Bend in the Wind
Day 2: Clovis to Abiquiu (239 miles) [Route Here]
I’m so thankful to be in the high desert this evening. Between the panhandle heat/dust storms and an unrelenting New Mexico wind I have been beaten up by the road. When I reached Abiquiu my body demanded I slow down. This Airbnb is an excellent place to do just that (you should visit).
While getting tossed around on US-84 this morning my thoughts were on how I bend in the wind. An expression meant to symbolize strength and resilience to all life’s crap, but with my current work I’m trying to feel more like these Mack trucks instead of a Honda Fit. The good news is I have made growth to voice and hold my figurative place on the road. And literally the past two days.
Around the I-40/US-285 interchange I received my first view of the Sandia mountains. The extra 2k feet of elevation gain since Billy the Kid’s grave sent temps down into the high 70’s. It did nothing about the wind. A little later on US-285 there is a moment you can catch both Sandia and Truchas peak. That was a nice connected feeling since they were separate beacons my first two trips.
To prove how worn out I was I stopped at the Whole Foods in Santa Fe with the main goal of picking up tortillas to make trail wraps. I promptly ordered/ate ramen (when in Rome!), glanced at their tequila section, then walked out empty handed. It wasn’t until 8 hours later I realized I forgot.
Northbound US-84 via Santa Fe you enter Pueblo country. I’m looking forward to learning more about their sovereign nations. To make up for today’s missed donation for the Clovis community (seriously, does anyone have a suggestion??) I am donating to these three Native American organizations:
Native Wellness Institute, Warrior Women Project, and Native American Rights Fund
The wind finally stopped howling this evening and it looks like the Weminuche felt some snow. It’s a paltry 2.5 hour drive to Shaun’s Vallecito cabin. I was hoping to get in a short hike at Ghost Ranch in the morning, but all of Carson National Forest is closed to fire risk. Par for the course these days. There’s also Plaza Blanca down the road, but that requires a reservation. Next time.
First, quiet high desert sleep — then tortillas.
