Day #28 - 4/9/2011 - Alpine, TX to El Paso, TX - by Amtrak - 220 miles

My approximate route from Alpine, TX to El Paso is here.

It felt good to sleep in to 5:30am.  I then turned to the netbook and started some blog updating.  (Keeping current is impossible...I'm two weeks behind!)  Lani slept until a comfortable 7:30am, but awoke itching with numerous blotchy bug bites.  The more she examined her skin, the more bites she found…they were everywhere.  Then, crawling on her leg, was a flea…at least it looked like one.   I let the manager know; we were moved to an adjacent room so they could change the linens (I hope!) and spray toxic chemicals.  I thought of demanding a night free and threatening him with a scathing Tripadvisor evaluation, but concluded either move was futile.  Lani headed to the shower...I prepared oatmeal.

You probably don't want to do this at home.  Motel bathrooms seemed safe for this...mostly fireproof material.

We gathered our clothes to use the laundromat across the street, setting the water temperature to autoclave.

For Lani, this was going to be an easy day.  For me, I had to get to El Paso on the Amtrak and come back with a car to haul the bikes.  We had been biking in Texas since 3/25 and had had enough with the long stretches of US90 with nothing for 50 miles at a time, biking into ridiculous head winds.  Skipping to El Paso obviously felt like cheating, but Lani easily rationalized it: we had covered most of Texas and the extra time would allow us to go farther on the last legs of the trip.  I had carefully planned my day:

1. 1:25pm - Amtrak departure to El Paso
2. 4:15pm - arrival in El Paso
3. Taxi to the airport and rent a car
4. Depart airport in the rental car, around 5pm, and return to Alpine.
5. Arrive Alpine, around 8pm

Walking from our flea-infested motel to the Amtrak, I stopped at a bookstore and picked up a copy of The Economist. (Just in case I run for high office, let my reading material be noted here.)  I had a bag with four apples and a Hershey’s bar to keep me going on the 3 hour ride back to Alpine.

The small town bookstores had sections dedicated to local history and culture, as well as a special local charm.

While the exact origin of Murphy’s Law is unclear, it’s effectiveness and power is undeniable.  The Eastbound train through Alpine was supposed to arrive around 1:45p, after the Westbound train had cleared.  For some cryptic reason, the dispatcher let the Eastbound train arrive at 1:15pm, thereby blocking the track for the next 45 minutes for the Westbound train.  The day began to make a sucking sound.

Finally, loading and departing an hour late, we were barely 15 miles out of Alpine when we stopped…dead.  Windswept brush fires had damaged a bridge ahead and we could go no further.  After sitting for hours, we were told at 6pm (!!) that buses were being dispatched from San Antonio (380 miles away!!) and should arrive around 1:00am!!!  The sucking sound of the day became cyclonic.  On the upside I had read The Economist from cover-to-cover in one sitting and watched Avatar (I love this film) and Casablanca (another long-time film favorite) on my iPod, along with various music videos.

And, y'know what else sucked?  ATT wireless coverage.  My iPhone was useless, unable to pick up any cell signal, leaving me unable to contact Lani.  Finally, I asked a nearby rider - from Georgia, I think - if I could use the phone she had been chatting on for the last several hours.  She was gracious enough and I gave Lani a call, informing her of the unfolding debacle.  Strong work, ATT.

I surveyed the other riders.  The Amtrak was filled with many people who were traveling cross-country back to Los Angeles from locations far back East.  They had pillows, blankets and provisions; I had sunglasses and sandals.  I was as jealous as I was uncomfortable; awake most the night, freezing in spite of numerous variations of the fetal position on the reclining train seat.   

April 9^th   passed into April 10^th  as I shivered on the Amtrak, somwhere between Alpine and Marfa.