July 22 Day 31 Alaska Trip

When we took off from Walsenburg, CO there was a clear blue sky with lots of sun, as the storm front had already passed through overnight. We left the hotel and were crossing over the New Mexico border around 7:45am. At the border, the elevation rose to 7834 feet as we crested Raton Pass, which was totally enshrouded in thick moisture laden clouds. We sure thought we were about to get wet again as we maneuvered through some twisties opening into a vast empty plain. The next point of interest was Capulin Volcano National Monument rising from the valley floor to the clouds above (see pic). It was after we passed through Clayton and into the Texas Panhandle that the rain started to happen and it continued for the next seven or eight hours. The counties in this part of Texas have names like “Hereford” and “Lamb” and you can bet there are cattle and sheep o’ plenty around here. Stockyards were on both sides of the road and we got pretty overwhelmed by all the sights and smells of too many animals in too confined of space. One story about Stock Trailers I want to share – you may want to get the children out of the room, because this is may be too gross for little ones! Anyway, my good buddy Johnny once told me about a time when he rode his motorbike in the rain closely following a stock trailer. Well, with all the by-products of animals pouring out of the back of the trailer and mixing with the spray from rain-soaked tires, Johnny and his bike were completely covered with “Essence of Barnyard” body spray! He said the smell on his riding gear was utterly indescribable. As we were dodging trucks in the rain today, I heeded Johnny’s cautionary tale and avoided stock trailers like the plague. We managed to make 567 miles today in spite of the rain and got all the way to San Angelo. What was once weeks and days is now only hours from drawing to a close as we are roughly 175 miles from home. The time we spent on this trip has been so enjoyable, it hardly seems like 32 days will have passed since we left for Alaska. Leroy has been an exceptional tour guide and terrific traveling partner. We have had lots of laughs and will share our memories hopefully for years to come. If you have been reading along, Many Thanks to all of you for caring for us. It is good to know our friends and family were along for the ride as well. Happy Trails, and we will see you on the road!