In addition to birding, Patagonia, AZ is a place where people come for all sorts of outdoor activities: hiking (the Arizona Trail runs right through here), mountain biking, boating (Patagonia Lake State Park is a few miles down the road), riding horses, and enjoying nature. And since we're currently beefing up our road cycling miles, we were glad to find some pretty nice places to ride on the road here as well. Since it's such a small town, there isn't a huge selection of roads to ride on in and near Patagonia, but on Harshaw Road, we found almost no traffic, stunning mountain views (much of the road is in the Coronado National Forest), and heart-pounding climbs. However, the paved part of this road runs only around seven miles one way. So for more miles we ride on Highway 82, which runs right through town towards Sonoita to the north and Nogales to the south. This road has generally light traffic and reasonably decent shoulders. Since it's quite hilly here, we're certainly getting our workouts. Check out some of what we've seen on our rides. Harshaw Road is all open range (thus the cattleguards), so there's no telling who will turn up! Yesterday we rode up to Sonoita. And I do mean up -- most of the way there is a long, gentle climb from Patagonia, with a couple of steeper sections thrown in. Although we didn't actually visit any wineries, I knew it was my kinda place when I saw this sign: This one was kinda nice too.... Before turning around and heading back to Patagonia, we took a pit stop just inside the town limits. We're looking forward to many more good rides while we're here in Patagonia. We're both putting in the most miles ever for this time of year, thanks to the great Arizona weather!
2 Comments
It is so aggravating that giant hills never photograph looking steep. There have been many times I've taken a picture of something that I thought was a major accomplishment in terms of up or down, and they never look that impressive. However, if you're tacking the hill, we know it's steep.
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Emily
3/8/2014 01:19:42 pm
You understand, Allison, being a fellow cyclist! It's so true. Yes, if I am in my easiest gear (30x25) AND tacking, then it is a HILL. Or really, a MOUNTAIN! I am not the strongest cyclist, but still....
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Emily & BarryWe're a long-married, early-retired couple who are currently traveling as nomads with no fixed home base. After years of living in North Carolina (Emily's home state), we spent 18 months living oceanfront on Ambergris Caye, Belize, a year road-tripping the US in a Honda CR-V, a year in Playa del Carmen, Mexico, and are now roaming North America in our 32' motorhome, Pearl, following warm weather whenever possible. Archives
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