- Jun 9, 2002
- 9,535
- 0
Southwest Texas and the Lost Trail Ride
First legitimate dual sport ride
First real asphalt seat time
First major rain storm encountered while riding
Day One - Friday morning we mounted up at the Super 8 and headed south out of Ozona towards Pandale. The first 33 miles were asphalt, but quickly turned to dirt as we drifted off the edge of time into southwest Texas. Easy at the Pandale Café served up coffee all around for $0.10 per cup (yup, not a typo) and we were off, along the Pecos River, south to Langtry (Home of Judge Roy Bean aka Law West of the Pecos). Filling up with gas went smoothly and we were soon on the way to Pumpville, via the road (if you can call it that) paralleling the railroad tracks. It was rough and the Pig responded admirably considering the inexperience of the rider. A long dirt road through southwest Texas ranch country followed before dropping into Sanderson for lunch at the No Name Café, just getting caught by a rainstorm as we hit the city limits of town. Riding out the storm in the café, we laughed the laughs of innocents not anticipating the future. Heading west on US90 towards Marathon we faced ominous storm clouds and ended up riding 40 or so miles through the rainstorm before reaching Marathon. Topping off the tanks, we headed south on US 385 towards Terlingua Ranch, racing the storm that we had just passed through. Skirting just the leading edge, I discovered that raindrops hurt at 70+ MPH, but that knobbies make acceptable rain tires ;-). The last 23 miles into the ranch headquarters was a loose sandy road that tested every fiber in my body. Arriving at Terlingua Ranch, my odometer read 299 miles for the first day of the trip! After a quick shower, we packed up in the truck and headed into Terlingua for a beer at La Kiva and dinner at the Starlight. Dusk found us at the Boathouse Bar collecting suitcases of Lone Star for the balance of the trip.
Day Two - Saturday dawned foggy and cool! Gotta love Texas in the summer. After breakfast at the ranch, we were off, retracing our route east back into Big Bend National Park. Hooking up with the Dagger Flats Road and Old Ore Road, we were spit out of the back country at the southeast corner of the park, near Rio Grand Village. A quick jaunt on asphalt and we filled up with gas and sandwiches at the Rio Grand Village store. Fueled up for the next run, which was across the bottom of the park on a gravel path known as the River Road, we soon headed out towards the Santa Elena Canyon Overlook 75 miles to our west! As I crossed the bottom of the park on my bike, I reflected on how different the experience was on a bike. I have been across the southern part of BBNP many times, but the sights, sounds and smells were far more alive on my bike. After a photo op at Santa Elena Canyon we took a gravel shortcut north towards Study Butte and fuel. FM170 (voted by many and one of the most beautiful roads in the State of Texas) led us northward along the Rio Grande towards Presidio and Big Bend Ranch State Park. Big Bend Ranch State Park is hands down the least visited park in the system. With a total land area greater than Connecticut and Rhode Island combined, there are many places to get close to nature. From the ranch gate we ran 26 miles of gravel to Sauceda, where dinner and bed waited. Arriving at the ranch headquarters, my odometer had added over 220 miles to Friday’s total. State Park staff served up a wonderful meal and the bunkhouse provided 18 beds to choose among, promising a wonderful night of rest. We watched the sun go down on the western edge of the Davis Mountains with libations in hand.
Day Three - Awaking early, I opted for a hot shower to loosen up sore muscles and bones before a hearty breakfast whipped up by our chef for the morning. Gassed up and tummies full, we headed back out the ranch road to the gate before turning north on ranch access roads towards Casa Piedra and Marfa. Hitting cattle guards at 50 MPH as the sun rises is a rush that can only be experienced, not described. The colors of the desert revealed themselves one at a time as we watched the shadows race us across the valley floor. Grabbing fuel in Marfa, we soon were slipping south on FM 2810 towards one of my favorite areas of the state, Pinto Canyon. Pinto Canyon Road carries the name of the canyon as well as the ranch over which it runs as it drops quickly towards Ruidosa, on the Rio Grande north of Presidio. Topping off again and grabbing an energy bar we soon took off into uncharted territory, north towards Candelaria and the end of the road. Rumors had long hinted of an old roadbed that meandered north towards Van Horn and we were determined to locate it! A couple of wrong turns and we soon stumbled onto the correct goat path north through the mesquites along the Rio Grande towards Van Horn. Off into uncharted territory, we raced a thunderstorm north, aware of the fact that rain would turn our trail into a quagmire as evidenced by a half sunk F150 we found abandoned along the edge of the trail. At points the growth limited us to single file as we zigged and zagged avoiding the mesquite thorns tugging at our jerseys. Breaking out onto the flats above the river valley, we soon raced across the moonscape towards Van Horn and Chuy’s Restaurant (the original, made famous by John Madden) and a final meal together before heading home. Loading the bikes at the Pilot at US90 and I10, my odometer indicated 785 miles total for three days of riding. Not bad for a first extended venture on the Pig.
If I had to guess, I would say that the gravel/asphalt ratio would be close to 50/50 for the ride with some really hairball trails making up for the more boring asphalt encountered.
Things learned ...
Pigs will float, if you hit the stream fast enough.
Raindrops hurt at 70 MPH.
Bikes leave a cool bow wake when the road is flooded.
It is totally cool to pass a Harley with a guy hunkered down behind a fairing, all the while sitting bolt upright in the brunt of the rainstorm going 20MPH faster than him.
My gear leaked rain (imagine that) although my backpack stayed dry.
Pigs with 15/45 final drives will yield 91.7 MPH sitting up and at least 92.6 MPH tucked.
Pigs like brake sliding into corners and powering out. Not necessarily efficient, but fun.
Pigs (mine at least) do not like loose rocky roads.
Retreat is bad karma.
Always carry your own washrag.
Jumping cattle guards at 50MPH can be a hoot , proving that Pigs can fly.
A brand new rear knobby will be toast after the ride.
First legitimate dual sport ride
First real asphalt seat time
First major rain storm encountered while riding
Day One - Friday morning we mounted up at the Super 8 and headed south out of Ozona towards Pandale. The first 33 miles were asphalt, but quickly turned to dirt as we drifted off the edge of time into southwest Texas. Easy at the Pandale Café served up coffee all around for $0.10 per cup (yup, not a typo) and we were off, along the Pecos River, south to Langtry (Home of Judge Roy Bean aka Law West of the Pecos). Filling up with gas went smoothly and we were soon on the way to Pumpville, via the road (if you can call it that) paralleling the railroad tracks. It was rough and the Pig responded admirably considering the inexperience of the rider. A long dirt road through southwest Texas ranch country followed before dropping into Sanderson for lunch at the No Name Café, just getting caught by a rainstorm as we hit the city limits of town. Riding out the storm in the café, we laughed the laughs of innocents not anticipating the future. Heading west on US90 towards Marathon we faced ominous storm clouds and ended up riding 40 or so miles through the rainstorm before reaching Marathon. Topping off the tanks, we headed south on US 385 towards Terlingua Ranch, racing the storm that we had just passed through. Skirting just the leading edge, I discovered that raindrops hurt at 70+ MPH, but that knobbies make acceptable rain tires ;-). The last 23 miles into the ranch headquarters was a loose sandy road that tested every fiber in my body. Arriving at Terlingua Ranch, my odometer read 299 miles for the first day of the trip! After a quick shower, we packed up in the truck and headed into Terlingua for a beer at La Kiva and dinner at the Starlight. Dusk found us at the Boathouse Bar collecting suitcases of Lone Star for the balance of the trip.
Day Two - Saturday dawned foggy and cool! Gotta love Texas in the summer. After breakfast at the ranch, we were off, retracing our route east back into Big Bend National Park. Hooking up with the Dagger Flats Road and Old Ore Road, we were spit out of the back country at the southeast corner of the park, near Rio Grand Village. A quick jaunt on asphalt and we filled up with gas and sandwiches at the Rio Grand Village store. Fueled up for the next run, which was across the bottom of the park on a gravel path known as the River Road, we soon headed out towards the Santa Elena Canyon Overlook 75 miles to our west! As I crossed the bottom of the park on my bike, I reflected on how different the experience was on a bike. I have been across the southern part of BBNP many times, but the sights, sounds and smells were far more alive on my bike. After a photo op at Santa Elena Canyon we took a gravel shortcut north towards Study Butte and fuel. FM170 (voted by many and one of the most beautiful roads in the State of Texas) led us northward along the Rio Grande towards Presidio and Big Bend Ranch State Park. Big Bend Ranch State Park is hands down the least visited park in the system. With a total land area greater than Connecticut and Rhode Island combined, there are many places to get close to nature. From the ranch gate we ran 26 miles of gravel to Sauceda, where dinner and bed waited. Arriving at the ranch headquarters, my odometer had added over 220 miles to Friday’s total. State Park staff served up a wonderful meal and the bunkhouse provided 18 beds to choose among, promising a wonderful night of rest. We watched the sun go down on the western edge of the Davis Mountains with libations in hand.
Day Three - Awaking early, I opted for a hot shower to loosen up sore muscles and bones before a hearty breakfast whipped up by our chef for the morning. Gassed up and tummies full, we headed back out the ranch road to the gate before turning north on ranch access roads towards Casa Piedra and Marfa. Hitting cattle guards at 50 MPH as the sun rises is a rush that can only be experienced, not described. The colors of the desert revealed themselves one at a time as we watched the shadows race us across the valley floor. Grabbing fuel in Marfa, we soon were slipping south on FM 2810 towards one of my favorite areas of the state, Pinto Canyon. Pinto Canyon Road carries the name of the canyon as well as the ranch over which it runs as it drops quickly towards Ruidosa, on the Rio Grande north of Presidio. Topping off again and grabbing an energy bar we soon took off into uncharted territory, north towards Candelaria and the end of the road. Rumors had long hinted of an old roadbed that meandered north towards Van Horn and we were determined to locate it! A couple of wrong turns and we soon stumbled onto the correct goat path north through the mesquites along the Rio Grande towards Van Horn. Off into uncharted territory, we raced a thunderstorm north, aware of the fact that rain would turn our trail into a quagmire as evidenced by a half sunk F150 we found abandoned along the edge of the trail. At points the growth limited us to single file as we zigged and zagged avoiding the mesquite thorns tugging at our jerseys. Breaking out onto the flats above the river valley, we soon raced across the moonscape towards Van Horn and Chuy’s Restaurant (the original, made famous by John Madden) and a final meal together before heading home. Loading the bikes at the Pilot at US90 and I10, my odometer indicated 785 miles total for three days of riding. Not bad for a first extended venture on the Pig.
If I had to guess, I would say that the gravel/asphalt ratio would be close to 50/50 for the ride with some really hairball trails making up for the more boring asphalt encountered.
Things learned ...
Pigs will float, if you hit the stream fast enough.
Raindrops hurt at 70 MPH.
Bikes leave a cool bow wake when the road is flooded.
It is totally cool to pass a Harley with a guy hunkered down behind a fairing, all the while sitting bolt upright in the brunt of the rainstorm going 20MPH faster than him.
My gear leaked rain (imagine that) although my backpack stayed dry.
Pigs with 15/45 final drives will yield 91.7 MPH sitting up and at least 92.6 MPH tucked.
Pigs like brake sliding into corners and powering out. Not necessarily efficient, but fun.
Pigs (mine at least) do not like loose rocky roads.
Retreat is bad karma.
Always carry your own washrag.
Jumping cattle guards at 50MPH can be a hoot , proving that Pigs can fly.
A brand new rear knobby will be toast after the ride.
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