Day 12 April 5, 2006

Day 12
April 5, 2006
Santa Rosa, NM to Palo Duro Canyon State Park, TX

Once again we got a late start, and while packing the bikes Rebecca’s luggage key snapped. The plastic that holds the metal key (like a handle) simply couldn’t bear the load any longer.



After getting the Leatherman (a very cool multi-tool) out to get the key out of the lock, Rebecca found the spare that she’d brought along. It was intended as a backup in the event the original was misplaced, but this was just as good a reason to remember things like spare keys when you pack for a big trip. To compound the fact that we were running behind getting the bikes loaded, the clip holding the tail bag onto Erik’s bike snapped in two. The situation was easily remedied with a custom-cut (to length) rubber strap with a new clip.

We rode a few miles into town for some breakfast before re-entering Texas, and settled on this place, the Sun Restaurant.



The eggs were quite delicious, and other than the cigarette smoke wafting towards us from a nearby booth it was a decent place to eat.



There was no need to stop and take a picture at the Texas state line. We’ve all seen it. It’s strange how the landscape begins to change as you enter this section of the country; the grass and rolling plains replace the jagged mountain cliffs that graced us with scenic views just a few days prior. It was a stark reminder that this trip – this adventure – would soon be coming to a close. We still had a few days left, but the finish line was in sight.

Hitting Amarillo for a fuel stop, we decided that a stop at the Cadillac Ranch was in order. Although somewhat local for us Texans, it was still far enough away from home that we wanted to get some pictures while we were up here.







Nearing Palo Duro Canyon State Park outside of Amarillo, it was clear why this was called the “Grand Canyon” of Texas. We’d missed out on the real thing in northern Arizona due to poor weather (low of 20 overnight, high of 35 with snow showers likely), but this was a good consolation prize.

The Texas State Parks and Wildlife system is very accommodating, and the park ranger had first hand knowledge of which campsites down in the canyon were most suitable for us. We were able to camp underneath a 60 foot wall of rock, and we were told the nearby trees would help shield some of the wind that was expected overnight and into the next day.







The wildlife in the park is outstanding. There were turkeys and deer wandering around the campsites, and it was obvious that they’d become accustomed to the humans being around. They barely flinched when we rode by.



Once settled, we headed back out of the park (doubled up again) for dinner. This afforded a few more moving pictures.





Just a few short miles outside the park gates (this time we made a mental note that the gates close at 10), we found Bambino’s Pizza. It didn’t look like much, but we were hungry and willing to give it a try. As we opened the door, the two tables and young boy doing his homework had us second-guessing our decision.



Yet again, we were pleasantly surprised at the quality of food offered up at a seemingly unknown hole in the wall. The selection was limited to only pizza, calzones, and gyros but all three were absolutely delicious.

The roads back into the park were quite a bit different without any daylight, and the deer standing on the edge of the pavement within arms’ reach made for a few pucker moments. We managed to get back to the campsite without any near-misses (with the deer or each other) and settled in for more headlamp dominoes. Before too long, it was nearing midnight and we called the game on account of sleepiness. Rebecca believes that it was because she was so far out in the lead that nobody thought they could catch her, but a three to one vote had the dominoes being packed away.

The warm night (another sign we were back in Texas) and light breeze had fooled us into thinking we’d be better off without the rainflys on the tents. As a light drizzle came down, we all awoke and had to scurry to get them securely fastened. I guess that’s one more thing we’ve learned – expect the unexpected.