DAY 8: Espanola to Santa Fe, 31 miles (and a bus back to Bernalillo) After 7 days of nearly perfect weather we awoke at about 6am to the sound of thunder and rain, the sudden thunderstorms we'd heard so much about in New Mexico. Fortunately, with just 30 miles to ride to Santa Fe and plenty of time to catch the 4:30pm bus to Bernalillo we didn't need to get an early start. So we lolled around for awhile, had a leisurely breakfast, and by 9am the skies were clearing, a tailwind was building, and we were off on a nice easy, short (though uphill) ride into Santa Fe. Santa Fe is truly a beautiful and unique town that shares more with the colonial cities of Mexico than with any place I can think of in the U.S. It was a shame that we didn't have more time to spend here and that we didn't take many pictures. The ride in from Espanola was short and sweet and we had about 4 hours to sightsee and have a wonderful Mexican lunch at Tia Sophia, a popular spot just off the main plaza. Then it was time to meet the Park-and-Ride bus at the New Mexico Dept. of Transportation offices a mile or two south of the plaza. The bus was great! For just $3 we (and our bikes) rode in comfort for the 45 mile trip to Bernalillo along with a nice group of local, mostly white-collar commuters. A very nice ending to another excellent bike trip. While perhaps lacking the spectacular beauty of the National Parks (Yellowstone, Teton, Zion, Bryce and Capital Reef) we've toured on other trips, the scenery in New Mexico is still pretty wonderful. The diversity and down-to-earth quality of the people, beautiful southwest adobe architecture, and all the history in Taos and Santa Fe more than compensate. It certainly made us feel a million miles from California, a sure sign of great trip. HOME

Street scene in Santa Fe San Miguel Mission the oldest church in the United States, circa 1621