Day Nine, Safford, Az. to Riverside, New Mexico - 90 miles

We left Safford at daybreak and Ruth commented, "The desert is starting to lose its appeal." But within a few miles we were rewarded with miles and miles of yellow poppies blooming underneath rocky mountainsides. A storekeeper in Three Way told us that this year was especially spectacular because of the bountiful rains in the last month.

Today we climbed through two different passes. The first pass was doable with a climb of 1500 feet. The second pass was at 6,295 feet and we climbed nearly 2,500 feet. Luckily, there were few cars on route 180 - I guess motorists did not even want to tackle the zigzags.

Halfway up the mountain the best SAG team brought us lunch from Subway again. We sat in the shade and admired the beautiful vistas beneath us.

Ruth and Mary Jo continued the arduous climb. The poppies were replaced by cedar trees and Ponderosa pines. Finally, we crawled to the top and entered the state of New Mexico! We had a long descent through the pines and down into the Gila River valley. The land is used mostly for grazing.

After cycling nearly 44 more miles, we reached our next store at Buckhorn. The store was the only establishment in Buckhorn. The proprietor gave us a hearty welcome and recommended the chocolate chip ice cream cookies - nothing else could have tasted better. The storekeeper also told us that two weeks ago it had snowed. A young male cyclist arrived at her store at 7:30 pm covered with snow. He was able to spend the night at a local ranch.

We did not stay at a ranch but our hotel was still more than twenty-five miles away. Our husbands rescued us at Riverside and transported us to our motel in Silver City. Tomorrow we will go back and resume cycling where we left off. We were blessed today by temperatures in the low seventies and no wind! Your comments keep us going! Ruth and Mary Jo

"Life is like riding a bicycle - to keep your balance, you must keep moving." Albert Einstein