This section of the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route leads from Salida, Colorado, to the Conejos River outpost of Platoro, then onward into New Mexico, the aptly nicknamed “Land of Enchantment.” Here it traverses the remote, high-elevation Tusas Mountains before passing through three New Mexico villages straight out of Old Mexico: Cañon Plaza, Vallecitos, and El Rito. South of Abiquiu, a tough, 25-mile climb up Polvadera Mesa leads into the heavily forested Jemez Mountains, where elk and black bear are common residents. South of the town of Cuba the route winds through the carved maze of eroded terrain that separates Mesa Chivato and Chaco Mesa. From there it traverses the northwest flank of the San Mateo Mountains before dropping into the sprawling community of Grants.