Day 14 - Expect the Unexpected

First, thank you to all that are reading and leaving comments here (or sending emails). It's great to receive your thoughts, comments and encouragement. Thanks!

I wasn't quite sure how I was going to feel today. We had a relatively short ride today, but I was tired and starting to get a little achy. But we slept late today (6:30) and the route was very favorable. We had a tailwind most of the way and with about 2500 ft of climbing it was not going to be a hard day. What made it even better was that we would descend about 5000 ft in total. So there was more downhill than usual. Then add to that a beautiful change of terrain, the willingness to be a tourist and stop (HA!) and the commitment to ride super easy - a perfect day! All the stars were aligned.

After leaving the small town of Chama the terrain started to resemble something quite different than the lush green and tree heavy areas we've been in. It's obvious in the pics. Lon mentioned that Echo Rock was worth checking out. It looked easy to do so we took the turn and sure enough, the path was paved all the way up to the amphitheater. This place is like the perfect echo chamber. Lot's of fun.

Lunch was near some adobe ruins. And the rest of the ride took care of itself. Just great and into the hotel by 1:30!! Plenty of time to recover and gear up for the last 5 days ahead. Wow - what a tour.

Chama, NM to Espanola, NM

Todays Stats:
Day 14 - 81 miles
RT - 4:25
Avg - 18.4
Elevation gain - about 2500 ft.
Weather - Fantastic