Apr 25

Apr 25 Quantum Insanity, Part I—New Mexico

Roo Giordano

“Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.”

— Albert Einstein

Start: Southern Terminus, Middle of Nowhere Chihuahuan Desert

End: Hachita, NM

Miles hiked: 45

A sensible idea easier said than done.

I promised myself I’d start slow and got a commitment from U Turn that she was open to that, too.

It was a sensible idea that was easier said than done.

The circumstances were a trifecta of disaster waiting to happen:

15 miles between water sources means starting with 15 mile days. It’s doable, but it’s not a slow start.
New Mexico is HOT AF, y’all! So even though 15 miles is doable, you have to hustle through most of it before noon. Or you fry.
Water is HEAVY AF, y’all! One liter weighs two pounds. And you have to carry three - four liters. Or you die.

Soooooo…pounding the hard ground and wobbling thorough deep sand in dry arroyos over 15 miles carrying all my gear plus six pounds of water.

My ankles revolted and I was done after 45 miles.

It wasn’t all bad (or why I’ll never quit hiking)…

In just three days on trail (and a week in town), I’d amassed trail stories, met new friends, connected with old acquaintances and got dosed with trail magic. That never happens in real life.

New Friends

Before we even got our packs donned at the Southern Terminus we’d picked up a stray—Retro. His wife was worried about migrant hordes at the border (NOPE!), so he asked if he could hike out with us. He kept me going in the heat that first day, chatting our way through the sandy washes, past the bloated dead cow and the one tree in southern NM and on to the water cache at mile 14 where the three of us camped.

The second night in the desert…God how I loved those desert nights. Retro in back, U-Turn in front.

We are still chatting occasionally even today.

We picked up Jean Marc the next day. U-Turn and I stopped to help bandage his blisters because that’s just what you do for your fellow hiker. Also, I’m haunted by the size and variety of the blisters I witnessed out in the desert…truly frightening.

Nothing special compared to the ones Jean Marc was sporting. But that toenail wasn’t long for this world.

Old Acquaintances

And on the third day, hobbling into the Community Center in Hachita, we met a couple who were driving around with their two dogs, doing some hiking and camping and sewing. Dude looked familiar because his face had just popped up on my phone as a memory from 2017.

OMG…it was Dylan. We’d met on the AT in New York. In 2017! I’d admired his leisurely pace and been a little jealous that he was hiking solo and setting his own pace. We met again at Upper Goose Pond in Massachusetts where he’d taken his first canoe ride around the pond.

And here he was again. In New Mexico. Six years later.

I love the trail so much.

Trail Magic

Dylan drove me to Silver City after three sad days in Hachita. U-Turn hiked on and limped in two days after that, her own ankle red and swollen and painful. What a pair.

We spent a lot of time at the Tranquil Buzz coffee shop, indulged in acupuncture, rubbed local healing salves on our respective unhealthy parts and even went to Trail Days. By then I was totally deflated and no longer feeling part of the hiking community.

I could barely walk, much less hike, so I called it. Bought a train ticket from Deming to Tucson and a plane ticket from Tucson to home. Just had to get a bus ticket to Deming and say goodbye to the Hatch Chile quiche and Hatch Chile Cheddar scones at Tranquil Buzz and be gone.

Except there was no bus to Deming. No drivers. No bus.

Before we burst into tears, Lou, who drove the local bus around Silver City, stepped up and offered to give us a ride the next day to Deming. Our savior and a true trail angel. We ate a final meal at a Mexican Restaurant in Deming and Lou dropped us off in the parking lot where the train stopped. No depot. Just an open shelter next to a crossing gate and a step stool up into the train.