Sept. 9 — 14, 2025
Tuesday, Sept. 9
Drive to McGaffey, nice weather, no riding. she very tired. What is it with the first day drive? Always happens.
Wednesday, Sept. 10
Rode 10 miles, taking Quaking Aspen to Y2K, side path along road to McGaffey to get on Strawberry to the fire tower. Came back the same way. Had maybe 2 bars up at fire tower. Great downhill ride back. Weather about 80 with passing gray storm clouds. Some light showers. Arms are tired working them brakes. Came back to find out that Charlie Kirk was assassinated in Utah. Just a shock. Also learned my phone, our phones, can now use messenger via satellite for free for 2 years, so monkeyed around with that, figuring it out. Always wondered what that UFO-looking thing was on the phone screen...
Thursday, Sept. 11
Rode 14 miles, Quaking Aspen to Y2K, then down Danoff Road to unmarked and lucky turnoff (thanks to yours truly), after about 2 miles on Danoff we (I) picked the random turn to the right which took us to the Sheetrock Tank where all the trails merge. From there we went to Trail #8 to Lost Lake through a newly thinned forest, so it was a mess with brown branches everywhere, but we kept on hoping to see Lost Lake once again. Out of the blue up high I got a one bar signal to find out via the map that we were just .3 from the lake so on we went. guess what, no lake!!! All dry. And now I know it was only about 6 inches deep in the past. Got caught in a bit of rain but headed back the same way, almost taking Plush but with the gray clouds we stuck with the original plan. And judging by the sky, we got back just in time, gray out there.
Heard this weekend is Pie Town's Pie Festival, so no wonder we are out this way... This is our last night here, might head thru Gallup south to Zuni lands, then to Pie Town, and on to Datil. Might be rainy so we shall see.
Friday, Sept. 12
Some weather out there as I recall, on and off, and today we moved on toward Datil ("dattle" we soon found out). Tried to take a shortcut down to PieTown but after a half mile realized how BAD and bumpy the road will be so did an Austin Powers with the trailer and got back on the real road. After searching for pie in a new place cuz the pie-o-neer was closed, the guy suggested we camp in town. Took some convincing, but got Willard to stay FREE for the festival. Thought the large area would totally fill up, but it didn't, it was fine. After we set up camp, and I was stepping into the trailer when I noticed a woman walking down the path - didn't wave cuz it was just awkward timing, and she was a ways away so that was that. Later we went for our walk (where we saw those old crumbling cabins) and I noticed someone walking a bit behind us. No biggie. We were trying to get in position to get a photo of the pie festival sign and the Pie-0-Neer sign (that we know from the documentary film from the Durango film festival). SO. We jaywalk across the street and I says SAYS to Bill, you're cutting someone off... not really, but that person had crossed and now we are on the same side of the road. So as she goes by she SAYS, (I forget what, but probably something about pie) and I looked at her face and thought of Katy O'C. And then it hit me: and I said, Are you Kathy? She looked shocked like, who are you? And I said we know you from the film about Pie Town and she looked shocked. We made her day, none of us could believe it. So we chatted a bit there and took photos. She is going to send them to her friend who just made movie about pie in Iowa to show how deep this goes, so to speak, said we will make her day. So as we are chatting, I said, I think I saw you when I was getting into our trailer and she said, YES, she said she thought, look at that blond getting into an Airstream, what a great setup! Hahahaa She said she just came back from LA where her friend just made a film about Pie making in Iowa, called Piowa, and she just might have won at the festival (she did). So how about that. I got a second chance to figure this out. No way would Bill have remembered her, but I do/did. So she still lives here and is volunteering, helped make 1000 small pies for ther festival, something she never had time to do before. This ends my tale of serendipity.
Saturday, Sept. 13
Awake at 6, wth is going on lately? Wandered over to the pie fest about 9:30 and saw spoon carver and rocks! And pie! Typical cute small town festival happenings, like a sack race, did some corn hole. Pie O Neer finally opened and was lined up out the door so did that too. Sadly the antique store is now closed, got my tiffany lamp there. Just stayed the one night, dark clouds came along later in the day and we drove thru some hail-snow as we headed toward Datil. Dark clouds clung over the mountain valley cg Bill explored previously so we kept going, deciding to camp in Escondido ("Socorro", that place a bit north actually). Stopped at the little market where I got a ristra last time and this time she didn't have much. A dark place with no lights on, flies on the produce and the elder lady watching me, I am sure disappointed I left empty handed. The skies opened up as soon as we pulled in. Just a quick one-nighter to move on home tomorrow.
Sunday, Sept. 14
Returned home, probably early. No memory as I write this... : )
Next time:
Do Mike's Rippin' trail down from the tower, and also Plush, where I think you fly thru the pines.
Socorro's Mineral Museum / closed sundays of course.
Pie Town toaster house
RIP: Charlie Kirk
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