I awoke this morning in exactly the same position in which I fell asleep 10 hours ago. Catherine and the staff put on a huge breakfast spread to fuel us for the long ride into Las Cruces.
With my machine readied, I set off for the nine-mile descent to Hillsboro. A great way to start the morning, with gorgeous vistas at every turn.
A steep, three-mile climb out of Hillsboro opened up the mountains to our south.
A descent into the valley brought us along the Rio Grande, which we crossed three times during the day.
The rich, irrigated, flood plain soil supports abundant pecan orchards and cotton fields all along the Rio Grande to the Texas border. The symmetry of the orchards is very precise. Early stage orchards were but sticks set into the ground while the older pecan trees had been so savagely cut back, apparently from the chain saw theory of pruning, it is hard to believe they will still produce. Every orchard seemed to have the same approach, so I guess they know what they’re doing.
The lunch stop was at a very good Mexican restaurant in Hatch. The claim to fame for Hatch, population 1028, is its chili peppers. It is the only industry in town.
Willows near the Rio Grande We left Hatch with only 38 miles to ride but, as is typical for the past several days, the winds picked up significantly in the afternoon along with the heat. We had strong headwinds for the remainder of the ride. An alternating pace line with Janet and Marni saved the day. During this stretch, we got our first glimpse of the Organ Mountains, which form a gorgeous backdrop to the city of Las Cruces.
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