27 March 2014
Las Cruces, NM to El Paso, TX
53 miles (Total Miles = 845)

I hear the crashing sound from the shower and holler “what’s going on out there?!”. “Oh nothing,” says Gina, “the blinds just fell off the wall.” And with that cloud of dust I welcome you to our hostel room in El Paso, Texas. Only the finest for us on this trip.

Yep, Texas. We were literally chased out of New Mexico by a pair of crazy Australian Shepherds and right across the border into Texas. Being on such a minor road, there was no “Welcome to Texas” sign for us to selfie. So you’ll just have to take our word for it that we’re here. And here we will be for a few weeks to come. This be a mighty big state to pedal across and we’ve only just gotten started.

Now that we’ve left her behind, a few thoughts on New Mexico:

Best scenery thus far. One word: Gila. Hidden gem of the Land of Enchantment.

Green chile stew should be the state food. Maybe it is and I don’t know it. Or maybe it just needs to be made by Nicole on a Coleman stove. But it’s delicious and is a must-sample when in New Mexico.

Las Cruces might be the new Palm Desert. The mountains flanked by fertile green space is a beautiful landscape we did not expect to see. The draw for retirees seems clear; Gina is already picking out our snowbird adobe casa.