Days 1 and 2 – CDTbike begins!

Day 1. CDTbike has begun!  After a short ride from Roger Payne out of Lordsburg we were on our way… Heading south! Wait what? The road down to Crazy Cook (official southern terminus of the CDT) has gotten so bad that the Payne brothers aren’t keen on shuttling people on it this year. Not a big deal since we have bikes!   

On the way down we got the full tour of the area. All the ranches, farms, the history and the quarrels. I could have listened to Roger’s stories all day, but eventually it was time to ride! He showed us a shortcut and we were on our way.

The conclusion of the day? This is good country for bikes. There is *almost* a real trail for the first mile. What a treat to be able to start a long distance national scenic trail, on bike, and on the actual trail. Then it’s a 2 track that gradually climbs into the Big Hatchet Mountains. It’s sandy and follows a wash for some miles… But that’s how we roll down in the southwest. We loved it.

Emerging from the hatchets the trail goes cross country and into a wilderness study area. It was not labeled no bikes, but we played it safe and took the road .   It was the same road we rode in on, but oh well.

We took a gamble on the next stretch fo XC riding, knowing it would save a few miles and take us directly to the water cache box we had added to on the way down. 

Eszter’s reaction at the cache box sums up the choice.  It was fun route finding, even good riding at times, and short enough to not be too bothersome.  More than anything it was just a beautiful evening, with the sun falling low on the Big Hatchetts behind us, and the stark openness of the place finally pulling us in.

The weather has blessed the cdt bike so far, with cool temps and low winds for the area. Our tires are holding up OK so far, despite lots of thorny bushes. Eszter just realized she forgot her spare tube, so we only have one! That may affect our decision making tomorrow, with a long stretch of XC to ride. But we will hope for the best.

We  have an idyllic campsite with huge views.  I am so happy to be on the trail and done with prep, mapping, working and packing.

Day 2.  Beautiful night, only a little breezy.

We found some actual mountain biking in the Little Hatchett Mountains!  I had been joking since Crazy Cook that I was going to try to make it I-10 without using my brakes, or my dropper post, and certianly not my granny ring!  Well, the little Hatchets had other plans.  Steep, chunky, and fun!

At the Highway 9 crossing we sat to eat some lunch and debate our options.  Tires were holding fine, and there was more XC ahead.  There was an obvious detour around it, though.  There are paved and empty roads around the Coyote Hills.  Where as the next section, with some 16 miles of XC travel to Pryamid Peak, had no viable reroute, that I could figure out from the 3-4 aerial sources and 3 topos in TopoFusion.  That was the big unknown and the crux to mountain biking the CDT south of I-10, from our perspective.

So we took to the pavement with the wind at our backs.  Ah, a nice break.

At the road crossing it looked like a veritable trail following the CDT signs out into the desert.  A sincere thank you to the 150+ thru-hikers in front of us!  They beat in a nice trail for us in many places.

And in other places it was just wide open prairie lands.  A bit soft under tire, but easy going and just incredible.  There is nothing like trail-less travel to give you a sense of ‘out there.’  And that is perhaps the borderland’s most attractive quality — solitude.  The feeling of emptiness.  Just two bike wranglers, a few wild ponies and the kind east wind.  Perfect.

We absolutely loved it, and it seems the CDT is viable for bikes down here — provided you have appropriate expectations and know-how.  Oh!  And big tires with lots of sealant!  Thank goodness for Stans sealant.

We are back at the Econolodge in Lordsburg, fueling up and resting for the next push.  The Payne brothers just stopped by to visit and deliver us a spare tube for better insurance against flats.  It was great to see them again and swap a story or two.  After they left, Eszter said, “those are the two sweetest old men in the world right there.”  You meet the coolest people on these things sometimes.

Well, we have lots of climbing ahead of us, unlike the flats we’ve traversed so far.  There is also a fire that has some of the CDT closed north of Silver City.  We’ll have to figure out a reroute once we get to town and check in with the bike shop and locals.