Legends Of The West

Take the complimentary hotel shuttle from the airport. Get checked in and come down to the Orange & Black welcome desk in the lobby. Meet your guides for the Legends of the West motorcycle tour. Get to know everyone at our welcome dinner, where our guides will brief you on the adventure to come.

This morning we pick up our motorcycles and head out of the Sonoran Desert riding through the hills and into the mountains to see Saguaro National Park and its renowned towering cactuses. We stop for a few photos and then ride through the Superstition Mountains, home of the mysterious and secretive Lost Dutchman gold mine. After riding through the Native American reservation we visit the historic former US Cavalry Fort Apache. We end the day riding down to our hotel and a good night’s rest.

Another day in the high desert as we cross New Mexico and its vast, open spaces. We ride through Gila National Forest on our way to see the Very Large Array radio telescope, part of the National Radio Astronomy Observatory, responsible for some of the most important astronomical discoveries of our time. It peers into infinity, listening for the mysteries of deep space, as part of the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) project. Next stop is the Rio Grande valley and the Bosque del Apache National wildlife refuge. Then to our hotel in Socorro and some real Mexican food and margaritas!

This morning is spent sightseeing in the Blue Mountains – Three Sisters, Wentworth Falls, cable car rides, lovely walks through the lush, ‘blue’ bushland from which the area gets its name, and plenty of scenic outlooks. Today’s route is a circular ride around the mountains before heading off to Hawkesbury Valley.

We leave New Mexico behind this morning and enter the Lone Star state, Texas! That means oil and cattle country, with open ranches and farmland dotted with the oil wells. Today is a long day, but a fun one with some great countryside and real rural America. We end our ride in San Angelo, heart of Texas ranching. Tonight, it’s time for a Texas-sized steak with all the trimmings!

We leave Texas ranching and cattle country and ride into the rolling hills, lakes and rivers of the central Texas hill country. Twisting and turning our way we soon stop for the slow-smoked aroma and taste of a barbecue lunch, Texas-style. Then it’s on to our destination, San Antonio. Tonight, we can indulge in the Tex-Mex specialty Fajitas, accompanied with a few good Mexican beers or margaritas. A fitting feast on your Legends of the West motorcycle tour.

San Antonio is a great place to take a break. We have the whole day today to enjoy the world-famous Riverwalk, with its galleries, shops and restaurants. Be sure to take the time to head over to the legendary Alamo, enjoy the free tour and learn the whole story of the Texan War of Independence from Mexico. Find out about the heroic men and women who fought against impossible odds and perished in their ill-fated attempt to hold the Alamo from capture by Mexican General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna’s overwhelming army. This was the final place where William B. Travis, Davy Crockett and James Bowie stood for Texan independence, alongside many others.  Then spend the evening checking out the Riverwalk and all its famous restaurants and nightlife.

Time to get back to riding, today we head west towards the border area of Texas along the Rio Grande River. Now it’s back into desert country with Choyo cactus, sagebrush and mesquite trees. We stop in Langtry for a look around the courthouse saloon of the nefarious Judge Roy Bean, the ‘Only law west of the Pecos’. After taking it all in, we get onto some of the fastest roads in the USA, following the old Butterfield stage route to our hotel through Marathon for a 2-night stop.

There is a place in Far West Texas where night skies are dark as coal and rivers carve temple-like canyons in ancient limestone. Here, at the end of the road, hundreds of bird species take refuge in a solitary mountain range surrounded by the weather-beaten Chihuahuan Desert. Tenacious cactus bloom in sublime southwestern sun, and diversity of species is the best in the country. This magical place is Big Bend National Park. The park is a geological marvel evidenced in sea fossils and dinosaur bones to volcanic dykes that mar the desert landscape. It’s a world of species diversity from the meandering river corridor that sidles across the desert floor to the sky island ridge tops that reach for the stars. It’s a place where you can still hear the whispers of pioneers, ranchers, miners, and Native Americans. And it’s a land of borders—a place where countries and cultures meet.

Today we hit the road and explore Big Bend’s gorgeous vistas and incredible array of experiences.

This morning we head for the small town of Fort Davis, famous as the home of the ‘Buffalo Soldiers’. Here we pick up the Texas Mountain Trail’s twisting roads and scenery, and ride through some of the most remote places in the state. We continue through the desert, stopping at Guadalupe Mountain State Park for some pictures and sightseeing. Finally, a brief stopover to see Carlsbad Caverns National Park and its enormous caves. A short ride takes us to our Carlsbad hotel for dinner and a couple of beers to end the fabulous day.

Back in New Mexico, we ride through more ranch land and farms and into the cool pines of the southern end Rocky Mountains. After lunch in the small town of Cloudcroft we drop back down into the desert. Our next stop is White Sands National Monument, where the first open-air test of the atomic bomb was done in 1944. The crystal-white gypsum sand dunes stand in stark contrast to the surrounding desert. Then it’s over the Organ Pipe mountain range and into Las Cruces and Old Mesilla, once the territorial capitol of Arizona. This is where Sheriff Pat Garett brought Billy the Kid to be tried and sentenced for his crimes. Dine at the famous La Posta de Mesilla restaurant. Dating back to the 1840s and hosting famous western legends like Pat Garrett, Doc Holiday, Geronimo, Pancho Villa, Butch Cassidy, this was a stage stop for the Butterfield Overland stagecoach.

Continuing our motorcycle tour west, today we ride through the Chihuahuan desert into Arizona. Vast spaces and desert vistas take us through the ancestral home of the Apache tribes as we follow the route of the Butterfield and Wells Fargo stagecoach lines. We end our day in Douglas, right on the Mexican-American border. More authentic Mexican food and culture here for a great end to the day.

Today we head to the historic copper, gold and silver mining town of Bisbee where we stop for a mid-morning coffee and a look around town. Then it’s off to the world-famous old west town of Tombstone, where the legendary shootout at the OK corral occurred and was written into the annals of western history. Finally, a ride into Tucson and an evening to relax before our last day on tour.

First stop today is the Pima Air & Space Museum, with an interesting collection of airplanes. We also get a glimpse of the famous ’boneyard’ (sadly we can’t get in): acres upon acres of decommissioned military aircraft, some for a later return to service, or partially disassembled and laid out in the dry desert sun for spare parts. Then a final ride through the mountains to return our trusty iron horses. We finish our adventure with a farewell dinner at the hotel, a few drinks and share our memories of the amazing southwestern United States.

With the Legends of the West motorcycle tour over it’s time to head home, look through your photos and reminisce over your adventure. The ghosts of the Old West remain with you, bringing to life the history and allure of cowboys, soldiers, settlers, lawmen and outlaws. Enjoy your journey home and share your adventure with friends and family. Hopefully we’ll see you again soon on another unforgettable Orange & Black motorcycle holiday.