Featured Sturgis 2023: Taking The Long Way ' Round In The American Southwest

Thanks, Joe! I'm glad you're enjoying my Sturgis report. And it's good you're taking it slowly because my reporting this time 'round is slow, too! I've just two more days to report on and will do that in the next day or so.

I'm really happy to see you back on the forum. We've missed you! And, please--don't get me impeached. It seems to be contagious.

 

Definitely NOT my orange beauty, @learningtofly! The more I ride my Street Glide Special the more I like and appreciate it. It now officially has more miles on it than either of the two previous touring Harleys that I've owned. And I'm hoping to put many more miles on it!

 

I know you've been in the American Southwest, @Bikerman, but can't remember if that included Santa Fe. Our hotel's architectural style fits right in with many of the buildings in the heart of Santa Fe. It's a style I find beautiful and almost soothing with smooth, thick walls, earth toned colors, and no frills simplicity. And, yes, fantastic riding in every direction! Remember, that invitation to join us is a standing invitation.

 

"Never say never" is one of my life mottos!

 

Ahhh, a nice dilemma to face...and definitely a first world problem, Tony.

 

Day #11: Santa Fe, New Mexico to Show Low, Arizona

Total Miles for the Day: 402



Today's route took us on some of Steve's and my favorite little back roads through the state of New Mexico. There was a short debate over breakfast over which route to take. One riding buddy thought it would be cool to see El Mapais, which translated means "Bad Country". 'Nuff said. Well, that and the fact that to ride the 10 or more miles through El Mapais, the bulk of the remainder of day's ride would be in Interstate 25 and Interstate 40. Reason won out, thankfully!

We'd said goodbye to two of our group yesterday. Kelly and Chas, who were riding two up, continued on past Santa Fe to spend the night in Socorro, Mexico then ride all the way back to Tucson the next day. Our buddy, Ron, said that he would join us until we got to Albuquerque where he would peel off the group to go spend a couple of days with his elderly mom and step-dad.

Even with one bike and two people down, our group managed to splinter before we even got onto Old Highway 14, aka "The Turquoise Trail". We finally managed to regroup with the one rider and the Prius in the little town of Madrid where the movie "Wild Hogs" was filmed. I've reported on that cool place in previous ride reports. We didn't stick around there today, though, as it was early and most everything was closed up tight.

Regrouping in Madrid


I spied this fun artistic hillside in Madrid through a fence next to my bike while waiting for our "lost" friends.



After waving goodbye to Ron, we wound our way through beautiful backroads and tiny little New Mexican towns to the southeast of Albuquerque. When we got to the town of Mountainaire, Steve and I agreed that it was time to pull off and stop for some coffee and a bite to eat plus a stretch (and loo) break. We'd only gone about 100 miles since leaving Santa Fe, but the oldest in our group had requested back on Day #1 that we make stops about every 100 miles so he could stretch his back and hips. And we'd all secretly been glad that he did that and that routine served us pretty well for this trip!

Steve and I had been to Alpine Alley before but none of the others in the group had even heard of it. They were very happy to stop and they were even happier the we stopped at this wonderful little spot in the middle of pretty much nowhere.





When our server came over to take our orders, we learned that she and her husband were the new owners of Alpine Alley. The woman that Steve and I had met the last time we stopped here had decided to sell. And that sale had happened--of course--very shortly prior to Covid and all the shutdowns. The new owners managed to keep the place open by doing takeout and a drive through window. The proprietress' husband also works a "day job" to make ends meet. She told us they just finally managed to come out in the black for the first time since they bought the place. But "in the black" literally meant they had 27¢ in their account! Steve told me later that he gave her a whopping tip and she actually started crying. I love my hubby.

The recommendation was to try the New Jersey Crumb Cake and boy, that was a fantastic recommendation! We all had a piece and loved it. In fact, Roseanne, the Prius driver, asked her to send the recipe for it so this is my reminder to check whether she received that or not.



The ambiance of Alpine Alley is very charming and much of it is decorated in "Horse and Horse-Related Stuff". Turns out the ribbons and awards on the walls were won by the owner herself! She loves living in Mountainaire because "it's a great place to have a horse".







The horse theme even extended to the bathroom...



Day #11 continued in my next post.

 

Day #11: Santa Fe, New Mexico to Show Low, Arizona

After leaving Mountainaire, we pointed our bikes (and Prius) west and headed for our next stop which was a stop for gas in Socorro, New Mexico on Interstate 25. Much of today's ride was on U.S. 60 which is a lovely two-lane road, but there's a point where you have to get on I-25 for about 20 miles to connect U.S. 60 east of I-25 with U.S. 60 west of I-25. Socorro isn't one of our favorite places but it does have a lot of gas stations lining its main street. The name is nice, though!

From the New Mexico Tourism Department:
"The name Socorro means “help” or “aid” in Spanish. In 1598 the explorers of the Juan de Oñate expedition first gave this name to the Pilabo Pueblo because the Pueblo people gave them needed food and shelter as they made their way north."

Our next "stop" was completely unplanned but completely necessary! As we headed west on U.S. 60, the skies became blacker and blacker and the winds picked up considerably. The views are HUGE in this part of New Mexico--much of New Mexico, really-- and we could see rainstorms and storm cells interspersed across the land. As we approached the National Radio Astronomy Observatory or the "VLA" (Very Large Array) as it's commonly known, Steve recommended we stop to don our rain gear. I wholeheartedly agreed! And no sooner had we stopped and began to layer up, I heard a distinct "plink, plink". Yep, hail! Fortunately it was tiny and short-lived but we barely got our rain coats and pants on before it really began to pour.

Here's my bike with one of the receivers (we call them "listening devices" ) behind it.



This photo is from a previous day--there was a lot of "rain gear on, rain gear off, rain gear on, rain gear off" on this trip. We'd have just left it on but the temperatures were still too high for it to be comfortable in rain gear if it became dry and sunny.

I'm not that keen on this on--off process as you can probably tell from this photo. The biggest problem is that I can't get my rain pants on without sitting down and taking off my boots. The bottoms of the pants open up but the problem is that my boots still won't go through the thigh area of the pants.


Anyway, we'd stopped to don rain gear right near a pullout for the VLA. We've yet to go to the visitor center but I think we need to make that a planned stop next time we're through this area.



As we continued westward we passed directly through some of the storm cells and would come out on the other side into partly cloudy and dry conditions. It was actually quite beautiful to see places where you could tell not was raining cats and dogs and other places where the sky was brilliant blue in a "hole" in the clouds. And I figure, once you're wet, what the heck? Bring on the rain. Well, I didn't exactly feel that way a bit later in the ride, though, I have to say. When we got about 10 miles from our hotel and were riding through the nearby town of Pinto, we got absolutely pummeled! It was raining so hard we couldn't even see the lane lines on the street.

We had been debating back at Alpine Alley about whether or not to stop in Pie Town. We knew that one of the three pie restaurants there was open but we'd just had those VLC's -- in this case, Very Large Crumbcakes! So at the gas station back in Socorro, Steve and Russell agreed that we should stop in Quemado to see Phyllis and her cats at the Largo Motel. Some of you may remember Phyllis from previous ride reports. Phyllis just turned 79 years old, is the motel manager, and is an absolute hoot. We've stayed at the Largo Motel multiple times and have gotten to know and love Phyllis during that time. We stayed there at the beginning of this summer during our June motorcycle trip. In our ride group today, everyone except for Patrick and his girlfriend, Roseanne, knew Phyllis. Phyllis was happy to see us, although Steve woke her up from her nap when he knocked on the lobby door. We spent time catching up with Phyllis and her cats while also catching a break from the rain. She was even kind enough to allow us to use her personal bathroom in her attached apartment. She's a gem! She's hoping to retire soon so we're hoping (planning!) to see her again before that happens.





Russell wanted to take this cutie-pie home with him.




Day #11 continued in my next post

 

Day #11 continued and concluded

After a delightful break at the Largo Motel and spending time with Phyllis and her cats, we again continued westward and then south. Our next destination was the town of Show Low, Arizona where we had reservations at the Best Western. Well, all of us had reservations except for Russell who had wavered between going to Socorro with Chas and Kelly or riding all the way home today (which would have put his days miles well over 500!) He saw a Motel 6 when we turned onto Show Low's main road so went back to reserve a room there once we made evening plans.

Show Low is in the White Mountains of northern Arizona and is a common summertime destination for Tucson's and Phoenicians in the summer to escape our intense heat. It's a nice little town plus there are over 2 million acres of National Forest land adjacent to Show Low and over 40 lakes and streams nearby.





We were completely drenched when we were within striking distance of our hotel (literally about 5 miles away!), so after drying off and cleaning up we made our evening plans. Patrick and Roseanne spend a fair amount of tie in the White Mountains and had told us about a place they like to go for lunch and dinner called simply, "The House". We all piled in Roseanne's car--quite content to NOT ride there--and headed for brew and grub. The place was fantastic! I'll let the photos do the talking for me here for the most part.

I will note that the ambiance was fantastic and the weather perfect and that the joint was jumping!




There was a bag toss tournament in full swing and live music by a duo in the back corner.




My delicious burger and coleslaw and a local IPA



There's a separate building right next door filled with sweet goodies. Hmmm, when in Rome... Or maybe it's more like "Damn the torpedos!" Ice cream here we come.







With full bellies we said goodnight as we arrived back at the hotel.

Next up, Day #12: The ride home to Tucson

 

Thanks, @Markus! I'm glad you're enjoying my Sturgis trip report. I appreciate your feedback, too.