6/3/09
 
Silver City, NM to Phoenix

 
Well, the calendar has now turned to June and the Phoenix area weather has been great so far. You know it is a good year when you can make it to June and haven't lost any skin from touching the steering wheel in your car. From the looks of the extended forecast we are going to make it to the middle of the month before we have our first 110 degree day. At that point, I'm sure the Summer motorcycle trip planning will click into high gear. And speaking of motorcycle trips, I had a little milestone with my bike on the Silver City trip as I crossed 50,000 miles on my 2005 Road Glide. As I take a moment to reflect back, there are a lot of great memories, beautiful scenery and unforgettable moments packed into those 50,000 miles. I'm already looking forward to the next 50,000 miles. Isn't it funny that with a car, we try to keep the mileage off, but with a motorcycle, we try to add as much as we can. I guess the riding and the memories count for more than the resale value.
 
And speaking of adding mileage to your motorcycle, today I am going to finish up the report from last week's newsletter about our weekend ride down the Coronado Trail and to Silver City, NM. As you might recall, we had spent Friday night in Eagar, AZ then traveled the beautiful and exciting Coronado Trail to Silver City on Saturday, adding in a late afternoon 75 mile loop on the "Trail of the Mountain Spirits". Sunday was going to be an early start as we had to make the 400 mile ride back to Phoenix to attend the Fleetwood Mac concert that night. And yes, it was a great concert! Even at 60 years plus, Mick Fleetwood, John McVie, Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks can still perform at a high level. They sounded great doing what all legacy bands should do, only playing all of their top hits. So we got up early, stopped by the McDonalds across the street for a "Big Breakfast" and was on the road by 6:30am.

I was excited for this leg of the ride because we were going to travel Hwy. 180 which is on the New Mexico side, just East of the Coronado Trail in the Apache Sitgreaves Forest. Having heard a lot about this road, I was anxious to see how it stacked up to the Arizona side. It is a great road, but it doesn't compare to 191 on the other side of the mountain that is said to be the curviest road in America with a reported 430 turns. That being said, Hwy. 180 is a beautiful road that features more sweepers and lazy curves than does 191. Coming from the South you wind your way through a couple of small towns, rolling hills and meadows before making the climb to over 8500 feet into the tall pines for an endless view into New Mexico. Shortly after reaching the top you will cross back over into Arizona and the small town of Alpine where we had eaten breakfast the morning before.

As it turns out, Hwy. 180 turned out to be a great compliment to 191 as it was less demanding, but still very entertaining and excellent scenery. A perfect day of riding would be to go down 191 from Alpine, take Hwy. 78 over to 180 and then back up to Alpine. That would be 214 miles of some of the best riding you could get.

From Alpine we continued on to Springerville, for our first gas stop and then took Hwy. 60 on into Show Low for our ride down through the Salt River Canyon and into Globe, AZ. If you are new to the area, and haven't ridden this route yet, you are in for a treat. It is an 87 mile ride from Show Low to Globe and at approximately the middle of this route lies the Salt River Canyon. It is a giant 2000 foot deep river canyon loaded with some of the most dramatic views you will find in the State. The Salt River Canyon is often called the mini Grand Canyon, with its sweeping vistas carved by millions of years of erosion by the Salt River. The big difference is that you can actually drive into this canyon.

Coming from the North you will ride about 43 miles through some pines and low level trees before you get your first look at vast canyon area. As you ride the road that hangs off of the side of the mountain, you can't help but sneak a look down into the bottom of the canyon as you wind your way down 2000 feet to the bridge that crosses the Salt River. I would suggest to pull into one of the overlook areas to really take in the history and beauty of this area. The pictures are good, but they are nothing like seeing it in person.

After crossing the bridge at the canyon bottom, you will start your 4 mile ride up the East side of the canyon as the road snakes its way back and forth up the mountain for your 37 mile ride into Globe. There are also a few scenic view stops on the East side of the canyon that will give you a great view of the road that you have just traveled. All together, it is about a 9 mile ride from rim to rim through the Salt River Canyon that will leave you wanting more as you steal one last look to your right at raw Arizona desert beauty. The Salt River Canyon contains a wealth of history and was used by Apache warriors during the 1800s as a refuge from pursuing U.S. calvary troops. These days, the river provides a border between the San Carlos Apache Reservation to the south and the White Mountain Apaches to the north.

The next 40 miles into Globe is a nice ride but comparatively less interesting compared to what you have just experienced. And the suddle reminder of the heat that you are about to re-enter will hit you as you start your decent toward Globe. The old mining town of Globe is a good place to stop for lunch as there are many choices of fast food or a few restaurants in the historic downtown. It is worth the effort to ride a few of the streets either side of Broad St. They are doing a nice job of renovating the old town area. Just 20 miles from Globe you will pass through another very pretty area of rock outcroppings and old bridge just before Superior, AZ.

From Globe we were about 105 miles from where we started at I-17 and the Loop 101. As much as we all love riding up North in the higher elevations, coming home to the heat is always the trade off. This day we were lucky in that it was only about 98 degrees as we made our way back into the Valley. That is very doable. But if you are dropping back into Valley at over 107 degrees, you might want to spend a little more time in Globe and plan your re-entry around sunset.

I said it last week and I will say it again. If you are looking for an excellent 2 1/2 day trip to the higher elevations this Summer, this would be one to do. It could also be done in a long weekend if you left early in the morning, which is probably what you would want to do anyway. We were  actually only gone for 48 hours, we just split it up over a couple of nights as we left at 2:30pm on Friday and returned at 2pm on Sunday.

If you missed the first part of this 2 part newsletter, Click Here.

Click Here for 100 Photos of Day Two.
Click Here for 175 Photos of Day One.

Click Here for the Map of the entire route. I have added an alternate route on return trip that takes longer but is more scenic.

Westgate Bike Night Update

Westgate Bike Night will now end on Thursday June 25th. We just have the 4 Thursdays in June left.

The plan is to take a break for the Summer and then start again the first part of September. That date to be determined. This week see Discovery Channel Builder Paul Yaffe with his display of Custom Baggers and parts. See all information on Westgate Bike Night below.