Trip Report By: Darwin

In preparation for my ride of the Arizona Trail, One last “Gear Shakedown” was in order…

On Sunday Snuggles, Bowie, & I headed 1 hour North West of Albuquerque to the beautiful Jamez Mountains of New Mexico. We drove up to Forrest Road 144 at the top of the mountain. The plan was, Snuggles and Bowie would camp off of the road for the night – while I did a 40 mile out and back of FR 144, meeting back up with them in the morning. Snuggles found a good old “Hunting Camp” spot right off the road, I packed up the ECR and we parted ways for the night.

When we first arrived at the top of the mountain it was a bit cloudy and looked like it would be a rainy day. To my surprise – after the 1st few miles, the skies cleared up and a bright blue color peered its way out. There was no “Real Route” to my trip, just a bunch of riding and getting a feel for how my fully loaded rig would handle. While heading North on FR 144 I would periodically peer off onto side roads and trails – getting as much different terrain and miles as possible. When I got to a 20 mile mark on the road, I decided to turn around and head back towards an amazing campsite that I had passed up earlier in the ride.

When I finally got to camp dark clouds started rolling in and the sound of thunder was present in the distance. I quickly unloaded my SMD Skyscape Trekker tent and set it up. As soon as my shelter was up and all my gear was off of the bike, it started to pour. Luckily I had everything in the tent and my sleeping pad inflated. There was nothing to do but lay there and wait out the rain. I woke up almost 2 hours later… seems like I had fallen asleep while waiting out the storm.

I finished fully unpacking my gear, made a fire in a nearby rock formation and cooked up some dinner. After I devoured a fine meal of  Instant Mashed Potatoes and TVP, I stretched out on a nearby rock to gaze at the starry sky.

When I awoke in the morning, I rode a few miles out from my camp to meet back up with Snuggles and Bowie. Everything seemed nice and dialed in with my Gear Set-Up.

The Aspens putting on their Sunday’s best for me…

Finally, Clear Blue Skies…

Fall had finally come to the Jamez – Slowly making it’s way up the mountains

The ECR gets a Fine View…

Perfect Camp Spot for the night

The Sun sets as the Campfire Smoke Rises…