MEXICO NEWSLETTER #3 Dear Friends, We are taking longer than anticipated to get to our destination of Ejido La Esperanza. In our first week we encountered unexpected cold. In the second, a slight detour headed us into difficult to ride mud and mountains. At the beginning of this week we encountered incredibly strong winds on the high plains. We opted to go back into the mountains in hopes of getting out of the wind and take the opportunity to visit the famous Copper Canyon area, the land of the Tarahumara Indians. We have not been invited into anyone's home this week. We will share what our "home on the road" is like and what we think about. Our big news today is that we did not wake up to frozen water bottles. So we have finally reached warmer country. This newsletter will be mailed from Hidalgo del Parral. We have come 900 miles and have only about 125 left. We expect to arrive at Ejido La Esperanza this coming Sunday (February 6). George & Holly GLIMPSES FROM THE ROAD - BY H "PICTURES" Just south of the border, fields with tall, dried cactus growing in clumps are wind blown to look like groups of Dr. Seuss characters. In the mountains, young pines two feet tall with no branches, yet have big clumps of foot long needles. They come alive, with individuality, catching the sunlight and swaying in the breeze. Close to the road the sun shines through the leaves of trees making shadows on other leaves. Patterns of fence lines and fields cover rolling hills, with different crops growing next to each other and the wind blowing through the tall, dry grasses. Most enjoyable are the waves, smiles, honks, and blinking lights from other vehicles passing by, and the friendly shouts from families of well-wishers gathering in the doorways of houses close to the road. "TRASH" Our ride would be more scenic had men not invented disposable diapers, non- refundable glass bottles, plastic bags, and containers. The aluminum and tin cans are also plentiful, but every once in a while we see them being collected. The others eventually fade, rust and blend in. The broken glass makes the road and countryside glisten everywhere. Plastic trinkets and packaging dance in the wind, while the bags get caught and fly like kites. Leafless trees and barbed wire fences gather the bags where they blow like laundry on a line. The colors are dirty and faded, but the bag surfaces reflect the light of the sun. The flapping sound is not rhythmic and melodious, rather it seems to express the agony of a problem shared by most of the world. "ROAD KILLS" Rank smells alert us to various mishaps on the road. Stiff dogs, skeletons of cows, indistinguishable animals squished flat, becoming part of the road. Sometimes an eye is left to watch us as we pass. These sights and smells are part of our daily life. "LOST LOVED ONES" Traffic accidents are numerous (although we are lucky not to have witnessed any). The vehicles are abandoned and stripped into skeletons, often becoming shelters for rest stops. Crosses marking where people have died seem to be most plentiful on paved roads between cities. The crosses may be wood or metal held by poured cement or mounds of rocks. Most are adorned with colorful plastic flowers and ribbons. Sometimes a shrine is built, ranging in size and design from a depression in a tree to a rock cave in a cliff or a miniature house enclosed in a fence. We have also seen closet-sized rooms with metal grate doors. Inside are pictures of Jesus or Mary, and for those wishing to be saved, plenty of candles and sometimes coins. Many lost loved ones are remembered along our route. LEAVING LA JUNTA (1-28-94) The ride into La Junta in the morning was cold with moderate wind. We found a pleasant restaurant for cafe and huevos (coffee and eggs). At noon we mailed our second newsletter, bought two days worth of supplies and headed out of town. Two miles out we turned south into what we guessed was a 25 MPH wind that stopped us dead in our tracks. Our loaded bikes created a lot of resistance. We discussed the situation and decided to grit our teeth and go for it. Within a mile, H's hat blew off causing her to swerve and take a spill. She tore her pants, skinned her knee and bruised her palm. With nothing broken and a little pain we continued. It seemed that with every bend in the road the wind was still in our face. We rode for four hours until a truck with some men in it offered to give us a ride to the mountains (12 miles), where the wind would loose some of it's force. We gladly accepted. We rode in the truck bed with the bikes, the four men in the cab with the beer. They stopped at a small pueblo to let us out. In departing, we asked if there was a place to buy beer. They answered no, but had one left which they tossed to us. We expressed our thanks and rode off up the mountain in wind that was not as severe. We traveled about seven miles before making camp. The mountain homes we passed were constructed of rough lumber or logs with pitched roofs to shed rain and snow. These homes showed no insulation and the wood stoves burned continuously. The people use tremendous amounts of wood and drag large logs, daily, by horse and chain. The wood was stacked in unique ways along the side of the road, set up to sell; however, we never saw anyone buying any. All the homes had streams close by and crops in the fields, so the people appear to be self-sufficient. We camped in a narrow canyon hidden from the road in a space just large enough for our tent. As we were setting up the tent, we watched a young girl meticulously gathering wood holding a huge bundle effortlessly in one arm. We could tell she was interested in what we were doing, so after we made camp we climbed up to talk to her. Even though she was shy, she did speak to us. Her father joined us, and we learned they lived high above us on the ridge top. We would have liked to climb up to see their home, but did not feel comfortable leaving our equipment behind. We said goodbye, and the girl continued to collect wood until the last bit of light was gone. PHYSICS PROBLEM: HOW HARD WAS THE WIND BLOWING? One day while riding into the wind at 5 MPH, we stopped for a banana break. I threw my medium sized, ripe peel up into the air, fifteen feet above my head. It took off in the wind and landed 75 feet away. How fast was the wind blowing? We don't know the answer, but it was very difficult to ride in. "We're lucky it hasn't snowed or we'd be here for the winter living in a tent and eating trees." H GETS WARM Looking through my bag of clothes I found one thing I hadn't tried to get warm. My "over mittens"! They are part nylon and part Gortex, both breathable materials. I put my mittens on my feet, then cotton leggings with stirrup feet to hold them on, then the extra long pajamas, the sleeping sheet, the sleeping bag, and a piece of plastic on top. This worked perfect! For two nights I was toasty warm. On the third night, as we neared Creel, my solution failed. In the middle of the night I put my socks on inside the mittens and wrapped my feet in my fuzzy pile jacket, but they were still cold. Finally I decided to just get up and build a fire. The morning brought 10 degree temperatures and in the tent only 20 degrees. The next day in Creel, everyone warned us that this cold was typical. We invested in a big, fluffy, wool blanket for $15.00. In addition to the blanket, George suggested we put our shoes and rolled up jackets under the bottom of our sleeping pads to lift our feet off the ground. For the next two nights this was very successful. I was even able to sleep without the mittens and leggings, which are bulky. The blanket adds a few pounds to my load but, I DON'T MIND. With the extra exercise and extra blanket I'm sleeping cozy every night. COPPER CANYON (1-30-94) We arrived in Creel about noon and as we turned down a rough cobblestone road, the sound of a train whistle alerted George and he darted for the tracks. A train with three engines, pulling twenty five flatbed cars loaded with motor homes, heaved up the grade into the station. This was a tour group (mostly Americans) traveling from Chihuahua to the Baja Coast, passing through Copper Canyon. Creel is a tourist town hosting visitors from around the world. We stayed the night at "Margarita's," a popular hotel with family-style breakfast and dinner included in the $23.00 price for the room. Copper Canyon is ten times larger and ½ times deeper than the Grand Canyon. Copper Canyon is also the home of the Tarahumara Indians. A mission was started in Creel 23 years ago to help the Tarahumaras whose simple lifestyle was still intact, but who were dying from disease and impure water. Initially, a new water system and medical clinic were built. The town now has 3500 inhabitants. As we left Creel Monday morning, we saw a Tarahumara woman accepting pesos from tourists in exchange for a look into her cave home where she lived with her five children. Looking forward to meeting more of these interesting people, we started into the canyon on a newly paved road. After 34 miles we met the construction crew and had to continue on a rough, steep, loose gravel road. For two days we pushed on, waving at passing tourist buses and visiting with construction crews, hoping for a chance to visit with the Tarahumaras. We saw a few who waved from a distance and one couple walked by as we visited with a construction crew. We learned they are a very timid people, speaking their own language. We were disappointed we did not meet any of them. Tarahumara dress is very different. The men wear a thin, white cotton fabric sheet wrapped like a giant diaper with a skirt that hangs long in the back, but is open in the front with their legs fully exposed. They wear only sandals on their feet, but jackets that look warm. After the 10° nights we experienced in Creel, we consider these men must be very tough. The women wear layers of at least six full, gathered skirts, a short gathered top and a scarf on their heads. By Wednesday we were ready to move on, so we caught a ride with the construction crew boss, Jorge. He stopped to check a few jobs and then we had lunch. The typical lunch box was a 12" x 12" x 15" cardboard box tied with heavy rope handles. Inside was a meal in a pot to be heated over the campfire and tortillas were heated directly on the coals. One crew member had a bag of fine, toasted corn flour called pinote. The famous Tarahumara runners mix it with water and sometimes sugar for instant energy. We were given the pinote as a gift and we had some for breakfast the next day. It was quite good. Jorge was a very friendly guide. He played musical tapes and sang along for us. We learned he had worked in construction for 23 years. The roads take a long time to build because a majority of the work is done by hand instead of machine. Jorge had been working on this particular job for 3 years, visiting his family in Cuauhtemuc on the weekends. Jorge gave us a 45 mile ride to Guachochi, but we still had 60 miles of rough, dirt road before the pavement began again. We rode 13 miles after leaving Jorge, and 23 the next day. Around 3:00 PM the following day, we obtained another ride, all the way to Hidalgo del Parral, saving us three or four days hard riding. Our ride told us he was in the grain business. He was friendly, though quiet for most of the 2½ hour drive which he drove at a very high rate of speed. H had to close her eyes as we whizzed by lumber trucks with only inches to spare. We arrived at Hidalgo del Parral late in the afternoon. We decided to stay at the same hotel we visited last summer to rest and finish the newsletter. The management recognized us and welcomed us with big smiles. They offered to bring a TV to our room, brought us extra towels, and offered us laundry soap and the use of the laundry room. We were also invited to have coffee in the morning. We looked forward to an enjoyable evening and expected to arrive at Ejido La Esperanza in just two or three more days. HOW`S OUR BIKES? We haven't found the right size spoke for H's rear wheel. I usually carry spares but forgot this time. We found one that was the right gauge, but too long. We took this one, cut it and bent it to fit the hub. So far it seems to be working. We both ride mountain bikes which come with wide, aggressive tread tires for off- road riding. The wide tires ride soft for good traction and have rolling resistance on paved roads. For touring, however, we are using road tires which have a smoother tread. Holly is using her same tires from last year, but I am using a smaller tire (since I had them in my shop). My tires ride smoother on pavement, but are a little treacherous on gravel roads. Being larger, Holly's tires tend get clogged with mud, sometimes so bad that they would not turn at all. So far, we have had NO FLATS. DAILY ROUTINE At 4:30 or 5:00 PM every afternoon, we begin the process of building ourselves a house for the night. The first step is to locate just the right path or old road that leads off the traveled road. We take this back country route until we feel we are far enough from the main road not to be disturbed or discovered. Next we scout out the perfect flat spot for our tent. In 20 minutes, we have unpacked our sleeping mats, sleeping bags, sleeping clothes, and Holly's new blanket which makes our tent ready for the night. If we are in an area where we can have a fire, we build a rock fireplace, collect wood and have a fire in another 15 minutes. At this point, our home is built and furnished, and our fire and stove is going, so we open our crazy chairs and relax. FROM THE KITCHEN: For the past few days, we have been able to build a fire in the evenings. Our camps have been deep in the forests away from the roads and population. We usually eat everyting cold out of the can or bag. The following recipe comes from a night we had a campfire. 1 can Popeye spinach 1 can refried pinto beans 1 small can jalapeno chilis (use half for the recipe, save the rest for desert) garlic salt Heat the cans close to the coals of the fire (be sure to leave the lid on top to keep the ashes out). When hot, mix in plastic bowl for two. This dish was preceded by cheese and crackers with wine cocktails; the meal was followed by pan toastado with honey and jalapenos spread on top. Lunch with Jorge: At the jobsite, Jorge insisted on sharing his smoked turkey and chili burritos. He threw a couple of the burritos on the hot coals and told us to do the same. The coals were very hot. After about 30 seconds you must reach down and, REAL FAST, turn your burrito over for another 30 seconds and then remove it. Blow the ashes off and eat. You don't even taste the ashes! The evening time is special for us. We have usually ridden all day, seen many different sights, visited and explored pueblos, and struggled with our Spanish. With so much activity during the day, it is nice to know that the evening will not be interrupted by the phone, a meeting or unexpected visitors. Before last year's trip writing letters was a chore, however, our traveling has changed this chore to something we enjoy and look forward to. When we started traveling, we knew that ours was a special adventure and wanted to share with those who might also be interested. In the morning our routine is reversed. We get up when the sun shines on our tent, start a fire, brush our teeth, and sit by the fire to eat our breakfast. As the temperature gets above freezing, we pack our sleeping gear and air out the tent. Our final duty is dressing and packing our bikes. When we camp close to population, there is no fire and we usually have visitors which we always enjoy. About every week to ten days we get a hotel. These nights are more of a chore since we wash our clothes in the shower along with us, clean and service our bikes, and search around the town for parts and supplies. We enjoy the nights we camp the most, but a shower and clean clothes do feel good! ADVENTURES OF GEORGE & HOLLY PO BOX 1866 SOCORRO, NM 87801 USA