Everything is Bigger in Texas

           This last segment of my trip has been a lot of fun.  Most days the weather has been great and I have had an opportunity to meet some awesome people on my ride through Texas.  Lets start where we left off though.  Upon leaving El Paso I went towards Guadalupe Peak with Mark Brooks who was also the sponsor of the summit.  We arrived at the parking lot around 3pm.  This only left a couple hours before sunset and the hike was going to be 8.5 miles round trip.  The rangers mentioned that there was a little snow and ice on the trail but we figured we would just give it a go. 

            The first 2 miles or so were very straightforward and the trail was clear.  But, that’s when we started to hit the patches.  At first they started as little patches that sometimes were a little icy.  But as we continued the snow got deeper and took up longer sections of the trail.  Some of the sections had also become pretty icy.  Lucky for us though there were a couple people that had gone to the summit before us and the trail was already broken. 

            Mark and I arrived at the summit just before sunset, which proved to be a nice view although it also meant that we were going to have quite the hike down in the dark.  We got about a mile behind us before the light really died out and we had to start using our headlamps.  Upon starting up the trail we thought we were going to have a full moon to help us down but not so much.  The sky had become pretty overcast so we had no extra light other than our headlamps to see by.  Thankfully the trail was very well defined so it was not hard to follow.  The icy sections in the dark were a little tricky but otherwise the hike went well.

            I took the next day off and went to check out Carlsbad Caverns, which was fairly close to Guadalupe.  The cave was very impressive to see.  There is a self-guided tour where you can hike down through the natural entrance.  It was a little over a mile long and took you down about 800 feet below the surface.  Once down there I was free to wonder around the Giant Room.  Just to walk around this one room was another mile and a half.  After going on these self-guided tours I went on another tour that was off the trail and was guided by a local geologist.  This one lasted 3 hours and took us to a deeper part of the cave that did not have any artificial lights.  We were able to get a much closer look at a lot of different formations in the cave.  The guide also had us experience what it felt like to be in complete darkness 900 feet underground.  It felt a little oppressive being down there with no sense of sight to comfort you and knowing there was hundreds of feet just sitting above your head. 

            After leaving Carlsbad and continuing my journey east across the state of Texas I was very lucky with the weather.  Every day has been over 60 if not 70 degrees.  One or two days actually got up into the 80’s.  It also seemed like I had a tailwind almost every day, which was awesome.  While the riding was comfortable and easy do to the flat landscape I do have to say that it got a little old because there is not much going on in west Texas other than oil fields.  All this meant for me though was that there were a lot of trucks and oversized trucks going back and forth on the roads all day.  Luckily though there was a really big shoulder on most of the roads I was on.             

            While the terrain was not overly entertaining I did get a chance to meet and stay with a lot of awesome people all across the state.  Well as I am writing this in Denton, Texas, which is just north of Dallas, we are getting pounded with a lot of rain.  Texas has been in a pretty severe drought this is rain is much needed although there are a lot of flood warning for much of the area now.  Well here is to hoping that the people in Oklahoma and Arkansas are just as nice as the people in Texas. 

            In case you have not heard I am trying to get 500 people to like the Cycle for the Summit facebook page by February 15.  IF we reach this goal a 65-liter Jansport backpack will be raffled off to one lucky person who has liked the page.  We still have 75 people to go by then so tell you friends and family to check it out.  It only takes 30 seconds to do.  Here is the link for those that may not have been there yet.  http://www.facebook.com/cycleforthesummit

- Michael

On the Road Again

             It’s been quite a while since my last blog but I actually have a respectable reason for it this time instead of just being lazy.  I actually took almost 2 weeks off around Christmas and New Years to go home and see my family and some friends.  But, I’ll get to that in a little. 

            When I last left off I had just gotten to New Mexico and made the decision not to go to Wheeler Peak because of all the storms that were about to come through the area.  Turns out this was a good idea because by the time I made it to Las Vegas, NM, a huge storm came through the area.  I ended up staying in a one of the nicest Super 8’s I had ever seen.  They had a great breakfast and they also had soup and salad every night for dinner that the manager made herself each day.  But I was there for 3 nights trying to wait for the storm to pass and then the roads to clear up.  This just wasn’t going to happen though.  I only had a 2-day window of decent weather before another storm came through the area. However, the roads were in no shape for riding.  I would have had to take a highway with all the snow piled up on the shoulders. 

So I decided to just take a bus to Santa Fe where I stayed with an awesome couple who had been very involved in the cycling community there for a long time.  The next day he was actually heading down to Albuquerque anyways so I was able to get a ride with him before the other storm blew threw.  When I got to Albuquerque I still had 2 days before my flight but luckily my old NOLS instructor lived in the area.  It was cool to see him again and to have those 2 days to just hang out and relax.  While I was there he was actually getting ready to leave for a month and go to Nepal.  He is travelling there to help teach the local porters mountaineering skills at the Kumbu Ice School.

Eventually the time came for me to fly home on Christmas Eve.  It was great being home for 10 days and not having to worry about where I will be sleeping the next night.  While I was home I also went down to Columbia, SC for New Years with some friends which was a ton of fun and I actually had the chance to go sailing for the first time.  It was a pretty windy day, which made it that much more exciting to learn on the fly.  All good things must come to an end though and on January 4^th I flew back to Albuquerque to restart my trip. 

My first 2 days back on the road were awesome.  It was sunny, no wind and the perfect temperature.  Not to mention some good roads to ride on. I kept them both between 40 and 50 miles in order to help get my legs used to the process again since it had been about 2 weeks since I last rode my bike.  The 3^rd day though was just brutal.  I had to go 75 miles just to reach the next town called Truth or Consequences and I had a stiff head wind the whole way.  I ended up being on the road for over 11 hours that day which meant that I rode for 2 hours in the dark.  Luckily though it was a clear night with an almost full moon and the wind died off completely.

That night the Desert View Inn put up.  I decided to take a rest day the next day because I was hurting from the previous ride.  That night the Charles Motel and Spa put me up which was awesome.  The area is actually known for their hot springs and at the Charles Motel you get a free mineral bath if you stay there.  So of course I took advantage of this and it felt great. 

After a very relaxing rest day I took off the next morning for another 75-mile day, which I had, an awesome tail wind the entire way.  With one more 72-mile day I was able to make it to El Paso, Texas.  This is where I am going to meet a friend and sponsor of Guadalupe Peak, which is the highest point in the state of Texas.  Together we are heading out for the Summit tomorrow morning.  So next time I write to yall there will be one more state checked off the list.

- Michael Hunter