Kanala picks up the pace in the exhilarating air of the high desert.

Twilight on the high plains of New Mexico is a magical experience.

Waking up in the beautiful Sumner Lake State Park to the rising sun over the calm blue lake was a powerful and invigorating experience. It was our first night of camping since the beginning of the run.

Camping in Nature’s embrace gave us all a renewed sense of harmony.

Even though it became quite windy and chilly at night, the sunrise offered many wonderful colors as well as quickly heating up the high desert air.

The National Park Rangers at Lake Sumner are a very friendly group of professional who have always supported our Run.

Before leaving the camp we were visited by some of the park rangers who wanted to meet us and pass the Torch around. David Sanchez, Richard Turrell and a few other very kind rangers spent 30 minutes with us discussing our adventures as well as the history of the land around the lake.

Francesco dives into the lake’s serenity.

It is always difficult to leave the peace and harmony of such a beautiful place and head out on the long and hot highways, but duty calls and harmony beckons us to cover one step at a time.

The Mayor of Fort Sumner greeted us as we passed through his historic town.

Just before the start of our day’s run we met with the Mayor of Ft. Sumner, Juan Chavez, and his lovely wife Barbara and their son Robert. At City Hall we also were welcomed by Sandy from the Chamber of Congress and the County Clerk. Lisa, from the DeBaca County Newspaper, came to cover the event at City Hall. We are very grateful for the time they took out of their busy day to greet us and see us off to another long, hot day.

Eric gets a taste of a stiff headwind at 7000 feet.

Erik, our runner from Chicago referred to the wind as “more of a blessing than a curse, as if the spirit of New Mexico was welcoming us with its vastness and its power.”

You can’t help but be inspired by such peace and beauty.

Today was a very windy day. Some of us struggled all day trying to run into the headwinds which made us work twice as hard as usual. But Francesco, our runner from Italy, says, “For me it was one of the best days since the run began. I never saw such a vast and infinite space as I did today running in the high desert. I lost myself in the joy of running with a complete sense of freedom and no limits.” On the other hand, Ulugbek, our Uzbeki runner, said that even walking into such a strong wind was difficult.

Arpan plots out the day’s route with a sophisticated digital mapping program.

The wind finally died down by the time the women were into their run later in the day. As we passed them in our car after our run they seemed to be flying. We are so lucky to have such strong and willing women to help cover the miles everyday through any kind of conditions. Unfortunately, our runner from Florida, Kharasrota, has to leave us tomorrow in Santa Fe. She has been a strong and cheerful member of our team since we were in Florida and she will be sorely missed.

Our hosts at the Zia Campground have become like family.

Our day ended at the Zia campground outside of Moriarity. Bob and Trixie Satterlee have always offered us plenty of space to settle into their cozy camp with a small animal farm as well. They certainly understand the concept of harmony and self-giving and have always inspired us in all that they do for us and their patrons.

Sunrise over Sumner Lake was a glory to behold.

We even got a dozen freshly laid eggs from their own hens on the farm. We are getting ready to get some rest in this peaceful campground so that tomorrow, once again, we can head out on the highways to carry the Torch of harmony and friendship from one town to the next, meeting fantastic people all along the way.

Arpan and the Happy Harmony Campers

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