New Mexico: The Land (and Sky) of Enchantment
There is an inexplicable sense of magic in the air as soon as you enter New Mexico. This sacred land is a Southwestern gem, a place where the natural world, culture, and spirit are entwined. I wanted to find out what made this place so magical in the first place, so Caleb and I straddled a couple of Honda CRF450Ls, donned with Mosko Moto luggage, and set off into the high desert.
Our first goal was to get out of Albuquerque, so we headed south along SR 337. In the blink of an eye, we were in the rolling hills of the Manzano Mountains. Ponderosa pines towered alongside the road, and I started to feel the enchantment of this place for the very first time. We were in roadrunner territory (the bird, that is) and it was along this stretch of highway we began to spot the little birds scurrying along the side of the road. If you weren’t paying attention, you wouldn’t even notice them.
As we carved our way to the southern point of the mountains, the road began to flatten, and we re-entered the Rio Grande Valley. Rolling around one of the last true curves on this stretch of highway, we saw something dash across the road. It was Wile E. Coyote, although he wasn’t carrying an Acme anvil or dynamite. It did appear, however, that he was chasing a roadrunner. This hit a little too close to home, so we twisted the throttles quicker and got the heck out of dodge before we wound up in one of the coyote’s booby traps.
Motorcycles & Gear
2023 Honda CRF450L
Helmet: Klim Krios Pro
Jackets & Pants: Klim Marrakesh
Boots: Gaerne Balanced Oiled
Gloves: Klim Marrakesh
Luggage: Mosko Moto Reckless 80
Comm System: Cardo Packtalk Edge
Camera: Nikon Z6II, 24-70 F2.8
Roadrunners are a species revered for their courage, strength, speed, and endurance. We put our own RoadRUNNER genes to the test as we crossed the remaining 200 miles of flat desert highway on what is basically considered a dirt bike.
The Truth and The Consequences
As the sun began to set, we turned onto an unnamed gravel road that looked more like a dried river bed full of large boulders and lots of gravel and sand. It was the first time our knobby tires had touched dirt on this trip, and we were eager to get off the pavement. With the sand under my tires, I suddenly felt like a baby deer learning to walk for the very first time. Jagged rocks deflected my front wheel violently to the left and right, and the deep dust made it difficult to correct my trajectory before hitting the next rock in my path. I was holding on as if the bike was an angry, bucking bronco.
In my opinion, this type of terrain is some of the hardest to ride through confidently. You want to hold speed to skirt across the top of the loose silt, but too much speed could send your front wheel into a boulder (and you over the handlebar). It’s an unpredictable surface, and requires concentration on any bike, big or small. As we traversed the riverbed, we went silent on the comms and focused on not crashing on the very first day of the ride. The CRFs felt unsteady, and the front wheel kept washing out more than normal.
The riverbed route took us to Elephant Butte Reservoir, which seemed like an oasis in the desert. We stopped to catch our breath and admire the waters. We also determined our suspension settings must be incorrect, because we shouldn’t be this worn out after only a few miles.
I was thankful to get on pavement again, and we followed the last few miles of road into Truth or Consequences. Once we found our hotel, we searched online for the recommended stock suspension settings we could then adjust according to the terrain. Luckily, Honda has great documentation available for this bike, so we went to town on the adjustment clickers and found the sweet spot. Surely, this would make a big difference.
After the sunset, we walked down to Riverbend Hot Springs. We’d reserved a private pool overlooking the Rio Grande. A hot soak after a full day on a motorcycle is my guilty pleasure and something I look for when planning tours. This spot was incredibly relaxing, and a great end to a long day.