Rio Grande River Gorge

Being back home in Salt Lake City has been a whirlwind but I'm having a grand time remembering the last part of our trip and reliving our adventures as I write.

Waking up on Saturday, June 7 was odd because our trip was winding down. Hard to believe we'd been on the road for six weeks! We were excited to get going, because we knew we had great riding ahead of us and by the days end we'd be in the majestic Rocky Mountains!

Leaving Taos, we knew this was a place we would return to. As I said in my earlier post, Taos has a "feel good" vibe about it and although it feels far away, it's only 600 miles from Salt Lake City, about a 12-hour ride through scenic byways and mountains.  It would be about 1 1/2 day ride for me and I'm sure Randy would make it in just one day!

As we rode through the city and small suburbs, we crossed the Rio Grande River Gorge which is spectacular! We rode over the bridge, (built in 1965) parked and walked back to the middle.


I'm terrified of heights and I couldn't look down and walk at the same time. I kept my eyes focused forward. Once I got to the middle of the Bridge, I looked down, across and all around me. I was OK aa long as I had the rail to hang onto and just didn't think about the height.  The Gorge is stunning!  Putting aside my fears was good because I would have missed the beauty that was below the bridge.  The Rio Grande! 

There were a couple of river rafts, that looked like little dots on this massive river.  I zoomed in with my camera , and caught a photo of the rafts before and right in the rapids. One raft had four people and the other was a two-person raft.  I think this would be a great adventure. 

 Looks like fun!

Randy was surprised that the bridge wasn't just welded together, but put together with giant nuts and bolts. I imagined a huge giant putting together the bridge with his erector set!  I'm sure the engineers who designed the bridge and workers who constructed it wouldn't appreciate my vision.

The bridge is the 7th highest in the United States and the locals call it the "Gorge Bridge" or "High Bridge". For someone who hates heights, I'm glad I had the courage to walk the bridge and to create yet another new experience.

Hard to believe that a bridge could be beautiful, especially when we're surrounded by incredible plateaus, a raging river and majestic mountains. 

Somehow this monstrosity manages to help us appreciate our surroundings even more.

So glad I have the rail and Randy to hang on to!