Day 86–28 more miles to the middle of nowhere
That’s right! The towns here are really spread out. I started just west of Vaughn, went through Encino, and on toward Mountainair. It’s hard to believe all the open spaces out here. The views are still amazing but things continue to get dryer. The grasses are just stubble in lots of places and there are no trees and hardly any shrubs except around the few scattered ranch houses. I’m on Highway 60 and the wide shoulder is gone. I have to step out of the road frequently for traffic. But I do enjoy topping every rise and seeing the next grand view. The last view today was at 28 miles. There are miles of flat and downhill and in the distance, barely discernable, some real mountains. The altitude where I am now is about 6000 feet. I wonder what altitude the mountains will be.
Today is dedicated to Mike Samuelson. Mike ran the Boogie several years ago and enjoyed it so much, he sent me a book. It was “Running with Payne” by Randy Ellis. Randy did his own run across the US and wrote about it. I enjoyed the book and read it a second time last spring. It was one of the first writings I read of runners and walkers crossing the US. By giving me the book Mike helped set in motion my own journey. Mike also crewed for me in Kentucky for a week-end and I stayed in his parents’ home a few days in Mayfield, Ky. Mike, thanks for the book and your help in Kentucky. l hope I can return the favor when you do your trans-USA run.
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