Things I learned while hiking the AZT ( in the order of occurrence):

1. Cold wet things (hands, clothing) steam when put into the sun.
2. Picking a good campsite makes all the difference – clear ground, wind shelter.
3. Snow makes awesome toilet paper – cold yet so convenient.
4. A good snow shelter comes all the way to the ground on three sides, with the open side away from the direction of the prevailing winds (when using a tarp).
5. Snow camping is better with a tent.
6. Knowing how to keep your head under stress is good.
7. Knowing how to relax and let each day flow makes going easier.
8. Prepare to change your plans.
9. Stop and enjoy a bright sunny day, you never know when the next one is coming.
 

Our most memorable AZT moments:

1.      Mountain Lion Hunt
2.      Having to repair lots of broken equipment and torn clothing the first 4 days out.
3.      Bob got a blister (this is really rare).
4.      Seeing animal tracks in the snow, including rodents being hunted by large birds.
5.      The Forest Service cabin on the North Rim.
6.      Snowshoeing through the meadows of the North Rim while sparkling snow swirled around us.
7.      Phantom Ranch’s warm hospitality and shelter from the storm.
8.      Hiking the Grand Canyon with Bob’s brother Jesse.
9.      Camping during a full moon at the base of the San Francisco Peaks.
10.   Waiting out a three day storm on the side of a mountain, on the edge of a cliff, in our tent – the first time either of us had been stuck in a tent.
11.   Finding our way using map and compass around the SF Peaks and the Matatzals. Every time we came around a corner to see a trail marker it was like receiving a “Job Well Done” sticker on our homework.
12.   Riding a classic motorcycle across the country.


The AZT soundtrack (the songs that kept playing in our heads as we walked in order of occurance):

1.      “In the Pines” by Louvin Brothers or Nirvana (This verse stuck with me: “In the pines, In the pines, Where the sun never shines, I’ll shiver the whole night through.)

2.      “March of the Toy Soldiers” from the Nutcracker Suite (Even though I hated it, this song is the one that plays most of the time when I’m hiking. I guess the tempo and rhythm are right.)

3.      “White Line Fever” by Flying Burrito Brothers (This one popped in as we walked the bare highway that first day out of Jacob’s Lake to the North Rim.

4.      “Afternoon Delight” by some one hit wonder (This was Jesse’s pick)

5.      “I Guess You’re Wondering Why I’m Here (and so am I)” by Frank Zappa and the MOI (This one came on while I was wondering what we were doing on the AZT in the middle of winter)

6.      “Lonesome Whipperwill” by Hank Williams (I sang this one as we walked through Babbit Ranches)

7.      “Big Rock Candy Mountain” folk song, Woodie Guthrie I guess is the one to receive the credit (We sang this one together and it boosted moral.)

8.      “Mexico” by  Calexico (I sang this one to remind me that I was hiking to Mexico.)

9.      “My Name is Mud” By Primus (This was sung as we trudged through the mud--See photo below of 10lb mud and sticks "nest" on Bob's boot.)

10.   “Aria” from the Opera Carmen (This makes a nice hiking song when Mother Nature is being spectacular.)

We left El Paso and headed southeast along the Mexican border. It was gorgeous scenery, riding with javelina, deer, and tumbleweeds the size of VW beetles. It was our first time to travel along the border. It was interesting to see the border patrol at work.  The patrollers drive slowly up and down the dirt roads that follow the border’s fence line. In a couple spots, temporary camps with towers were erected with someone keeping watch out over the desert.  We also passed through some checkpoints, where guards would usually wave cars through. We were stopped once and questioned about our citizenship, then were waved through. We considered the challenges one faces trying to cross illegally, but we didn’t get the feeling that it would be an impossible thing to do. At towns, the locals treated the patrollers with politeness yet they were not greeted with the warmth usually felt; they were treated like outsiders. In the towns, Spanish seams to be the first language, and there is a sense of a close-knit community. The food is amazing, and we didn’t get our fill of the delicious Tejano cuisine, even though we tried.

We followed the border to Big Bend National Park. This place is a gem in the rugged desert. Its a lot like the Grand Canyon, just more spread out. The Rio Grande meanders through the Chihuahuan Desert, bordered by terraces and rugged mountains. We camped along the river for two nights, with Mexico just a short swim away. We spent sunset of the second night near a warm spring-fed pond along the Rio. It is a sanctuary for many species of wildlife, and proved to be blissful listening to the ducks quack, wrens call out, and frogs croak as we gazed upon the reflections of the reeds and cottonwoods (see photo in this blog).

After Big Bend, we headed due east across Texas ranch land. Texas is big. And windy. The spring winds had begun to blow, and as a couple old codgers told Bob, they won't quit until June. So we stayed crouched and straining against the 20-30 mph winds and headed east. Riding in this kind of wind is like an extreme adventure sport. At times, I thought my head would pop right off my neck when a gust would catch my helmet and me off guard. Poor Bob had to hold the bike at an angle against the wind, and I can only imagine how sore he was after these long windy days of riding. Yet we were living an American dream, and the wind did not get us down.

Texas has many ranches that all have the biggest fences I have ever seen, bigger than those along the border even. Think about the fences in the movie, Jurassic Park. These ranch fences are 7 or more feet tall, with grid construction, barbed wire, and they are electric, for miles upon miles. I don't know what the ranchers are trying to keep in or keep out, but it must be real important.

We stopped in Langtree, TX home of the famous Judge Roy Bean, Law West of the Pecos. In the last century, when lawlessness ran rampant in Texas, this character took it upon himself to bring some order to the chaos. He didn’t know much about proper law, and he made his decisions according to what felt right. This worked just fine out in the middle of nowhere. There was no jail, and criminals were often handcuffed to the tree outside of the courthouse/bar/pool hall, of which Bean was proprietor. Bob was first introduced to the Judge from a movie, “The Life and Times of the Judge Roy Bean,” starring Paul Newman, and he soon became one of his heroes. So it was an exciting moment when Bob got his picture in front of the original building.

And then we suddenly found ourselves camping on the beach - the Gulf Coast. There are oil rigs and oil refineries here. I had always heard about the oil production along the Gulf of Mexico, but had never seen it with my own eyes. I guess I didn’t realize how many rigs and refineries there are out there in the Gulf. I thought about sailing in the area, scared of running into the rigs and their platforms. Luckily they are lit up like Christmas Trees at night a sailor must keep a careful watch here. But then, these rigs often stand in shallow waters, too shallow for deep draft sailing vessels.

So that was Texas. We made our way into Louisiana, and said goodbye to the lone star state. We traveled along the bayous and islands of southern Louisiana. It was absolutely beautiful. This was Creole country, where people speak a type of French and live in shotgun houses (or the more modern ones live in trailers). We saw lots of birds, white cranes, pelicans, real pink flamingoes (not the plastic kind), and even alligators hanging out in the tall green grasses of the bayous. The smell of onions and BBQ filled the air.

Much of the area had been wrecked by one hurricane or another. Every now and again you come upon a lonely brick house atop a knoll, with green grass growing all around. And you think about how serene it must be. Then you realize that the house was once part of a large neighborhood and that below the grass hides the foundations of neighboring houses. Many people live in RVs with roofs over them or in their FEMA trailers. Some look like they're trying to rebuild on the stilts where their houses once were, some just look like they're in the RV to stay. Here and there you see a twisted silo, a large boat hard aground a mile from the water, store signs so bent and distorted you get a chill down your spine wondering about the forces behind the destruction.

And that gets us to New Orleans. We love New Orleans, and we keep coming back. This city is a kaleidoscope of culture, it’s exciting, it’s funky, it’s original - you just never know what might lurk around the next corner. Where else can you go to a 24 hour bar/restaurant/pool hall/Laundromat? We spent a day touring the city. We walked through the Garden District. This area, just a few blocks from the French Quarter, is home to plantation mansions complete with elaborate gardens, all of which were in bloom. It smelled fantastic, and we enjoyed seeing roses, astromarias of every shade, birds of paradise, and even banana plants at the height of color. We then took the trolley down to the French Quarter, where we sunned ourselves at Café Du Monde, ate beignets and listened to a trio of asousaphone, an electric guitar, and a violin get down and dirty. We found ourselves in a NPS tour and learned some history; then we visited a voodoo priest and talked about his pythons. Later that evening we happened upon an impromptu dance party and a 12 piece brass band rockin’ out in the middle of the street.

We were sad to leave New Orleans, but this is the best time to leave, when you want more. We headed through swamps and bayous to the beautiful white sands of Florida. It was impossible to find beach camping here as high-rise hotels and condos littered the coast. We traveled along Florida’s islands from ferries to bridges. Florida truly is the fountain of youth, with sand as fine as sugar, blue water, and towering dune fields covered with sea oats and other grasses. It is too bad they paved paradise and put up a parking lot. So we quickly left the coast and headed north towards Savannah. The ride took us past swamps filled with Cypress and pines drooping with moss. The Chattahoochee and other rivers begged to be explored by canoe or kayak.

Once we hit Savannah, we could taste home, and the next day past Charleston and up the Atlantic coast was a blur. We arrived back to our boat in Oriental, NC on a Sunday evening; it started raining just a couple of hours later, our only close call with rain the entire way.

And that's it, the end of our winter 2008 adventure, and it was an epic one. I hope you enjoyed reading about it.

I must make one last comment on the biker community. Throughout the country we were given advice and support from people of all ages who biked or who were on their bikes. They were eager to share the secrets of the road, from hidden camps by windmills in Arizona, to a free ferry ride in Louisiana, to short cuts in Georgia, to invitations to join various biker clubs throughout the South, and we received a friendly wave or nod from most of those we met on the road. This was all so beautiful, and we are grateful for all of the bikers we met along the way. Thank you.

Brief update on so much that has happened. Well AZ continues to recieve a major storm about every 1.5 - 2 weeks dumping more snow and rain on an already saturated desert. When we decided to stop the AZT we hiked out of the Mazatzal Mountains to Rye, AZ. Looking down on Rye from the trail I could make out the motorcycle yard I had bought an old 1970 honda motorcycle years before. That cycle had made a trip in 1999 from Flagstaff to San Francisco (across the Golden Gate Bridge) and back to Flagstaff. With a month and a half till our return bus tickets were good, we needed a plan to get back to NC with out waiting around flagstaff to long. "Why don't we buy an old motorcycle and drive it home and sell it in NC?" I joked to Molly. Well guess who bought a 1980 Honda Goldwing 1100 motorcycle? We found a good deal on a real clean beauty that runs well. Complete with origional samsonite saddle bags, we packed the bare essentials and mailed most of our camping and hiking gear back home and are now cruising the USA easy rider style (sans the rednecks with shotguns, so far). We also found some sweet black leather biker jackets at a local pawn shop (40% off for president's day sale-hooya!).

Before leaving Flagstaff, we returned to Phantom Ranch in the Grand Canyon for another visit which turned into a week due to another big storm. we hiked out of the canyon to beautiful sunny weather. a couple of new tires and a few minor parts later and we were on the road south. We wanted to dayhike some of the trail we missed and then we could head east along the southern border in warmer temps.

Staying off the interstates as much as possible, we are riding the back country hiways of southern AZ and New Mexico. Beautiful country. Flat desert to amazing rock outcrops to beautiful grasslands covered with poppies (apparently a once in a lifetime sight for southern AZ) . Much of the roads we hae travelled so far follow literslly with in feet of the mexican border.  Much border patrol, but no hassals at checkpoints. They usually wave us right through. I guess they realize we can't hide to many mexicans in our saddle bags.

We've mostly been camping along the way at different state parks and national parks or just out in the national forests (you can do that out west here). Unfortunately it is also spring break and most of the state park campgrounds are packed full of Land Whales (RVs) and many loud campers. My favorite RV model is one that just barely squeezed into the camp spot next to us after holding up half the campground while it tried to park and then drop it's car (with matching paint and pin stripes) in tow. It's model name was appropiately, "The Intruder".

Currently we are at a hostel for the night in El Paso, TX doing laudry and showers and plan to head tro Big Bend National Park before continueing on east. A little cold and real windy today but nicer warmer weather coming. We will update when possible so anyone interested in us crazy folk can keep tabs on us. Also Coming Soon: pictures of the bad asses on their mean machine!

Also Bob is a Uncle for the second time. His Brother and Sister in law, Jeff and Julie gave birth to Cassidy Rae on Feb. 25.