ALBUQUERQUE, NM - I was on the road about 5 a.m. today, keen to gain altitude into Arizona before the heat of the day. It was about 92 when I left Steve and Nicky’s house in Vegas and that was the hottest temperature I experienced all day. I actually felt a few sprinkles as I rode through the pre-dawn darkness in Las Vegas.
My new starter button refused to work for the first several presses this morning, giving rise to feelings of despair. It finally fired and continued to fire on the first press the rest of the day, but it’s alarming to say the least, since I spent almost $500 to replace one that was doing the same thing. The audio extension cord I use to connect my in-ear monitors with the GPS broke and I lost my GPS sunshade, all in the space of a few minutes. I was gratified, however, to see the oil level right where it’s supposed to be when I knelt in Steve’s garage and peered at it.
Riding into the rising sun is a miserable experience, especially in unfamiliar territory. I made my way across Hoover Dam and down to Kingman where I picked up I-40 which I will follow all the way to Little Rock.
I’ve been neglecting my National Parks Passport on this trip, but recalled that Petrified Forest National Park is near the Interstate. Turns out it’s right next to the Interstate and I was able to go to the visitors center without paying admission to the park and got four stamps for my passport, including Petrified Forest, Painted Desert, Historic U.S. 66 and Painted Desert Inn.I gassed in Vegas, Kingman, Flagstaff, Gallup and Albuquerque today. In Gallup, I found a McDonald’s with Wifi and secured a room at an Econo Lodge in Albuquerque. It’s kinda shabby, but I’m tired and I don’t care.
I got sprinkled on several times this afternoon as monsoonal showers popped up over the high desert. A rainbow greeted me as I rode into Albuquerque.
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