but gave us a standing ovation!  We made it! 

That night, all I wanted to do was take a shower and fall into bed.  My right hand felt a bit numb from holding the handlebars so long.  So I didn't even write in my journal until the next day.  And, I fell asleep with a smile on my face, knowing I had conquered the longest mileage day of our trip.

 

 

 

 

Bobbie Dunham and I shared a  room in Marathon, so decided to try a local place for breakfast.  The Cottonwood Station, a transformed gas station, was a local favorite.  I even saw the dear lady from yesterday's library visit. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We had agreed not to leave early, so Robin was just sitting around waiting to 9:30.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One of the great things about this trip is the never-ending surprises you see on the road.  This cow seems poised for travel. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As I rode out of town, my thoughts turned to Savannah and the memorial service for Poppa-Lew Towers. Bill and I talked after I arrived in Sanderson.  He went to the service and said it was very meaningful.  And, he gave Grandma a "Go Nancy Go" shirt.  I am carrying the Olympic Cycling medal from the 1996 Atlanta Olympics that he gave me before he died and asked that I take it on this trip.

Not being in a hurry and with no services AT ALL along US 90, several of us stopped by the road to eat our peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.  What a view!  And there I saw my first Indian paintbrush of the trip.  You just can't see these sites from a car.  Linda Lamb, the Indian Paintbrush is in honor of a couple of trips we took together.  Fond memories!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our home for the evening is the Outback Oasis Motel.  Not exactly the Ritz, but the owners are so gracious.   As I am writing this, Kay is teaching Outrun (age 70) to ride with clipless pedals.  It is so wonderful to see such support among these women.  We are all anxious about the 111-mile trip to Del Rio tomorrow.

 

 

 

Reluctantly we pulled out of Indian Lodge around daylight.  As we left, I knew from the sign that we were getting close to the south just by reading the sign. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Before we left the hills, I saw a coyote beside the road, his eyes asking what in the world was I doing on that road.  One historical marker told of the first rural school west of the Pecos River.  Numerous Texas historical markers indicate spots where settlers were attacked and killed by Indians.  I observed that most of these markers were erected in the 1930s and seemed to have an anti-Indian slant.  Around mile 30 we entered the town of Alpine, after fighting a cross wind for about 15 miles.  Time for a break. Somehow cyclists always know where the bakeries are.  Despite what the sign says, they did let me go in for a blueberry muffin.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Shipped a gift to Bill from Alpine.  Don't tell him that it is "hubcap" art.  We will have to find just the right spot at home for it.

The town seems to have a lot of pride as evidenced by the many murals.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The rest of the ride to Marathon was uneventful, except for the wonderful tailwind.  For the first time on the trip, I found myself in the big front chain ring.  Maybe I am getting stronger.  The ride may have been uneventful, but our stay in Marathon was not! Our first stop was the coffee shop for more baked goodies.  Two of us tried out another mode of transportation, but decided to stick with the bicycle. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For my last post, I was at the public library in Marathon.  It was about the size of my living room.  We had to sign a release, and give them our "photo ID", which they copied before we could use the computers.  The dear lady at the desk must have been a volunteer and about 80 years old.  She was so proud to tell us of their summer reading program, to which we left a donation.

We stayed at the historic Gage Hotel (http://www.gagehotel.com/). Unfortunately, by the time I arrived all of the massage appointments were taken.  We stayed in one of the rooms in the photo.  And the pool was nice, too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Before dinner, we held our nightly meeting to give out cue sheets for the next day's ride and talk about the happenings of the day. Everyone agreed that there was no need to leave at the crack of dawn.  We only had 54 miles to ride the next day.  And, who would want to leave this place?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For the evening, we dined at the hotel.  Not too shabby!  I had BBQ pork medallions (probably not representative of true Texas BBQ, but really delicious) Wonder if any of the cows in the photo contributed to the steak dinners some folks ordered.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I am in a library in Marathon, TX, (destination after Ft. Davis) so there are no pictures for now.  I will try to add some later. 

Shortly before we were ready to leave Van Horn, I had my first flat tire!  Fortunately, there were a couple of my friends who had already had too much experience changing tires.  They helped me change it.  The ride from Van Horn to Ft. Davis was extremely difficult.  The first 40 miles was on I-10 and frontage roads, where they existed.  When riding on the interstate, you finally get used to the sound of big trucks and RVs.  The shoulders are wide, so I feel pretty safe.  We have to be careful of tire shreds, since they have little pieces of metal that can puncture a tire.  After 40 miles, our guide had prepared lunch for us at the ruins of Kent Public School.  Of course I had to explore the place.  If those walls could talk, I wonder what stories they would tell.

After lunch, the real challenge began as we left I-10 and headed for Ft. Davis.  There were sustained winds of 20-25 mph, with 30 mph gusts.  Several times, I had to get off my bike to keep from falling over. To add insult to injury, there was a steady climb in the road. Although my mind told me that there were other cyclists behind me, I really felt alone, wondering when I would see the SAG again.  There was no relief from the wind.  I would travel about 2 miles, then rest, then start over again.  Finally, the SAG came around the corner.  I had enough of the wind.  So I hoped in the car.  She was going back to check on folks, since we were all having such a hard time.  She was low on water so we decided to go up to the McDonald Observatory (top of the climb at 6800') to get water.  I decided to get out of the car there and ride the last 12 miles which were mostly downhill.  Before I started down the mountain, I spent some time at the observatory's visitors center.  This observatory is one of the most famous in the world.  I had heard broadcasts from there on NPR (Block and Bird-Earth and Sky) http://www.as.utexas.edu/mcdonald/mcdonald.html

Finally I decided it was time to sail down the mountain.  Well, there are lots of switchbacks and strong winds, so one does not exactly "sail".  But, it was a good ride.  On the way, I passed the Prude Ranch, a famous dude ranch. http://www.prude-ranch.com/  Looks like a place Polly might want to visit.

Finally, I arrived at our destination for two days, the Davis Mountain State Park, Indian Lodge http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/spdest/findadest/parks/indian_lodge/.  What a magical place to spend two days.  We saw javelinas, birds, and other wildlife on the grounds.

On our day off, we went to the town of Ft. Davis to shop and do laundry.  Ft. Davis is the county seat of Jeff Davis County.  We know for whom it was named. However, nowhere is it mentioned that he has president of the Confederacy, just that he was Secretary of War.  Hille and I explored the actual Fort Davis, which is one of the best preserved forts in the US. http://www.nps.gov/foda/fortdavisfrontierpost.htm  In addition to other fascinating facts about this fort, several regiments of the buffalo soldiers (African American troops) were stationed there.  Second Lt. Henry Flipper, born into slavery in Thomasville, GA and the first African American graduate of West Point was also there for a while.  For some interesting history, see http://www.nps.gov/foda/fortdavisfrontierpost.htm

I hope to be able to come back to this place again someday.

We left Ft. Hancock just after daybreak because we had a long ride.  We rode along a "farm" road for quite some time.  Farm roads are paved, but not very smooth.  After that we alternated between frontage roads and I-10.  The frontage road was a "shake and bake" with a gradual climb, quite a struggle.  Border patrol vehicles were everywhere. At this checkpoint, all east-bound traffic had to stop for inspection.  Some of our folks were still riding on I-10 and were stopped by a border patrol with a dog.  "Are you American citizens?"  They didn't have to say much for him to know they were legal!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

At Sierra Blanca, it as time for lunch again.  We found "the place"-a horse motel, truck stop and favorite restaurant of law enforcement.  So we knew we were at the best place in town.  Polly, the second picture is for you.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We rode for about 19 miles on a frontage road on the west side for a while, then had to cross I-10 to get in the east-bound lane.  Rather than cross at a gravel crossing, we elected to try the culvert.  It was safe, but very muddy inside.  My bike needed a serious cleaning at the end of the day in Van Horn!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The ride on into Van Horn was uneventful.  We stayed at a Best Western in Van Horn.  Nothing to write home about, but at least we were all on the first floor, very important when you have a bicycle and luggage to manage. 

This is a special post for "Miss" Tammie and "Miss" Dennie Kay's class at Metter Elementary and for Ms. Lopez's 2nd grade class at Tornillo Elementary. 

While we were waiting for lunch at La Calesa, I just had to visit the school.  Once an educator always an educator! 

I saw Tornillo Elementary School across the street.  So I went over to find the principal, like "Miss" Charlotte.  He is a man named Mr. Severo Alcoset.  Here is a picture of me with Mr. Alcoset.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tornillo Elementary (http://www.tisd.us/el/default.asp) is like Metter Elementary School (http://www.metter.org/mes.html).  It has Prekindergarten, First, Second and Third grades. The counselor (like "Miss" Tammie Lanier), Mr. Rosales, took me to Ms. Lopez's second grade class.  I took my bicylcle in the class so they could see all of my gear.  The boys and girls had lots of questions.  They looked at a map, just like the one at MES and saw where we are riding.  They wanted to know where I lived.  We found Georgia on the map.  They live in Texas.  Can you find Texas on your map?  Can you find Georgia on your map? They asked me if I could speak Spanish.  I can only say a few words.  Here is a picture of the class and me.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is a picture of the first graders at Metter Elementary.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When we left, the boys and girls came out to say goodbye.  Thank you Mr. Alcoste, Mr. Rosales, Ms. Lopez, and all of the other staff for letting us visit.  You can send me a message by clicking on comment.  I will read it.  Remember to wear a helmet when you ride a bike.