Ride to Arivaca

Today was the ride from Amado to Arivaca.  I have a love-hate relationship with this ride.  It's 22 miles out, and the route climbs via many short steep hills.  Short steep hills are not good for me.  I like longer consistent grades.  Plus the route just pisses me off because now that I am old and decrepit, I can no longer stand up and muscle my way up the hills.  No, the elderly must sit down and use their granny gear, or risk blowing up half way there.  So, on the one hand it's a good work out in a beautiful part of the state, but on the other hand I suffer like a slow animal.
This is the destination, Sweet Peas restaurant.   We had 18 for lunch, and service was swift and very pleasant.  The food is pretty good.

This is what it looks like out there.  Just down the road from Arivaca is the Buenos Aires Wildlife Refuge.  It's enormous.  One of these days I want to drive down (in a car) and look at it.  Paul and Nina of Wheelingit recently stayed there and it looks well worth a visit.

Coming back we mostly had a tail wind.  It took two hours to go to the restaurant and one hour to get back to the truck.  Downhill with a tail wind is a beautiful thing.

It appears that someone bought the Longhorn Grill.  Last time we were out there it had a for sale sign on it.  It's good to see it open again.  Something with architecture this unique should not be allowed to go under.

So that was today.  The jury is still out on doing this ride again.  I'll have to consult this post next year when the email goes out for the ride and think about it some.