Our Harley Days: Road Trip #1 - Day 1, The Ride to Tucumcari

May 27, 2010
Fort Collins, CO

Man! Have we been waiting for this! We spent the whole Winter beside the fire with road planner in hand (one for Tim, one for me) planning rides to -- well, just about everywhere. When our Spring in northern Colorado turned unusually and inconveniently chilly and wet, we began to suffer from the malady known as cabin fever. Of course, we planned those rides while the Heritage was sitting in the garage. Then April 28 rolled around and the Ultra Classic took up residence in the garage. After that, Road Trip became a daily topic of conversation because that baby is geared for it and we aimed to prove it. When we heard about a special Memorial Day event in Texas, our plans for Road Trip #1 solidified. Texas, here we come by way of Tucumcari, NM!

We rolled out of the drive on Road Trip #1 2010 just before 5 am with temps hovering slightly above 50 degrees. The day was forecast to be a fine one. We were so anxious to get out and ride that neither of us slept well last night, if at all. No matter, we were up at 4 am, packing the last few essentials on The Ride and pulling on leathers. A road trip is the only time you'll see me up before the sun. The idea was to get through the two major cities on our route before the morning commute. No problem. We breezed down I-25 through Denver and then the Springs (Colorado Springs), picking up a low-lying thick, gray and damp fog just before and all the way through the Springs. No Pikes Peak shots this morning, not even a glimpse.

By the time (record time for a weekday morning) we reached Pueblo (37 miles south of the Springs), the fog had lifted and the skies were clearing. This was our first fuel stop of the day. A Sausage McMuffin at McDonald's took the edge off without denting the new bike ride budget. Tim pointed out as we neared Pueblo at 7:16 am that we had achieved the 2000 mile mark on the New Ride.

Our objective was to reach Tucumcari today. Why Tucumcari? Well, we haven't traveled that way before on the motorcycle. 'Nuff said.

We traveled south without incident, enjoying the morning and the sunshine. Even the bridge construction in Trinidad didn't slow us down much. After that, we were riding over Raton Pass (one of our favorite rides) into New Mexico, burning up the wide open interstate on the way to Las Vegas, NM. I've said it before: while we love mountain rides, riding long stretches of all but deserted highway with a you-can-see-nothing-forever view is relaxing.

Johnny's Mexican Kitchen - Las Vegas, NM

At 12:02 we passed the 2200 mileage mark. Tim keeps track of numbers and I report them for him. We arrived in Las Vegas at lunch time with bellies grumbling over the rumble of the ride. Ha! We took a quick tour of the town, found food alley, decided against chain restaurants and decided to sample the local flavor. This brought us to Johnny's Mexican Kitchen on Grand Avenue at the intersection of Hwy 104. We devoured chips and an excellent homemade salsa and several glasses of water while waiting on our Indian tacos, chicken in a sopapilla shell, smothered in green chili. YUM! the place was quaint and the staff friendly and efficient. We will stop there again.

We were looking forward to the next part of our ride. Last Labor Day when we rode through Las Vegas we traveled southwest, eventually arriving in Roswell, NM. Today we would take lonely (part of the reason we chose it) Highway 104 southeast from Las Vegas to Tucumcari. I had read a few comments about Highway 104 while researching our route. Apparently it is a favorite among NM bikers although a few people (cagers) compared it to driving on the moon and referred to it as scary. I cannot think of a better reason to ride it - can you?

Highway 104 is over 120 miles long between Las Vegas and Tucumcari... my research indicates it starts out on a high plateau and drops about 1000 feet (via a surprisingly scenic and twisty road) into Mesa Country and the Canadian Watershed. Most of the road winds through the nearly two hundred year old Bell Ranch. I believe you travel nearly 80 miles out of Las Vegas before seeing any sign of civilization (near Lake Conchas State Park). We might have been on the road with about a dozen other vehicles - no more. We loved it. All along the way was evidence of a culture that endured hard-living and many abandoned structures and homesteads. There are no shoulders on the road so it was a good spell before we found a portion of an asphalt drive where we could pull over and shed our leather jackets, chug some water and stretch our legs. The day had turned HOT. We were sweaty and sunburned and downright happy about it. Here, we admired the colorful, but barren desert-like landscape, wildflowers in bloom, including the desert rose of the prickly pear cactus or as Mom always referred to it cow-patty cactus.

We strapped the jackets on the luggage, slathered ourselves with sunblock and rode on. Soon we rode past the Lake Conchas community (actually, before we realized it or we would have stopped) and on in to Tucumcari where we rumbled up and down the all but deserted streets of the sleepy little town.

Tucumcari has an interesting history, including dinosaurs. Apparently, the area is home to many fossils and footprints. I discovered (it is amazing what one can learn from a brochure) that Tucumcari was originally called Six Shooter Siding which was a tent city for the Rock Island Railroad nestled at the base of Tucumcari Mountain (elevation 4999). It isn't known what the name Tucumcari really means. It is thought to be one of the oldest place names in New Mexico. Historians believe it is derived from a Plains Indian term meaning lookout point or signal peak. Tucumcari Mountain can be seen from the Texas Panhandle over 50 miles away.

Part of the reason we chose the Tucumcari Route was, as I said, because we had not been through there before. The other reason is that part of Old Route 66 (aka The Mother Road) runs through the heart of Tucumcari. I wanted to see the old architecture, the neon signs and the murals. I wanted to stay in an old, nostalgic motel and enjoy the Route 66 experience. We did all that, although I would love to get back there and take some more time to tour the city and get some really good pictures of a vanishing era of American history. Perhaps we'll ride the whole Route 66 stretch someday - talk about a road trip! We will do over 2000 miles this trip, the length of Route 66 is about 2400 miles. Hmmm...

Sadly, a good many of the motels and cafes are all but gone. In fact, I'd venture to say the strip called Route 66 Blvd has more ghostly occupants than those who live and breathe. So many of the structures are in such a heart-breaking pathetic state of abandonment and disrepair. In some places all that remains is a weather-beaten sign. Even so, it is easy to imagine what a thriving community the place was when 66 was built through the town over 75 years ago.

One such motel caught my eye while researching the trip. The Blue Swallow Motel, built in 1939 is listed on the National Registry of Historic Places. I admit we rode by a couple of times before hesitantly swinging into the drive. We were greeted with uncommon friendliness by one of the owners, Bill. He immediately (before taking our money) showed us to Room #5 cozied up in the corner of the L-shaped blue line of rooms with red awnings, little patios and garages. We were immediately charmed by both our host and the humble accommodations. Bill is the type who will do just about anything for you. He even offered me the last beer in his fridge. If you are looking for all the modern conveniences, manicured surroundings and sterile trappings of modern chain hotels/motels - this is not the place for you. Those places are up on I-40. The Blue Swallow was perfect for us, clean enough, cozy and quiet and just a tad neglected. It was great.

We happily settled in and relaxed. Tim took a nap while I called the Folks and we both recovered from the heat and the long 500 plus mile ride. Later, we explored the murals of the motel, hanging out with James Dean out front, and Lana Turner, Clark Gable and Marilyn Monroe round back. In the garages we hung out with the Easy Rider gang, Dennis Hopper (aka Billy), Peter Fonda (aka Wyatt) and Jack Nicholson (aka George). Once again, our host surprised us by offering to take a picture of us with James Dean. We chatted with a nice couple (non-bikers) from Milwaukee, WI who had driven a good portion of Route 66 and were on their way home. They talked about the Harley-Davidson museum and said it was a must-see if we ever got up that way. We were considering dinner about the time half a dozen riders rolled up. They had ridden from Alabama over 1100 miles that day. They were on their way to the west coast. They were in high spirits, ready to cool off, stretch out and party.

We strolled down the street to the LaCita Mexican Restaurant with a charming vintage exterior we noticed earlier. The inside, which was extremely neat and clean was at odds with the exterior. Pooh! We shared the entire facility at prime dinner hour with only one other person (a local) for the entire duration of the meal which was hot and palatable but not in the least memorable. I've never had quesadillas made with some odd concoction of processed cheese.

Before we settled in for the night, we spoke with the bikers who had ridden in earlier. They thought they might take in the rally at Red River. Tim was chatting with the owner of a classic Studebaker when a 1957 T-Bird, classic white rolled by on a trailer. Both were headed to a car show in Phoenix this weekend. At dark, we ventured out one last time to view the street scene of neon lights. We were pleased that the Blue Swallow was brightly lit and so was TeePee Curios a few steps away, but not as many were lit as we had hoped. Still, it was a pleasant end to Day 1. We covered The Ride and turned in early.

Tomorrow we ride into Texas.