Day 6 – A Run to the Border

We had a great travel day. It rained overnight and was foggy and misting when we pulled out but the day was beautiful by noon. Did see more flowers today as we left the hill country. Soon the landscape flattened out and trees and grass largely disappeared. This is how I always pictured south Texas. Headed south to the border town of Del Rio, grabbed lunch and headed west. Went through my first border patrol inspection without crossing a border. Looked like all highways leading away from the border had check stations.

Traffic was almost non-existent as were the towns. Our longest stretch between towns was 115 miles, but most were slightly under 100. Don and I both agreed that this was probably the most remote area we have traveled through since crossing the Trans-Labrador Highway in 2019. Most towns had a single gas station and we didn’t pass up any chance to top off the tanks. Running 75-80 mph with headwinds dropped our fuel mileage into the upper 30’s at times.

The land really started changing again as we continued west. Buttes and mountains started appearing and this area is actually pretty. Reminds me of parts of Arizona and Utah. We made it to the campground and it may be one of my all-time favorites. Beautiful grounds with a incredible courtyard with adobe walls and a fountain. Also had a small cantina on-site. Ate and did laundry without ever having to get back on the bikes. This place has a night sky viewing area too with a couple of small domed observatories and two buildings with retractable roofs housing more telescopes. Somewhat overcast tonight but I hope to get a few night sky pictures.

We are about 70 miles north of Big Bend and we are very anxious to see it tomorrow.