PART III
BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID
Second night out and it’s late. We killed a lot of time in Santa Fe trying to figure out why Clyde’s bike kept dying. Finally diagnosed the problem. Every time he applied the rear brake it shorted out at the brake light switch. With an adjustment of a little metal tab were on our way north.
A sign pointed right for some lake. Or was it left? It got hazy, and then foggy we can’t see no damn lake. We can’t even see the road half the time. We need a place to crash---and not on the highway.
Another sign says” vista point no camping allowed” Screw that we’ve got to stop. Someone want to run us off they’ve got to tell us where the lake went. We can’t see doodly squat, it’s really late, and we’re bushed.
We park our bikes off the drive thru parking area and behind some trees. Pull our sleeping bags off and stumble around over some rocks and brush until we find a wallered out trail with a cyclone fence next to it. Just enough sand in it to make a comfortable bedding down spot, so we did.
All through the night we kept hearing weird faint sounds. Sort of like some 18 wheeler gearing down. Then some lawn mower or something. Occasionally the fog would thin out a bit and we could see some dim lights in the distance. They would appear for a few moments, then disappear, then show up again in another area, then… We ain’t got no clue. Maybe UFO’S ?
Finally the sun rose and so did a giant cloud as the fog gradually elevated. Well what do you know. There’s the lake way - way down below. And about two feet on the other side of the fence is a cliff’s edge. We’d been sleeping on the rim about a thousand feet above the lake’s edge. On the other side of the lake cars and trucks looked like little ants winding along the other cliff road.
It was too far down for a bath so we just did a sponge bath with our canteen and bandana handkerchiefs. Then we loaded up and went into a little Indian community called “ABIQUIU” where we had some authentic blue corn breakfast tacos. It wasn’t that great but it added to the flavor of the area. Besides – “TACO BELL” can’t be every where.
We continued on into Colorado through Pagosa Springs and then west to Durango. Believe it or not – back then the Hilton Inn chain was experimenting with RV / campgrounds and they had a beautiful one just west of town. There was a mountain trout stream powering through it, an entertainment center, and a bunch of other perks. We camped under a big old tree.
Clyde wandered around and as usual met some folks, to include a cute young teenager (JAIL BAIT). He came back to tell me we were invited to join her and her family for supper. They were BBQ`n something on the grill. I declined, built a little fire of my own and roasted a couple of those hot dogs from day before yesterday. Figured they were about ripe enough by then. I just wanted to set and unwind for a spell. Enjoy the peace and quiet scenery of nature for a while.
A thunder storm started moving in and cracks of lightning sent everyone into their RV`s and tents. Clyde came back and took refuge under the tree as a heavy down pour started coming down. I wrapped my self in my tarp and moved out into the opening and sat down. What ta hell you doing out there? Clyde asked. You ever seen what lightning can do to a tree? Trees attract lightning and I don’t intend to be a part of that kind of barbeque, or get clobbered by a falling big limb. After a few more loud cracks of near by lightning Clyde joined me. We sat out there like a couple of Indian braves ( or semi-braves). When the storm passed we went back under the tree and bedded down on the muddy ground.
The next morning we took hot showers, the first soap and hot water to touch our bodies in four days. And we used the laundry facilities. Rolled up our damp sleeping bags and hit the road.
“MESA VERDE” was an extremely interesting ride. Seeing how Indians lived 600 to 700 years ago. You know they built the first apartment houses in North America, and theirs were tucked under the edge of cliffs.
Some where in Arizona while ridding through the Navajo Indian Reservation I got a little bored and my butt was tired. I stood up on my foot pegs to give things a rest. Clyde thought I was clowning around so he folded one leg over his tank and turned sideways as he sped past me with a big grin on his face. THAT STARTED IT!
I remounted the seat and sped up close to him, wet my finger and marked an `X’ on his mirror. Then he came by me again, reached out and pinched me on the back.
People traveling behind us started holding back and pointing at us. I figured we were either scaring the hell out of them or putting on one heck of a side show. Okay…here’s one for the circus act.
I stood on my pegs again and then lifted one foot up and on to the seat. I then planed to do the same with the other and ride by in a squatting position. But as I lifted the other my balance seemed to shift too much and I didn’t feel confident. So instead and in a corrective move I extended that leg slightly to the rear towards the buddy peg, just in case I needed to use it in an emergency.
That felt much better so I raised up on my seat and kept extending the other straight back and over my duffle bag as I twisted the throttle. Clyde had his camera out by then and snapped a picture. One that I’ve been fond of ever since.
SIDE NOTE: As Pat is laid back on the porch couch listening to my long winded story she rolls her eyes back and says. “Gads I’ll bet those people behind you all thought you were both crazy. You probably looked like BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCE KID. Remember how they were clowning around on bicycles in that movie?” “Well I don’t know but they must have enjoyed it. As they finally started coming around us they waved and one even gave a thumbs up sign.”
To be continued
Part 3
