I finally had two days in a row on a weekend so I decided to take a quick overnight trip on the 610 to try out the luggage system & extra fuel setup as well as spend a peaceful night under the stars. Left the house with a buddy on his TW200 late Saturday morning and took a leisurely ride down the east side of the Sierra Larga (http://www.cafehusky.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1414). We ran west on Highway 380 to San Antonio for a late lunch at the Owl Bar Cafe. Possibly the most famous New Mexican eatery of dualsporting! Green Chile cheese burgers and Negro Modelo. I'm sure glad I stopped racing bicycles and started dualsport riding. The moto diet is a lot more fun... After the late lunch we rode back to to the South end of the Quebradas Byway (http://www.blm.gov/nm/st/en/prog/recreation/socorro/quebradas_backcountry_byway.html). From there we headed north into the Sierra Larga to our campsite above La Cuesta McBride. "Cuesta", when applied to a road, means a step grade. This grade seems minor now on a motorbike, but 90 years ago it was a major obstacle to wagons going to McBride's ranch. The campsite is on a bench that overlooks the Rio Grande Valley north of Socorro. Here's the loaded TE at the top of the slope. We set up camp, built a fire, cooked dinner (tuna fillets marinated in teriyaki sauce with broccoli noodles), and spent the evening remembering 35 years of backpacking and camping trips. The next morning was chilly but the sunrise never fails at this spot - here's the Mesa del Yeso lit up while Ladron Peak remains in shadow in the background. Sorry about the blurry image - no tripod and it was cold enough to be shivering! This is the camp that packs easily into the Dirtbagz and Wolfman Duffel on the TE610. That Kermit chair is real luxury - but packs small and carries in the duffel! After we packed up we headed on north, returning to the pavement on Highway 60 a few miles west of Abo ruins: Made it home by 12:30. Everything functioned well and the bike carries the luggage like it isn't there. Howard Snell
Nice write up. Great looking camp, with all the trimmings. Abo ruins look interesting. I googled Abo ruins and read up a bit. Very cool. Are the ruins in the pics from the 1300's or is that part of the church from later 1600's? Love the chair.
Thanks! Folks: Thanks for the replies. Mike: I'm pretty sure the ruin I photographed at Abo Ruins is the old church built in the 1600's. Rajobigguy: Let's plan a trip! I hope to spend some time in California this summer. My wife and I grew up inland from San Deigo and we have family there. Howard Snell
