Continental Divide Trail – Day 22
May 23, 2023
Miles Today/ Total: 5.0 / 444.2
My campsite at the top of a bluff provided a great view up Zuni Canyon as the daylight emerged. By the time I had packed up the sun was rising above the horizon and the early morning warmth felt good.
I walked back down to the road and began the 5 mile walk into Grants, NM. The road twisted through the canyon before entering the outskirts of the town. I reached Highway 53 and crossed over I-40 and the railroad tracks and entered the town.
Grants is an older community that developed along Route 66. As Interstate 40 routed traffic around the town and you can see the economic impact that it took on the city. More than half of the businesses on Route 66 are empty and several in major disrepair.
I had reservations at a motel 6 in a newer area of town about 1 1/2 miles east of downtown Grants. There is a large Walmart there as well as several restaurants/ fast food establishments and even more motels.
It wasn’t even 9:00 when I arrived there so I headed to Denny’s to get some breakfast and spent some time there updating files for my video editing chores. I got to the Motel 6 about 11:00 and they were able to get me into a room. I showered, put on clean clothes and took my dirty clothes down to the laundry. As I waited for the laundry I made a shopping list for my resupply.
With my clothes cleaned and my tent dried outside, I headed to Walmart to by groceries for the next 5 days. I got back to the motel and met up with John (now called Daddy Warbucks) and shared a beer and talked about the trail.
For dinner we walked over to the 66 Junkyard Brewery which had a very automotive themed decor and ate BBQ and drank a few beers. I made it back to the motel about 9:30 and it was past my normal bedtime. I jumped between the sheets and was asleep within minutes.
