Now in the familiar territory of the California desert, I was going to struggle to find points of interest for road trip 2024. While there’s plenty to see, I’ve seen so much of it, so actually going through Joshua Tree National Park was possibly the last hurrah for about six months of travel through the US and British Columbia.
That turned out not to be the case.
Yucca brevifolia is a unique and rare plant indeed, but J-Tree NP is not the only place Joshua Trees exist. They are all over the Mojave, and I’ve passed way bigger stands of them on far more interesting terrain just going from A-to-B. They’re illegal to cut down so there are huge ones in people’s front yards. Suffice to say I’m glad I didn’t have to pay an entrance fee.
Maybe the hiking trails reveal more, but it was in the low-90’s already at 10am… I wasn’t about to go hiking anywhere. The job was to cover miles, so I worked through the park with the intention of stopping when I saw some shade. There was none.
I hit I-10 and the party was over. I’ve done the stretch between LA and Phoenix dozens of times and it just isn’t a particularly enticing stretch — even by interstate standards. I wound the bike up to 73mph and set the cruise control, then put my brain on cruise control.
I decided Phoenix was far enough for one day so I used it as a little something to do by visiting one of the locations on my “why not” list… Taco Guild. The place was a church at some point and was converted into a taco shop and bar. Stained glass, murals along the walls, pew-like seats, and a bar big enough to be a shrine to boozin’ and cruisin’.
Taco time
I am a taco aficionado, I fully admit. However, I’m not a taco snob. Not only do I love a “proper” street taco, but I like American-ized tacos or dressed up fancy tacos — I even like the fast food tacos when I just want to stuff my face. One thing I don’t like is people who want to “elevate the taco.” It’s street food, dude. Even a fancy taco costs about a buck-twenny-five to make (less than a dollar for a simple street taco), so selling $8.00 tacos is insulting to my intelligence.
I knew I was in for a shock at Taco Guild, but the cheapest taco was $7.50 and they ranged up to $11.00. Yes, per taco…no beans or rice, just a taco. Now, these were good friggin’ tacos, let’s not ignore that. I got a regular asada taco and a Pork Belly one with some kinda Dr. Pepper glaze.
The tortillas were excellent home-made style and didn’t fall apart, even when I let the 2nd taco sit a little too long and it got cold. There was excellent flavor but each ingredient was in balance with others. Textures were on point. Fours kinds of salsa were available to add a little personalization.
The interior of the place is the biggest win over other taco shops, but I’m not paying $8.00 a taco to have ambiance. In truth, a plastic chair and table with one of those cheap vinyl red/white checkerboard tablecloths is plenty fancy. Set me at one of those outside of a taco truck and hand me a cerveza, and let me order up some $2.00 tacos. That sounds like bliss to me.
After Taco Guild I went south to Chandler where motels were slightly cheaper. There was already traffic and it wasn’t even 4pm, but I found a decent room waiting for me and I caught up on my sleep. In the morning was the true final leg. It’s also as repetitive as the freeways outside LA, because The Bisbee-to-Tuscon-to-Phoenix route is a very common one. More slogging down I-10, traffic, then Hwy 80 from Benson south to the border.
Barn fever
When you trail ride horses they become more familiar with the route than the people riding them. That means they also know when they’re on the homeward journey. Some horses can start hurrying up when they get close, knowing shade and water and possibly some feed are waiting for them. The behavior is called “barn fever” by some.
I was now suffering barn fever, struggling to keep my speed below 80. The limit is generally 75 through the area, but with the trailer, fuel economy absolutely tanks above 70. Also, between Phoenix and Tuscon is one of the most speed trap-heavy places outside the Deep South. I had to stay vigilant, but the heat was picking up and the high speeds were adding more heat to the engine, which then radiated up onto me.
Neither the clock or the odometer seemed to be moving. I was traveling generally south now, and the late-year sun is always to the south, burning my cheeks and exposed wrists. I don’t remember much of it, but I suddenly saw the sign for Sierra Vista, which meant the highway south from Benson was only a few more miles.
I took the off-ramp and settled in with the slow moving folk. Outside of major cities everyone drives slow, but rural Arizona is still a shock. The speed limit is about the best you can expect, with 5-over the limit being “fast.” With artificially low limits in towns, it feels like coming off the race track after a weekend and trying to drive in the slow lane with the commercial truckers.
Eventually it opened up and I made some passes, but then the eternally-under-construction bridge at St. Johns piled us all together. In the 6-mo I had been gone they had switched which lane was closed, suggesting progress. However, the year before it was also like this, so they had switched, then switched back. I expect to see world peace before I see that bridge complete.
Once in the open again I made some more passes and wound things up to ludicrous speed. I was in Tombstone quick enough and grabbed gas, as the bike was drinking it like a hobo with a jug of wine. I decided to stop for lunch even though it’s slightly pricey, but Bisbee is also a tourist town so it isn’t much cheaper. A burger, a beer, and a margarita later I was lightened $40 and continued south.
Up the Mule Mountain Pass the original wagon road goes through a narrow slot in the canyon that still exists as an extremely tight and twisty road. Since the 1950’s though there is the Mule Pass Tunnel. It’s nicknamed the Time Tunnel since you pop out the south end of the 1,400′ tunnel into Bisbee, which does look like it’s locked in 1915 from the high perch above.
It marked an end for me; I entered the tunnel as a traveler, and came out the other side as a local. Down the winding pass and then up under itself is the exit for Old Bisbee, where my Southwest “Save-House” is located. I dropped off the cold weather gear from my storage unit along with a few other trinkets I hadn’t much used, grabbed a few items, and checked on the DR650; the battery was still happy on its trickle charger.
The light at the end of the tunnel was real for me, and Bisbee was on the other side.
Winter Begins For Me
In a nearby town is a proper roach motel with a weekly rate, where I could set up shop and start looking for a winter hole-up. Options were more plentiful a month ago, but something will arise. The plan remains the same, but now it’s time to begin executing it.
Find a decent place to rent month-to-month, enroll in classes either at the local CC or online, work on the book, dig out the DR650 and explore more of the adjoining mountains and their deep canyon secrets. Coronado came through here. Geronimo came through here. Pancho Villa’s troops fought along the same area. Plenty of history going back 100’s of years, along with the frontier mining history and Mexican Revolution.
But that’s also a story for another time. Winter doesn’t feel close, but that’s because the desert generally flips like a switch, becoming winter a little after Halloween, and the only thing really changing through the winter being the overnight lows. I’ll share progress over the winter, but the big push is to put more time into writing the book, along with some paid work to replenish the coffers.
To wrap it all up with a bow, I threw together a photo album below in chronological order. It feels like a lifetime ago that I was heading up to the ten-year celebration of Veterans Charity Ride, and the slog across to Kentucky and up to Michigan feel like a story a read once, not a thing that I just did a few months back. It’s hard to believe North America is only a tiny slice of Earth, and that Earth is just a rock floating around a star that is only one of a billion.
Wanna keep up on the action over the winter? Signing up below will opt you in for a weekly round-up. Every Sunday (if there are new posts) you’ll get an email reminder with a direct link to each post. Opt out any time through the unsubscribe link in the email.
Visit the ride in images
Johnny Killmore 