Lake Roberts to Geronimo Trail Camp
Strava 73.4 km, 1455m, 5:35, 205 shifts, 49.6 kph max
We thought we had an easier stage today and check in time at our cabin was 4pm so we got up late. It was a little cold last night with some ice on my bike this morning. Breakfast was freeze dried peaches, a banana and some turbinado sugar in eight servings of oatmeal. We let it sit under a sleeping bag to get just right. Delicious! We shared a 🥝, packed up and took off just before 9.
The first 12 km was on a paved road, up and down, pretty and relatively easy. We met the guys from the campground at the turnoff. The rest of the day was on dirt. We headed uphill steeply, something like a 9 km climb up 350m. We had a snack at the top and went on. There were lots more of these climbs and I was overjoyed that my granny gear 52 was working even though the bike thinks it’s in second gear. I cranked it long and hard (1:28, the only gear I used today for over an hour)!
The inevitable descents were absolutely wonderful although you have to really pay attention on the tricky, sometimes slippery curves. There were many straight sections where we could cruise at 40 kph or more, with usually one path somewhere on the road free of washboard bumps.
We had lunch just over halfway: one tortilla each with honey and pepper jack cheese. Just enough and super tasty. As we got to 3/4 done and beyond, the pace slowed. The last couple of climbs were brutal in the sun, about 10% grade… Andrew was heard to comment at the top of the last one, “I’m done!” And he meant it. Luckily we had just one last four km downhill run, super nice.
We turned at the ranch sign and spied their coolers right away, drinks and snacks for cyclists. We each pounded large Gatorade bottles. 90% of mine went down in one breath. We took some Clif bars and left $40 in their box. We checked in and the cabin is quite nice. They are off the grid so the shower and power comes from the sun.
Everything is better after your first shower in two days, especially if you sweated copiously. We all did laundry and relaxed. They have Starlink Internet. If you want the full treatment here, meals and horse riding etc, it’s $600 per person per day! We had tried to add dinner but their chef had the day off so we have to make our food last to Pie Town, two days and 170+ km away. With the extra Clif Bars I think we’ll make it.
I heard some snoring while I was writing this post, while Daniel spent time in the bathtub trying to find the holes in his sleeping pad. Later, we cooked dinner outside. After a careful inventory we decided we could share three dinners for “two” instead of just two like last night. Dessert was a scone, a mint chocolate cookie and a big bar of Swiss chocolate from Daniel.
Nathan's Blog 