Doomsday America.

Chapter 326 Mount Guadalupe

As he finished speaking, Gavin's gaze also lingered on the desert on the map.

That is the Chihuahua Desert, and on the edge of the desert is Chihuahua, Mexico’s largest border city.

At that moment, Gavin was assessing how far they would have to travel if they needed to bypass the Chihuahua Desert to enter Mexico.

After a simple calculation, Gavin frowned.

If they need to detour into Mexico, they will have to travel at least 500 kilometers more to reach Silver City, New Mexico. Most importantly, even if Gavin chooses to take the detour, that route will inevitably take them through Mexico's Highway 67D, all the way to Chihuahua, before they can turn north onto the road leading to Silver City.

Thinking of this, Gavin couldn't help but rub his scalp.

Because the population of Chihuahua, Mexico, is actually bigger than that of El Paso!

Moreover, Mexico's urban planning is far inferior to El Paso's. Not only are there towering buildings in the city, but the population of slums is also emerging like NPC spawn points.

Although El Paso has a large population, approaching one million, its urban planning scheme is typical of a mid-sized American city.

That is, there are few high-rise buildings, many detached houses, large land area, and strong greening.

Most medium-sized cities in the United States are like this, just like the countless single-family homes you see in many TV dramas. In the United States, you can only see towering skyscrapers in overpopulated cities like New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago, especially in places like Manhattan where land is incredibly valuable.

Otherwise, most medium-sized American cities with populations approaching one million have fewer high-rise buildings than county-level cities in the East with populations of only a few hundred thousand.

This is not an exaggeration, but a real difference in urban planning between the two Eastern American countries.

In the East, urban areas tend to be more centralized, with a single residential complex often crammed with countless people. In contrast, the United States emphasizes a sense of distance, where you often have to walk five, seven, or eight kilometers just to buy groceries outside your neighborhood.

In short, although El Paso has a large population, it seems easier to get around because of the relatively few tall buildings.

And Chihuahua, Mexico...

Gavin thought about how terrible the Mexican city planning was, and he felt that if he wanted to walk through that city, he would inevitably face countless zombies falling from the sky like dumplings being dropped into a pot!

That's right!

When exploring the city, what the guys fear most is not the endless ground zombies, but the flying zombies that could jump off tall buildings at any moment.

Of course, zombies can't fly.

But when zombies appear out of nowhere and slam into your car, whether they can fly or not is irrelevant; you're basically doomed inside...

As he watched, Gavin couldn't help but shift his gaze from the south of Highway 20, towards the Chihuahua Desert, to the north of Highway 20.

Meanwhile, the convoy was already approaching the city of El Paso.

The city of El Paso is built next to the dunes, which are a low but vast mountain range.

At this point, Gavin's team was about three kilometers away from El Paso, but the mountain was already very clear, and the city below the mountain showed itself to Gavin and his group.

Looking at the city area, which was only a few kilometers away, Gavin swallowed hard and patted Madison on the shoulder.

"McGee, pull over nearby. Let the guys have a smoke and a drink, rest a bit, and we can discuss our next move." "El Paso doesn't look easy to cross, and going into Mexico might not be a good option. Maybe we'll have to take the longest detour!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Gavin reached out and grabbed the car door switch, while Madison slowly brought the car to a stop in the middle of the road.

Once the lead vehicle stopped, the following vehicles gradually stopped as well.

Eugene immediately got out of the car and shouted something to Gavin.

"Hey boss, did the co-pilot in the War Shield wear out your sexy ass? You want to rest in the RV for a while?" "Don't fucking talk nonsense."

Gavin opened the car door, gave Eugene the middle finger, and then got out of the car and walked among the men who were gradually gathering. He casually took the cigarette Eugene offered, sniffed it for a moment, then lit it with the lighter Eugene offered and took a deep drag.

After taking a puff, Gavin said, a cigarette dangling from his lips.

"Have a smoke, have some drinks, and take a short break. Captain and vice-captain, gather here. We need to discuss the next route." At this point, the guys split into two groups. One group of ordinary team members gathered near the RV with their guns. Since there were plenty of drinks and snacks stored in the RV, they went over to pick and choose, eating and chatting at the same time.

Gavin, along with Madison and four others, were engrossed in examining several maps.

Edward's attitude toward El Paso was extremely clear; he immediately spoke, a cigarette dangling from his lips.

"Boss, we might be able to get through El Paso, after all, El Paso's urban layout is quite spacious."

"But we don't seem to need to do that, because the Brotherhood hasn't suffered any more attacks so far, and they haven't sent us any more urgent messages."

"So why should we risk crossing a border city with a population of nearly one million? If we encounter any encirclement or blockade within the city, we will face annihilation!"

"Even if we carried a hundred Gatling guns, we might not be able to break through a million zombies, even if we had a few thermobaric rounds in our cargo hold!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Edward pointed crisply towards the north wind on Highway 20, while his finger landed on the northern peak of Guadalupe.

He continued speaking.

"Moreover, if we bypass Guadalupe Peak to the north, we only need to pass through a few small towns with populations of less than eight thousand to bypass the large city of El Paso and reach Las Cruces, which lies just in front of Silver City!"

"Las Cruces is the second largest city in New Mexico, but its population is only around 100,000, at most no more than 120,000." "Besides, I've been to Las Cruces myself; there are practically no tall buildings there, you know, practically none!" "The city covers an area of ​​nearly 200 square kilometers, but within those 200 square kilometers, there are fewer than 120,000 people. The entire city has very few tall buildings; from a distance, it looks like rows and rows of shipping containers—the layout is very spacious!"

"Most importantly, Las Cruces isn't a road hub; there are countless small roads around it that can help us bypass the city." "Even if there weren't roads, Las Cruces is surrounded by a vast, freely traversable desert; our vehicles can easily navigate around them slowly across the desert!"

"In short, in my opinion, instead of going through El Paso, we should take a longer route and go to Las Cruces via the Guadalupe Pass. That would probably take us about seven more hours, since after leaving the highway we'd be on regular roads, and the area around Guadalupe Pass is at a high altitude with many mountain trails."

"But to trade seven hours for the risk of a million zombies in El Paso, I think those seven hours would be an absolute steal!"

After he finished speaking, Edward silently looked at Gavin.

Gavin lowered his gaze to the map and remained silent for the time being.

Madison pondered for a moment, then asked Edward in a low voice.

"Edward, instead of taking the high-altitude trails like those on Guadalupe Peak, why don't we cross the Chihuahua Desert? That desert isn't as dangerous as the Sahara."

"Because that's further, Madison!"

Edward answered quickly.

"We only have three options right now: either go through El Paso, go north around Guadalupe Peak, or go south through the Chihuahua Desert. Going north would require us to go about 350 kilometers further, but it would take us at most five hours to get through."

"But if we head south, we'll probably have to go about 550 kilometers further, and we might have to rest in Mexico tonight." "Of course, I'm not one of those idiots who think the air in Mexico isn't as clean as ours, and that resting in Mexico is like dying. In fact, before the apocalypse, I used to go to Mexico for work and leisure all the time. You know what SEAL Team Six's work is like, right?" "Anyway, I know Mexico very well, even better than Guadalupe Peak, but I still don't want to go the long way around."

"Moreover, if we want to enter Mexico, we also have to solve the border wall problem. Although the US-Mexico border wall is far from being a continuous wall, there are plenty of border walls near major roads."

"In short, boss, I strongly suggest we take the Guadalupe route!"

That concludes Edward's main points.

He remained where he was, waiting for Gavin's choice.

Gavin didn't keep him waiting. After glancing around at the men, he simply nodded and decided, "Do as Edward says. Next, we'll go back a short distance and take the Guadalupe route near Van Horn."

After saying that, Gavin put away the map and slowly exhaled a puff of smoke.

Seeing this, Edward grinned with satisfaction, while the others gathered around Garvin and chatted for a while longer.

As they chatted, Gavin gazed absently at the rising hot air over the distant Gobi Desert.

As we got closer to Mexico, the air got hotter and hotter, damn it.

Gavin could hardly see any greenery, except when he looked towards El Paso, where a considerable amount of urban greenery was still present. Following Gavin's gaze, the group chatted about the city of El Paso for a while, and after a good ten minutes or so, they got back into the car and sped off towards Van Horn.

Throughout the journey, Gavin silently looked at his watch.

About fifty minutes later, they arrived in Van Horn, at around 3:30 p.m.

The convoy then left Highway 20 and took Highway 54, a winding mountain road leading to Guadalupe Peak.

This section of road is about forty kilometers long, but it is quite rugged and difficult to travel, as it winds its way through the mountains.

The good thing is that this place is too remote. Even before the apocalypse, there weren't many vehicles on the road. Moreover, the apocalypse happened at three in the morning, so we didn't see a single car along the way!

Before long, the men spotted the familiar Guadalupe Peak.

When the crew arrived, they found themselves in a scene typical of the cowboy world.

Many people may not know the name Guadalupe, but believe me, you've actually seen that mountain in countless movies and games.

For example, the famous cowboy-themed game, Red Dead Redemption.

It was a large, rocky mountain that jutted out abruptly from the gentle mountain range, looking like a large block of tofu lying on a steamed bun from a distance.

In the game Red Dead Redemption, many treasures are hidden on this mountain. Although many people don't know its name, they have actually explored this mountain many times.

The lonely road cuts through the Gobi Desert, bidding farewell to the few cacti and tumbleweeds along the way, before quickly passing through Mount Guadalupe National Park and heading towards the next Carlsbad Cavern National Park.

Similarly, Carlsbad Cavern is a frequent location for treasure hunts in cowboy games, and even many pirate games use this cave as a filming location.

Unfortunately, the scenery wasn't worth the guys lingering over, as it was getting dark.

Until the group bypassed the two tourist attractions and was about to reach the city of Carlsbad further ahead.

The convoy finally stopped at the edge of a dirt road connecting to the main road.

The dirt road is marked on the map as... 408.

In reality, this road is barely paved; it's just a dirt road that cuts directly through the Gobi Desert. It was a road that cowboys used to drive their cattle to their destination faster, forcing it out on horseback.

Even so, this road still became one of the guys' choices.

After having Old Mike park the car nearby for a moment, Gavin finally waved in the direction of the road.

"Old Mike, let's take the 408!"

He said this, and then the convoy resolutely rushed into the boundless Gobi Desert.

After all, Carlsbad, which is further ahead, is also a medium-sized town with a population of nearly 50,000, and due to the difficulty of obtaining water, the city is even more compact than El Paso.

So, Gavin didn't want to drive through the middle of such a city, so he had to take the dirt road 408 and then transfer to Highway 137, which encircles the Guadalupe Mountains.

Most importantly, as they walked further and further, it was already close to five o'clock.

Gavin is planning to take his guys to find a campsite!

And when it comes to camping, what place could be safer than the vast Gobi Desert?

Putting aside the possibility that zombies might avoid the arid environment of the Gobi Desert, the Gobi Desert's geographical location alone guarantees that the guys will be able to get a good night's sleep there.

As for the rattlesnakes and lizards that were bound to be there next door, as well as a few sand foxes and coyotes, could those things be any safer than guns? In any case, Gavin decided to lead the team to rest for one night in the Gobi Desert. Although Route 408 was just a dirt road, it had been around for many years and its safety was guaranteed. Moreover, there was a small forest and oasis in the middle of the road, which was why Gavin chose that place!

Speaking of El Paso, Gavin had never actually been there. After all, it's a mixed bag, full of all sorts of unruly border residents and illegal immigrants. Even a fool could guess what kind of place it would be.

But Gavin did actually visit Guadalupe Peak, or rather, more than 60 percent of cowboy families in the American West must have brought their children to Guadalupe Peak, a pilgrimage site for cowboys.

This is the significance of Guadalupe, and the reason why this mountain has appeared countless times in cowboy movies. It is a symbol of cowboy culture. Route 408 is very short, only about 25 kilometers long.

Not long after, Gavin ordered Old Man to park the car next to the forest in the very middle of Route 408.

As soon as the car stopped, Gavin got out and looked towards the confluence of the rivers in the distance.

Both rivers originate from the Guadalupe Mountains, where Guadalupe Peak is located. Only in high-altitude mountain areas can rivers exist in this extremely hot desert.

Meanwhile, on the truck.

Looking at the sun, which wouldn't be completely dark for about another hour.

Edward tapped his watch, walked over to Gavin, and asked in a low voice.

"Boss, isn't it a bit too early to stop now? Logically speaking, we still have more than an hour before we completely encounter darkness."

"Don't say that, Edward. An hour is not a short time, but we still need to leave some time for setting up the tent and cooking."

Gavin patted Edward's arm and said to him with a smile.

"Besides, Edward, we're not currently on a series of countless missions with SEAL Team Six."

"While the Brotherhood needs us to go and help them, their needs must never come before the safety of our own people!"

"Compared to the dangers they might face, I cherish you more, and I cherish the safety of each and every one of us even more."

"The Brotherhood's population of over sixty certainly makes the trip worthwhile, but no matter how many people there are, it's not worth taking any more risks. I've been to this forest myself, I know what the environment is like, and I know how safe it is. It's definitely a good place to camp. The guys can not only rest here away from danger, but also relax and clear their heads."

As soon as he finished speaking, Gavin raised his hands and clapped them lightly, drawing the attention of the men who were gradually getting off the bus to himself.

Then, Gavin said in a lighthearted tone.

"Guys, welcome to a place I cherished deeply from my childhood. This forest is a dreamlike place that left the deepest impression on me during my trip with my parents to Guadalupe!"

"This is where the hills and glaciers converge. It's far from the city, sparsely populated, and you don't have to worry about the risk of zombie attacks." "You can fish here, take showers, the water source is abundant, and the terrain is perfect. If it weren't for the severe shortage of supplies, I'd even like to establish a branch base here!"

"But anyway, guys, we're going to enjoy tonight."

"Let's set up the tent and the grill."

"Given the atmosphere tonight, we might be able to drink a little more!"