Thurs, 10/16/2025; 38 miles, 531 feet of climb
Finally — I got the EASY DAY I was so looking forward to! Not only was the weather great, with the winds shifting to tailwinds as the day went on, but I also got a Christmas miracle in a campground tonight.
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The day started with the continental “breakfast” at the historic lodge. It actually was just coffee and some fig bars and a banana. But I got to chat with the owner, Charles, who allowed me to film him in an interview for my eventual YouTube video, a short excerpt of which I’ll include in my Facebook post.
Once I hit the road, it was a perfectly straight shot for 30 some miles. There was not a single speck of shade the entire way, let alone a gas station or anything else. Today I packed five water bottles, because I ran out with my four yesterday, but it turns out I didn’t need them all because I wasn’t working as hard and I didn’t have to fix my bike on the hot pavement.
There was a little bit of climbing, but also some delightful downhill. The entire route today was along Interstate 10, including some sections right on the freeway. That can get a little scary with all the huge semi trucks coming side-by-side, but I’m always looking in my rearview mirror so I can see of any of them might be veering toward the shoulder.
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When I got to Van Horn, I went straight to the only restaurant close to the hotel I’ll be staying at, which happened to be McDonald’s. But I tried one of their new McCrispy deluxe chicken sandwiches, and it was really good.
I got into the Hampton hotel, which I chose because of the hot tub. Alas, the hot tub is not working. Dang.
But it is a great room, especially compared to the rooms the last two nights –– the Bates hotel from the 50s, and the historic Lodge from the 30s. I liked the charm of the lodge, but it sure is nice to have a modern room with all the conveniences —this is the first room with a TV, Wi-Fi, Kleenex, and bathtub that I’ve had since El Paso three days ago.
Once I got into the air-conditioned room, I quickly uploaded pictures from yesterday to my Facebook album and Instagram. I couldn’t do it before, because of the lack of cell coverage or Wi-Fi.
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I have to admit that it is mighty hard to leave the room once you get here. But I was invited to a biker gang campsite tonight!
Along the route today, I had met some people bicycling the entire Southern Tier. They are going with a supported tour, with ten riders and two staff. “Supported” means that all their gear is being hauled in a big trailer pulled by a van.
Not only is their gear hauled, which makes it so much lighter and easier like I get to experience on RAGBRAI, but they also have a built-in “sag wagon.” If somebody is injured or their bike breaks down, they can ride in the sag wagon as needed. That’s definitely a lot less pressure.
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Meanwhile, I spent the entire day obsessing about my tires. They did okay today, but that large gash on the back tire makes me nervous. And the front tire loses 40 psi every day, so it must have a slow leak.
I’m feeling really stupid for not bringing an extra tire, but I’ve never needed one before. Mine are both pretty new. The issue is that this is the most remote section of the entire 3300-mile Southern Tier Bike Route, with not a single bike shop in the entire 432 miles from El Paso to Del Rio.
I spent so much time trying to figure out how to get tires shipped to where I will be, but the problem is these small towns have really slow delivery times, and every time I find a town to ship to, I’ll already be passed it when it gets there.
I finally contacted a bike shop in Del Rio, to ask if they have the tires I need. He said they did not, but I could ship it to him in Del Rio.
The only problem is that Del Rio still many days away, and if something happens to my tire before then, I don’t know what I would do.
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Well, let’s just say that I’m glad I made the effort to leave my hotel and join my fellow bikers for supper. We had a great time sharing stories about not only the last few days of biking from El Paso, but also the 1000 miles from San Diego to El Paso that I rode last February. (They had rain while submitting Emory Pass in New Mexico, so they missed the spectacular views that I enjoyed.)
But the best part — one of them had a really sturdy new tire that he was willing to sell me! He wasn’t sure if it was the right size, but it was 700X35, the exact size I’m using now. I was so relieved to have a spare tire!
I don’t plan on installing it yet, because both of my tires have some issues. But carrying it with me will give me the ability to use it if something does go wrong before I get to Del Rio. This gives me great comfort.
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Tomorrow is a relatively easy day, because I should have tailwinds all day. It’s 42 miles to Valentine, Texas, so I’ll definitely aim for that. I am almost tempted to ride 75 miles to Marfa tomorrow, but my saddle sores are voting otherwise.
The only problem is that there’s absolutely nothing along the way once again, including when I get to Valentine, my end town for the day. So I had to stop at a gas station tonight to buy a few thousand calories’ worth of snacks. I’ll just pretend I’m backpacking.
I also don’t know where to stay in Valentine yet. There is a little place on Google maps that rents out RV trailers, but they won’t answer the phone, and the last comment was from four years ago.
There’s also an RV park there, but they, too, won’t answer the phone, and their online comments are also several years old. So if worse comes to worst, I’ll just set up my tent on some flat spot if I have to.
The next two days after that are short days, and I should have a great tailwind all day Saturday. So one thing I’m thinking about is combining those two days and doing a longer day to take advantage of all the tailwind, and get to Alpine, Texas, on Saturday. It would be perfect to take a rest day on Sunday, because Sunday the wind shifts again and come from the east, causing a headwind. So it might be worth doing a longer day to avoid the headwinds on Sunday.
So that’s my plan now, if my saddle sores don’t get too bad. I finally get a good breakfast here tomorrow for the first time this entire trip, in the hotel I’m staying at. More great weather tomorrow!
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TRANSLATIONS/BACKGROUND: “TEXBIRD” = Texas Bike Ride, my own nickname for the 800 miles in the middle of Southern Tier Bicycle Route, from El Paso to Austin, using maps from ACA (Adventure Cycling Association). This will complete my ride of the Southern Tier from the Pacific Ocean (San Diego) to the Atlantic Ocean (Jacksonville). (I biked the 1500 miles from Austin to Jacksonville in March 2024, and the 1000 miles from San Diego to El Paso in February 2025.)
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LINKS:
Old-fashioned BLOG if you have friends who don’t use Facebook:
“Old Scouter” Facebook page if you want to follow big adventures with more pictures and video clips (but not unrelated personal posts):
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100066334039590
“Old Scouter” YouTube page (when I get time to edit after the trip):