Bus people are weird. I say this fully aware that I am now also a bus person. The ride from LA was long, loud, and cramped. At 2:30 in the morning we stopped in Phoenix to get a new bus and driver. This wasn’t the major disruption you would think it would be, since for most of the ride people were talking, watching movies (without headphones), or trying to calm their two newborn kittens that were constantly meowing.
Eventually after the switch people did start to fall asleep and it became a bit more peaceful. The woman sitting next to me loved to talk and not necessarily to me or anyone in particular. She was extremely nice and any time she bumped or disturbed me she would profusely apologize. She had brought a full sized camp chair to use while waiting in line or at the layovers. I really hope the rest of her trip went well.
Eventually we made it to Lordsburg. At that point it had been about 12 hours since we stopped anywhere with food or water and the bus got a half hour to go into the McDonald’s next to the bus stop. I went in for breakfast and then wandered to the hotel next door. I had booked two nights there and really hoped they would let me check in early. Luckily they did and I went straight to bed.
After my nap I woke up and talked with my old coworkers Caleb and Niles for their running podcast, Dadstrides. It was really cool and you can listen to it here! We talked about such fun topics like my gear, my food, and my gnarly blisters from the Teanaway Country 100. After that it was time to get ready for the trail.
My first stop was the grocery store. Lordsburg has one small grocery store and two dollar stores along with about a dozen motels. The selection of Knorr sides here was pretty great. I like to think they’re catering to hikers. On the way back to my hotel I saw a hiker named Boomerang who had resupplied at one of the dollar stores. He was on his way out of town after hiking to the border and getting a ride back to Lordsburg.
I killed som me more time with naps and YouTube videos while I waited for Meghan to get off of work. We talked on the phone longer than I think we ever have before. I had a lot to tell her about that bus ride.
The next morning I slept in and went to the one local restaurant, Kranberry’s. The food is a sort of southwest style diner and their website makes it known they’re right on the CDT. The food was good and I’m sure I’ll be back when I come through town on the trail.
While eating by myself I saw a hiker come in and sit down. She went to the salad bar and piled one of the biggest plates of salad I’ve ever seen. I said hello and she gave me some info about what to expect on trail. Sounds like there should be plenty of water for me. Honestly I was a little intimidated by her since she has hiked the PCT FOUR times. On my way out I saw some other hikers that I actually follow on Instagram.
After lunch I headed to the post office to ship all the clothes I wore on the trip down here back to Meghan. (Sorry if they’re a bit stinky!) The credit card machine was down so I had to walk to an ATM and get cash. That was one thing I forgot to do in Seattle, which would have come in pretty handy on my train ride too.
The post office had a logbook and map for CDT hikers. They had people mark where they’re from. While I was in there another hiker came in to ship something too. It really helped me get excited seeing all these people here for the trail.
Near my hotel there’s an RV that sells coffee and… drugs Kinda like in Breaking Bad (based in New Mexico). The “drugs” are just perfectly legal marijuana, but seeing an RV out in the desert really reminded me of the TV show.
Tomorrow I wake up early and catch the shuttle to the border!
