La Junta, Co to Pueblo, Co
While I have made considerable progress in the past 5 days, going the width of Kansas in 4 days, I am now stuck for at least one day. I am forced to stay an extra morning (or day) in Pueblo because today is Sunday and all the bicycle stores are closed. I need to have the bike serviced and I also need some additional tools before I can take on the Mountains. Which means that I will most certainly waste a day, which is good for my legs but I am running out of time. With 12 days left I am almost certain that I will not make it to the Gran Canyon, but hey! going all the way from DC to Colorado, right at the base of the Rockies in less than a month and possibly doing the Monarch Pass is quite an achievement.
Today I was able to put yesterday's troubles behind and, aided by a windless climate and an unabashed determination to get back to my normal pace, I zipped through the miles and reached Pueblo at 12pm. I felt 100% and could have easily reached Canon City or even one town farther into the Mountains but I need the bike in perfect conditions so Pueblo is a necessary stop.
Today has been an incredibly significant day because I have always considered the sigthing of the Rockies an important landmark for me. From the plains to the mountains. When I left this morning I knew it was only a matter of time before I could make out the high peaks in the horizon. Each village I went through had elevation listed on its 'welcome to' sign - it was a boost to see that I was climbing, proof that the anticipated mountains were getting closer. As soon as I left La Junta I started keeping a look out for the mountains and 22 km through today's stage they finally appeared. At first I thought I was seeing just another cloud on the horizon, but as I got closer I realized that the cloud was in fact the snowless cap of a distant mountain. Throughout the morning they became clearer, and more defined and I felt more and more fired up and flew down highway 50 to reach Pueblo, a town at the foothills of the Rockies. From here, either tomorrow afternoon or Tuesday morning, I will begin the climb that will take me 11000 ft high up the coveted Monarch Pass. The transAm trail cuts through the Rockies Northwest on an equally high but gentler climb through the Hoosier Pass. Instead of following the official bike route, I am making my own route. I want to go West on a straight line cutting the Mountains through the steeper Monarch Pass and then turn Southwest into Utah. Given the limited time that I have, it is certainly an ambitious plan but I will give it my best shot.
I am not sad at all to leave the high plains, they certainly are a beautiful setting to cycle in but they also provided me with the worst riding conditions I have ever experienced. I will never forget yesterday's stage, a punishing ride into the winds, a day of joy and pain that will stay with me for a long time.
I wish to mention that yesterday morning I rode through Holcomb, the hamlet where the brutal murder of the Clutter family took place in 1959. The facts were forever immortalized by Truman Capote in his masterpiece "In Cold Blood". The book took five years to research and write, the genius of Capote was to understand that the killings were far from ordinary but rather they signified the demise of the American dream and embodied the innocence and the banality of the American soul.
The real drama of America history unfolded right here where I am standing. Eastern Colorado is a region of historical significance. Many Indian wars were fought here, right here where I am staying the famous Cheyenne were exterminated and brutally killed in their hundreds. And more, much more. The slaughter of the bison took place on the high plains of Colorado and Kansas and of course the 'Dust Bowl'. The bison was at the very core of the Plains culture. The Indians hunted the bison and used every single part of it, from the meat to the hides, to the bones to the muscles fibers. Then the white settlers came and used only a minimal part of the bison and the rest was left to rot. By 1880 all the great beasts were exterminated, only a few remained. And the Dust Bowl was again induced by the stupidity and shortsightedness of white men. Initially, it was the bison that damaged the environment by trampling and compacting the sod but then men came and destroyed the deep grass and all the roots were gone. During droughts huge clouds of dirt from the dusty fields filled the air and some were so huge that darkened the skies of New York and Washington DC. In the Plains cities, street lights had to be turned on at noon. During the Depression, when the flow of migrants passed through the dusty Plains there was very little to grow and much less to eat. Men suffered from starvation and apathy and hopelessness. Many got sick and died.
While I rode on the Great Plains, while I fought through the winds, while I rejoiced at the unimaginable beauty of the High Plains, while I dreamt and wondered by the legendary Santa Fe Trail, I also paused to think about the hardship, the conquest, the loss, the drama, the killings, the extermination of many men which took place right here, right on these very fields which give me a long road ahead to follow.
For the record: In Pueblo I will briefly join the ACA route again before I part ways and head West to Utah. I am leaving the TransAmerica Trail for good tomorrow!
Holcomb
The city park dedicated to the Clutter family
A long freight train
The village of Manzanola
My first sighting of the Rocky Mountains, can you see the big dark shadow in the distance?
Mountains appearing on the horizon
The Rockies coming into focus
Getting closer...
...and closer!
10 miles east of Pueblo I almost run over this snake. On my trip I have seen at least twenty dead ones, but this one was well alive!
Entering Pueblo
I think you are being too hard on yourself. I believe you'll make it in time. If you don't (who cares! but we know you will) it's still a great achievement that you have gone so far in only three weeks!!
ReplyDeleteWe're all proud of you. Bravo!!
belle le foto con le montagne che diventano man mano più incombenti! Continua tranquillo, come in molti ti hanno scritto, la tua gara l'hai già vinta alla grande! Domani sera ti scrivo da Atlanta. Bacio
ReplyDeleteCi siamo, con una pianura tutt'altro che monotona e noiosa avevamo dimenticato la cosa che più di tutte emoziona ed esalta un ciclista (anche se ritengo che tu sei qualcosa di più di un puro ciclista ma te lo dico alla fine dell'avventura), le MONTAGNE! e che montagne! In Europa, almeno che io sappia, non esiste un valico carrozzabile così alto come tu stai per affrontare e non pochi pedalatori, me compreso, vorrebbero essere lì con te a godersi l'adrenalina che dà eccitazione ma anche paura insieme al gusto della sfida. Non aggiungo altro perchè la preparazione all'impresa è un ritiro spirituale all'interno di se stessi, è una gioia affrontare la salita, un dettaglio arrivare in cima a braccia alzate o spingendo la bici a mano, è una cosa intima tra te e la montagna che nessuno può capire. GOOD LUCK Micio
ReplyDeleteLu, at least you are reminding yourself to be thankful and satisfied that you have reached this far on your journey. Some may have started and perhaps never reached as far as you have. Just remember to take it one day, one mile, one pedal at a time. I am confident you will make it! I saw that you did not have a smooth day yesterday, but perhaps there was a bigger reason as to why were being delayed. Perhaps for your own safety as well. Take it as a blessing in disguise.
ReplyDeleteI actually never heard about the killings of the Clutter family. I might have to do a bit of research on that one.
You mentioned the bisons. They actually have some preserved in the Museum of Natural Hist. in NYC. Massive creatures. Perhaps you have seen them there already.
Be safe and be blessed. I believe that God has gotten you this far in safety.:)