65: Low Point
New Mexico to this point has been very much a desert environment, but high desert—reminiscent of Utah with its juniper trees and rocky, arid landscape.
Reaching the low point of the Continental Divide Trail today in Lordsburg, NM, there’s an obvious transition zone from high desert to the proper Chihuahuan desert. It’s hot and the landscape has taken on the character of a sea of a sea of sand with icebergs of mountains with deep subterranean roots protruding up through the sea of sand.
Today is also the first time that I’ve walked into a store, felt a blast of air conditioning, and been grateful for it.
The morning began with 20 miles or so of delightful singletrack, giving way to a broad plain with no discernible trail but easy travel on the hard packed desert surface following the CDT posts.
South of Lordsburg the route is predominantly gravel or double track, with sections of route with a more or less discernible thread of trail between CDT posts. The afternoon was a hot slog but eventually yielded to a thorough pleasant evening and one of the most impressive sunsets of the trip.