CDT 2024 - Day 3, Lordsburg, NM

Housekeeping and town tour

Dimension Coffee, Lordsburg, NM

Actually not much to report today. Runningbird continues to make good time through the desert. Moderately flat and the wind is keeping it a bit cooler. Big billowy clouds lending some occasional shade and there was a short light sprinkling this morning. Still, loose sand, sagebrush, and the ever lingering possibility of rattle snakes. Peggy says it's too early but what does that really mean, and how confident am I with that?

Well, I had my drive around the town of Lordsburg and I just don't know quite what to say about it. It is obviously a rest stop off highway 10 coming from Los Angeles. There are a few gas stations: Circle K, Flying J, Love's. Amtrak stops here 3 times a week. And, well, it does have a Dollar General and a Family Dollar store and a McDonalds. In 2020 the town had a population of 2,200 and I would guess it has even decreased from that each year.

Much of the town is shuttered up and very few of the homes are nicely maintained. I Googled to see if it had a bakery and "Dimension Coffee" showed up. I did a drive by to check it out (see photo above) but it was closed. Opens again at 6 AM. Maybe. There is an active police department here in Lordsburg. He's patrolled through the Veteran Park at least 4 times since I've been here so that's a good sign.

It does have a KOA but when we were there a few days ago there were very few people there. For a KOA it wasn't very attractive. When we arrived midday the office was closed with a piece of paper taped to the door with our name and site number on it. I stopped by there again yesterday and again the office was close with a "back at 2" sign in the window.

Like so many towns in so many places we've passed through in the last five years, it's just kinda sad. The big cities are getting more and more crowded and the small towns are getting smaller. Ah, but the Continental Divide Trail continues to develop and as it passes through Lordsburg, maybe that will help. Maybe.

Someone's front yard fence in Lordsburg.