Trans-Mexico Day #6 Mezquital Municipality to Sùchil

Trans-Mexico Day #6
January 1, 2022
Mezquital Municipality DG to Sùchil ZA 97Km

Start 7:57am Finish 6:41pm

Ride Time: 8:02

Ascent: 1369m

Descent: 1743m

Tour Total Km: 529

Details at: https://ridewithgps.com/trips/80946843

I slept well in the stealth camping site off the side of the highway. I got cold but managed to stay just warm enough without having to resort to long underwear. It was windy throughout the night and I could hear the trees blowing. Fortunately it didn’t affect where I had pitched my tent. I woke up several times to readjust my position. It was dark and I didn’t want to check what time it was. When I heard the first bird squawk I knew it was time to get up, even though there was only a glimmer of light. My long underwear down sweater combination allowed me to jump out of the tent quickly. It was a methodical pack up and there was light by the time I rolled out. No one saw me leave, although the gate was now locked. Fortunately it was an easy climb over. I had sussed it all out last evening. I was soon back on the highway off-route still headed south. I was wearing my short-sleeve jersey, cycling shorts, leg warmers, socks, short sleeve sweater, rain jacket as shell, short finger gloves, and balaclava. Aside from my cold fingers the layering was pretty good.

The wind was strong out of the south again today which would affect me on the first part of the elbow. I was riding on the top of the ridge and rounded a turn that bathed me in sunlight. The sun was still low on the horizon and the trees were still creating shade. My fingers were freezing.

There was grass sticking out from my left sandal, and I wondered what I must look like to a passing motorist. The land and I were becoming one. There were spectacular views from atop the ridge particularly to the west where I could see successive ridges. I began a fantastic downhill with sweeping views. I had to keep my eyes peeled for open holes in the pavement. I knew I would have to make up the elevation.

It was a fantastic road and I had it all to myself. This was why I do these things. It was incredible! Soon I was climbing back up towards the ridge and the road quality was still pretty good. As I was climbing I realized that I no longer had a headwind. The air was blowing along the side of the ridge.

There was almost no motor traffic and it was light out, so I pulled over to turn off my rear tail light. I wanted my battery to make it to Zacatecas. Oh yeah! Happy new year! It’s 2022! It felt just like another day out here.

So when I need to blow my nose while I’m riding, I practice the blocked nostril ejection method. I hold a finger over one nostril and blow as hard as I can out the other so that none of the nasal matter ends up on my jacket. I’ve got tissues and a handkerchief in my handlebar bag but I don’t want to stop.

I saw a five peso coin and stopped to pick it up. That’s like twenty cents. I do it at home too. A local bus passed me. It was good to know there was local ground transportation. I rounded a bend and it was now overcast. My toes were getting chilly. I was still climbing.

I was nearing what I thought would be the cross road, Highway 213, towards Súchil. There was a pick-up truck stopped on the side of the road with a large tank in the back. The guy was filling it with water. There was a hose coming from the mountain. I could have filled my empty reserve liter bottle but preferred to play it safe and keep going. I saw a sign for Súchil 75 km.

The pueblito at the crossroads was called Las Margaritas. There was a small tienda and the window was open. A man was heading up to the window and I asked if it was open, and he confirmed yes. He was buying cooking oil, a packet of tomato sauce, and two cigarettes. I purchased two JUMEX mango juice juices and I sat out front and ate a Pepperidge Farm cheddar cheese with two day old tortillas.

The guy was complaining about how cold it was. I complained about the wind. I wished him a Happy New Year and asked if he had partied last night. I pushed him a little further and asked if he had had a few beers. He replied that he had had a few and then he pointed to an inside corner of the tienda where there were stacked cases of Modelo cans. I had already spotted them and smiled. I told him about my can of Tecate last night.

The road to Súchil was dirt. Off-road brings a lot more friction and takes a lot more effort. Climbing up to the ridge from Las Margaritas was a lot of work. There were plenty of loose rocks on the ascent, but up on top the road was nice smooth gravel. The pine trees returned.

I enjoyed the off-road down hills and even the chunky stuff. By 11:40am the sun was fully blazing, so I pulled over to remove my leg warmers and rain jacket, and to put on my sunglasses. At the moment I had stopped, a car passed me heading towards Súchil. I had five more kilometers until I joined back up with the route.

When I’m doing chunky stuff I don’t like to be clipped in. I found that I could fasten my tripod to the top of my helmet for helmet cam footage. It would take some getting used to having this thing bobbing up and down on the top of my head. Documentation slows me down.

Off-road is much more mentally taxing because I'm constantly having to choose the path of least resistance in addition to avoiding ruts and boulders. I try not to be clipped in case I go down. My front fenders kept getting out of alignment and I had to keep stopping to adjust them. Fenders are a pain, but they come in handy when it rains.

By 12:25pm I was standing in front of the gate where Jeff had cut across and finished his crunchy hike a bike single track. That route was only 14 km. What I did was 34km and took me over four hours. It was beautiful and I highly recommend it.

I was back on the route. It’s hard to dictate while I’m riding gravel. When my phone is bouncing it undoes whatever I just created. I have to wait for the smooth sections and act quickly. A pick-up truck passed me going the other direction.

A bolt on the right side of my front rack snapped or came loose. Fortunately I was prepared for this and had replacement bolts. I stopped and repaired it, and then went around and tightened all the bolts. I pulled over to remove my short sleeve sweater, apply sunscreen, and drink some water. There was no longer a single cloud in the sky.

A valley opened up before me and I could see a town far in the distance. I noticed a guy pull out of his ranch in a pick-up truck. The small pueblo was San Juan and it was off route.

I was surrounded by grassland, scraggly bushes, and cactus. It was a lovely green valley. I almost wiped out in the gravel but didn’t go down. I was passed by a black pickup truck going in the same direction. I could clip in and crank when it was smooth but when it got rocky I had to proceed with caution.

I was on a long bumpy straight that sloped down into the valley. I was passed by a pick up truck going in the other direction. At this point the goal for the day seem to be Súchil, which ostensibly had accommodations, gorditas, and cold beer. I crossed over two streams that were indicated as water sources on my route.

Despite the bumpy road I had a tail wind most of the afternoon. I was becoming more comfortable staying clipped in off-road, which gave me more power. A pick-up truck passed me from the other direction, and I crossed the tour’s first cattleguard.

There was quite a bit of motor traffic later in the day as I got closer to Súchil. A pick-up truck passed me going the other direction then a motorcycle passed me going my direction. Then a blue old-fashioned station wagon passed me going the other direction. I had stopped earlier to plug in my iPod to listen to another Duane train. I passed a dead cow alongside the road. I noticed the stink before I saw the body.

A guy who was walking his bicycle appeared to be driving three beautiful white cows. I greeted him as I passed him, as he chuckled. A motorcycle passed me going the same direction. There were around twenty houses in the small pueblito, but no businesses along the road. I crossed another cattle guard and then I had a long climb on relatively smooth gravel surface.

I finally reached the top of the ridge and could see the next valley to the east. It was 4:47pm. I had less than two hours of remaining daylight and was still 18km from Súchil. I had a nice quiet tailwind. My toes were starting to cramp up, but at least they weren’t pressing up against shoes.

My rear tire went flat and I couldn’t figure out the culprit. The tire seemed fine. I stuck in a new inner tube while a car drove by during the repair. When I reinstalled the tire, it wasn’t round so I had to deflate the tube and massage it. I was still 16km out of Súchil, and shadows were getting long. At 5:30pm I passed a guy riding a bicycle the other direction. We were in the middle of nowhere.

I rode through a tiny pueblito on the outskirts of Súchil. People were hanging out in front of their houses. Two people were riding bicycles. All of a sudden the pavement returned and I could fly.

I sped into the center of town and everything aside from a florist and the deposito was closed. I purchased four Victoria tall boys, two bags of nuts, and two liters of water. A drunk guy was trying to tell me about a restaurant, but it was too late. I uploaded a social media post, turned on my lights, and sped east out of town on pavement.

I stealth camped in a cow pasture underneath some scraggly trees. Coyotes were crying in the distance. I had to hoist my bike over barbed wire and slide my panniers underneath. I sat in my tent drinking beer as I prepared this report.