I'm a bad tourist. I don't plan places I want to go. I don't really want to go anywhere. I want to do my laundry, maybe eat some good food, wander around aimlessly, hopefully find someone interesting to talk to, or find something magical without looking for it.

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~66 km/40 mi (didn't record mileage)

Low on energy from a short night of sleep, I decided to stop at a coffee shop on the way out of Española that Adam had suggested. The owner recommended that I bring my bike up on the patio because "there are a lot of crackheads around here".

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I stayed the night in an apartment set, well, apart from the main house. I went in early to have some coffee and get ideas from Lori about what to do in Taos. She showed me her greenhouse, then I headed towards Taos, about 12 miles away.

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Riding on the interstate

89 km/55 mi

I went back through Raton, but again wasn't very impressed. I did eat at a diner that offered standard American breakfast fare but had fantastic music that reminded me of the Buena Vista Social Club playing in the background.

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116 km/72 mi

Foremost on my mind today was the mountain pass to Taos. I've been thinking about this route, trying to decide if it was feasible, ever since I started thinking about this tour. I was really worried that maybe the hills were too steep, that with all my baggage I would just have to end up pushing the bike, which would take a lot of precious daylight.

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