Mother Earth

Thursday March 23. Day 19. Globe to Safford. 80 miles or 130 km.

We woke up to a blue sky and nothing but sunshine. A great day for a great ride. We finished up quickly and were on the road by 8 am. The route was straight forward so hard to get lost. We had a tailwind to just make it all perfect. Our speed was very fast and by 11 am we had chewed away about half of our mileage. 

Our climb was a gentle one. Very gradually we got to 2825 ft. We rode through the San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation for the better part of the day. I found myself thinking of the sacred land we were cycling through and the importance of Mother Earth. Indigenous Peoples believe that "All life flows through her". Earth, fire, water and wind play a vital role for all Indigenous Peoples. I just felt privileged to be allowed to bike on their land. 

Our surroundings were changing too. Most of the terrain consisted of rolling hills with an occasional climb. We saw trees with green leaves. We saw entire mountainsides covered with yellow flowers. We saw snowcapped mountains. And we saw the large cacti reappear. I learned that a cactus has to be 75 years old before they start growing "arms". I saw some cacti with at least 10 "arms" so they must be very old.

Just before lunchtime we finally saw some other cyclists. 3 men from Israel. They were cycling across the USA as well. It is difficult to have a conversation while cars are passing so we decided to have lunch together at a gas station. I know not the most romantic place...

While we entered the parking lot behind the gas station another cyclist from Virginia showed up. It felt so good to talk with them, to have a good laugh with them, and to share stories with them. Most of the afternoon we cycled together as a group.

None of them were planning on camping so Vicki and I left the group to make some calls while having  a coffee at McDonald's. The only camping in town didn't answer our call, the contacted Warm Shower Hosts didn't return our requests so plan B was pulled out of our bag. Start calling the fire department,  the library, or some churches. Pastor Ken happily would accommodate us. Within 15 minutes Karen called us and invited us to stay at her home. 

We were warmly welcomed by Karen and she said that her husband Chuck had no objections for us to stay the night. A great shower and an even better pasta supper with salad awaited us. Some great conversations over a cup of tea followed before we said goodnight. We biked 80 miles in 5 hours. A record for us. No wonder we feel tired.

Beautiful scenery-cooperative weather- great hosts/hostess- delish food- warm beds- good day!!!! (Poddy)

In 1872 gaf de regering van de Verenigde Staten verschillende religieuze groeperingen de verantwoordelijkheid voor het beheer van de nieuwe reservaten, en de Nederlands Hervormde Kerk had de leiding over het San Carlos Apache Indianenreservaat.(Hans Brinker)

Great blog! We are following along with you guys. Good that you found good people to accommodate you last minute! (Janine)