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Monday, July 30, 2007
Day #10
This was a particularly special day in that we started our day along the longest and most beautiful untouched stretch of Route 66. We started our day with all of us getting up pretty early EXCEPT for Pete! (I was so grateful he slept in a bit). As we were beginning to pack, a mussed-haired little boy sat up, looked outside, looked at us and said “The sun is on!” Is he always going to be this cute?? Anyway, we all went outside to start our day with a small continental breakfast in the little gazebo in the middle of the motel. It is an outside gazebo, and the morning was gorgeous. After packing up, having breakfast, getting ice and gas, we were off.
We initially had to get on I-40, but not for long. At the Crookton Road exit, we began our long journey down Route 66. If you have ever done any research on 66, you would know of a man named Angel Delgadillo. He is credited with being the person who saved 66 from complete demise. You can see him in the Pixar extra “The inspiration behind Cars” as well as any number of DVDs. When someone wants to research 66 or make a movie, they go to Angel. (Pixar credited him as “The Angel of Route 66”). Anyway, our first stop was in his hometown of Seligman at his gift shop/barber shop. He and his father, by trade, were barbers. He still has his chair and cuts only occasionally. He is 83 and mostly retired. Well, we weren’t in the gift shop portion for more than a few minutes when he walked in! We visited with him for a few minutes, shopped for a few minutes, and then he asked if we had seen his chair. We went into his little barber shop and as we were talking about shaving in the old days, I said “Come on Steve, get a shave!” Angel was happy to oblige.
Steve had the nicest shave EVER. The kids were fascinated seeing someone get shaved in a barber’s chair like that (even Pete wondered what that man was doing to Dad!) He told us every stop of the way what he was doing. And, fortunately, the God’s of Video Tape were with us today…Andy got the whole thing on tape!! It was SO much fun. Angel is VERY funny. When Steve went to pay he asked Angel if he should pay out in the gift shop or pay Angel directly. Angel whispered “If you pay them, they’ll go get drunk.” And then he looked at me and whispered “If you pay me, then I’LL go get drunk!” He was truly a wonderful man and I just LOVED spending time with him.
Right about the time the shave was over, two big tour busses were coming in and the little gift shop was getting crowded, so we headed on our way. I was so grateful we got there when we did. Steve said he had seen a tour bus leaving as we pulled up, so we really did have nice ‘one on one’ time with him.
When we were done making several purchases in his gift shop, we walked next door to his brother’s store. His brother, Juan, died in 2004, but the family is keeping the Snow Cap Drive-In going. Juan had a great sense of humor too, as can be seen in his store. He was famous for selling “Dead Chicken”, “Hamburgers without the Ham”, etc. It was quite a store. Unfortunately, it was closed, so we could only walk around outside and look in. (it is quite small inside, most of the seating was outside). We saw signs on the window which said things like “Helen Waite is our credit manager. If you want credit, go to Helen Waite.” The two ‘out houses’, I am told, have TVs in them. On the front of them it says “me casa es tu casa” among other things. You’ll have to see the photos. This place was a riot!
Anyway, back in the car, we headed out of Seligman. The route curves way away from I-40 for awhile. We saw an old boarded up Indian School in Valentine, AZ as well as the western edge of the Grand Canyon in the distance near Peach Springs. We stopped at the Hackberry General Store in Hackberry, AZ. This place was credited in the Cars movie, and it looks like Lizzie’s Curio Shop. I wanted to buy a bumper sticker there (because Lizzie was so good and putting bumper stickers on everyone’s cars in the movie), but they didn’t sell any!! So, we got everyone drinks instead. It was a cute place. We also donated to the preservation of the beautiful Corvette out front.
We hit Kingman around noon, and decided to go ahead and check into our hotel now before heading on. (we are doubling back to Kingman for the night because I don’t want to stay in Needles!) The hotel is very old, right in downtown Kingman (which is a decent sized town, but it’s downtown is very sleepy). I went in and the couple who is refurbishing the place were there. She said it was great that we were checking in now, because they didn’t want to have to man the desk tonight and we were the only ones checking in. I thought that was strange, but ok. They gave us two keys. Andy gets his own room tonight! They have these “cowboy rooms” which are basically a bed in a room, no bathroom. He threw it on for an extra $1 so that Andy could have his own bed. Andy was ecstatic. She also told me that they had hosted a wedding over the weekend, so it may be a bit messy.
So, I checked in, got my two keys, and we were off for Oatman. Oatman is this small mountain town up in the Black Mountains of Arizona. They call it “The ghost town that wouldn’t die.” It is quite interesting taking 66 up there. My book tells of people who would pay others in Kingman to drive their car over the mountains for them back in the 30s and 40s because it was so hairy on the road. We didn’t feel it was THAT bad, but there were a lot of hairpin turns, and you do have to take it slow.
Once we got there, we realized how HOT Oatman was (100+). Now Kingman had been hot (92), but we were going UP in the mountains, and I just figured it wouldn’t be so bad! But I guess it is in a valley up in the mountains, and so it gets pretty hot there. This place does look like something out of the old west. We walked around and saw that there were a ton of shops you could go into and buy stuff. We really felt ‘bought out’ after all of our other curio stops. To make matters worse, I had started notfeeling quite right, and so going into one of their restaurants didn’t sound too good, either. We went into the museum and looked at all of their old stuff, and then started to head back down the street (Route 66 is basically the only street that runs through town). We did stop for ice cream because everyone was getting SO hot.
Oatman has staged gunfights every few hours, and they were starting another one. They kicked it off by firing off a shotgun. Well, you can imagine how well that went over with Pete! He just wanted to “GET INSIDE, PLEASE!!!” So, Emily and Steve took him into a shop while Andy and I watched the show. It was cute. Andy got some nice video.
The other thing Oatman is known for are the wild burros that come into town. They are descendants of the burros who used to help the miners in the area. Every shop in town sells carrots that you can feed them. We hadn’t seen any burros until we were about to leave (figures) and by that time, everyone was so hot that no one cared! I said “Does anyone want Dad to stop the car and we’ll buy some carrots and feed the Burros?” And there was a resounding “NO” from the back. Okay, then.
We took 66 all the rest of the way to the border of California through barren hills which Dad says are a taste of what is to come tomorrow in the dessert. Great. 66 doesn’t actually cross the Colorado at the line, so you have to get on I-40, which we did. We went through a state inspection site where they stopped our car and asked where we had come from. We looked about as mid-west as we could look, and Steve said “Chicago” while I said “Arizona”. Duh, Jen. He said to have a nice day, and we moved on. Of course, the kids wanted to know what they wanted with us. We told them they were looking for adorable children to sell, and so they should cover up Pete (who was sound asleep) so that they didn’t take him! We are awful, sometimes.
Anyway, we were in California only briefly before heading back across and up to Bullhead City (the original Las Vegas). Oh, and by the way, Steve had been watching the temperature outside. We thought Oatman was bad! We were now in Needles and watching the numbers climb…103…105…110…111! We started to think about the propane stored on the rooftop carrier. We were hoping that the nice hot breeze going over the carrier was helping a bit (ha!). We are planning on putting the propane tanks in our car tomorrow for our trip across the desert, but didn’t realize we might have had to do it today! No worries, the cartop carrier never exploded.
After we got through Bullhead City, we headed back through the mountains towards Kingman on a bigger, much straighter highway than 66 had been! We got to the hotel by about 5 and went in. We were the only ones there. I’ve got to say, it really creeped me out. I still wasn’t feeling all that great, and this place, being the only ones (not even anyone at the front desk) was REALLY creepy. I didn’t say anything to the kids because I didn’t want them weirded-out, and they seemed fine. We brought out stuff up to our room and then headed back out for dinner.
We went to an old 50’s place called “Mr D’z.” It was awful (what did I expect?) and the airbrushed photos of Elvis and Marilyn Monroe right by our table looked REALLY SPOOKY. This artist was not good, and these pictures looked almost skeletal. Perhaps it was because I was already weirded out, but I really started feeling icky inside. I went to the car and closed my eyes.
When we got back to the hotel, I went straight to bed. I told Steve this morning that I was creeped out, but feeling so icky that I couldn’t even think about it. He wondered if I just shut down BECAUSE I was feeling so creepy. Could be. He mentioned that once he got everyone to sleep, he felt a bit creepy, too. I guess when you are the only ones in a big old hotel, it can get a bit weird. I kept thinking about how nice it would have been to be here during the weekend with the wedding party here. It probably would have felt a LOT different.
And don’t get me wrong; the rooms were very lovely. We had a suite with a bedroom, a large ¾ bathroom and then a living room where Emily slept. Everything was clean and updated, so it wasn’t like it was all run-down or anything. Just weird feeling all alone in a big old hotel. Oh, and I forgot to mention the trains. The Santa Fe Railroad is right outside the front of the building, and they run ALL NIGHT LONG. So they give complimentary ear plugs to all of their guests. How nice. I’m guessing the plugs shut out the sounds of the ghosts, too. (cue Twilight Zone music…)
Ah well, we survived. And now…CALIFORNIA OR BUST!
We initially had to get on I-40, but not for long. At the Crookton Road exit, we began our long journey down Route 66. If you have ever done any research on 66, you would know of a man named Angel Delgadillo. He is credited with being the person who saved 66 from complete demise. You can see him in the Pixar extra “The inspiration behind Cars” as well as any number of DVDs. When someone wants to research 66 or make a movie, they go to Angel. (Pixar credited him as “The Angel of Route 66”). Anyway, our first stop was in his hometown of Seligman at his gift shop/barber shop. He and his father, by trade, were barbers. He still has his chair and cuts only occasionally. He is 83 and mostly retired. Well, we weren’t in the gift shop portion for more than a few minutes when he walked in! We visited with him for a few minutes, shopped for a few minutes, and then he asked if we had seen his chair. We went into his little barber shop and as we were talking about shaving in the old days, I said “Come on Steve, get a shave!” Angel was happy to oblige.
Steve had the nicest shave EVER. The kids were fascinated seeing someone get shaved in a barber’s chair like that (even Pete wondered what that man was doing to Dad!) He told us every stop of the way what he was doing. And, fortunately, the God’s of Video Tape were with us today…Andy got the whole thing on tape!! It was SO much fun. Angel is VERY funny. When Steve went to pay he asked Angel if he should pay out in the gift shop or pay Angel directly. Angel whispered “If you pay them, they’ll go get drunk.” And then he looked at me and whispered “If you pay me, then I’LL go get drunk!” He was truly a wonderful man and I just LOVED spending time with him.
Right about the time the shave was over, two big tour busses were coming in and the little gift shop was getting crowded, so we headed on our way. I was so grateful we got there when we did. Steve said he had seen a tour bus leaving as we pulled up, so we really did have nice ‘one on one’ time with him.
When we were done making several purchases in his gift shop, we walked next door to his brother’s store. His brother, Juan, died in 2004, but the family is keeping the Snow Cap Drive-In going. Juan had a great sense of humor too, as can be seen in his store. He was famous for selling “Dead Chicken”, “Hamburgers without the Ham”, etc. It was quite a store. Unfortunately, it was closed, so we could only walk around outside and look in. (it is quite small inside, most of the seating was outside). We saw signs on the window which said things like “Helen Waite is our credit manager. If you want credit, go to Helen Waite.” The two ‘out houses’, I am told, have TVs in them. On the front of them it says “me casa es tu casa” among other things. You’ll have to see the photos. This place was a riot!
Anyway, back in the car, we headed out of Seligman. The route curves way away from I-40 for awhile. We saw an old boarded up Indian School in Valentine, AZ as well as the western edge of the Grand Canyon in the distance near Peach Springs. We stopped at the Hackberry General Store in Hackberry, AZ. This place was credited in the Cars movie, and it looks like Lizzie’s Curio Shop. I wanted to buy a bumper sticker there (because Lizzie was so good and putting bumper stickers on everyone’s cars in the movie), but they didn’t sell any!! So, we got everyone drinks instead. It was a cute place. We also donated to the preservation of the beautiful Corvette out front.
We hit Kingman around noon, and decided to go ahead and check into our hotel now before heading on. (we are doubling back to Kingman for the night because I don’t want to stay in Needles!) The hotel is very old, right in downtown Kingman (which is a decent sized town, but it’s downtown is very sleepy). I went in and the couple who is refurbishing the place were there. She said it was great that we were checking in now, because they didn’t want to have to man the desk tonight and we were the only ones checking in. I thought that was strange, but ok. They gave us two keys. Andy gets his own room tonight! They have these “cowboy rooms” which are basically a bed in a room, no bathroom. He threw it on for an extra $1 so that Andy could have his own bed. Andy was ecstatic. She also told me that they had hosted a wedding over the weekend, so it may be a bit messy.
So, I checked in, got my two keys, and we were off for Oatman. Oatman is this small mountain town up in the Black Mountains of Arizona. They call it “The ghost town that wouldn’t die.” It is quite interesting taking 66 up there. My book tells of people who would pay others in Kingman to drive their car over the mountains for them back in the 30s and 40s because it was so hairy on the road. We didn’t feel it was THAT bad, but there were a lot of hairpin turns, and you do have to take it slow.
Once we got there, we realized how HOT Oatman was (100+). Now Kingman had been hot (92), but we were going UP in the mountains, and I just figured it wouldn’t be so bad! But I guess it is in a valley up in the mountains, and so it gets pretty hot there. This place does look like something out of the old west. We walked around and saw that there were a ton of shops you could go into and buy stuff. We really felt ‘bought out’ after all of our other curio stops. To make matters worse, I had started notfeeling quite right, and so going into one of their restaurants didn’t sound too good, either. We went into the museum and looked at all of their old stuff, and then started to head back down the street (Route 66 is basically the only street that runs through town). We did stop for ice cream because everyone was getting SO hot.
Oatman has staged gunfights every few hours, and they were starting another one. They kicked it off by firing off a shotgun. Well, you can imagine how well that went over with Pete! He just wanted to “GET INSIDE, PLEASE!!!” So, Emily and Steve took him into a shop while Andy and I watched the show. It was cute. Andy got some nice video.
The other thing Oatman is known for are the wild burros that come into town. They are descendants of the burros who used to help the miners in the area. Every shop in town sells carrots that you can feed them. We hadn’t seen any burros until we were about to leave (figures) and by that time, everyone was so hot that no one cared! I said “Does anyone want Dad to stop the car and we’ll buy some carrots and feed the Burros?” And there was a resounding “NO” from the back. Okay, then.
We took 66 all the rest of the way to the border of California through barren hills which Dad says are a taste of what is to come tomorrow in the dessert. Great. 66 doesn’t actually cross the Colorado at the line, so you have to get on I-40, which we did. We went through a state inspection site where they stopped our car and asked where we had come from. We looked about as mid-west as we could look, and Steve said “Chicago” while I said “Arizona”. Duh, Jen. He said to have a nice day, and we moved on. Of course, the kids wanted to know what they wanted with us. We told them they were looking for adorable children to sell, and so they should cover up Pete (who was sound asleep) so that they didn’t take him! We are awful, sometimes.
Anyway, we were in California only briefly before heading back across and up to Bullhead City (the original Las Vegas). Oh, and by the way, Steve had been watching the temperature outside. We thought Oatman was bad! We were now in Needles and watching the numbers climb…103…105…110…111! We started to think about the propane stored on the rooftop carrier. We were hoping that the nice hot breeze going over the carrier was helping a bit (ha!). We are planning on putting the propane tanks in our car tomorrow for our trip across the desert, but didn’t realize we might have had to do it today! No worries, the cartop carrier never exploded.
After we got through Bullhead City, we headed back through the mountains towards Kingman on a bigger, much straighter highway than 66 had been! We got to the hotel by about 5 and went in. We were the only ones there. I’ve got to say, it really creeped me out. I still wasn’t feeling all that great, and this place, being the only ones (not even anyone at the front desk) was REALLY creepy. I didn’t say anything to the kids because I didn’t want them weirded-out, and they seemed fine. We brought out stuff up to our room and then headed back out for dinner.
We went to an old 50’s place called “Mr D’z.” It was awful (what did I expect?) and the airbrushed photos of Elvis and Marilyn Monroe right by our table looked REALLY SPOOKY. This artist was not good, and these pictures looked almost skeletal. Perhaps it was because I was already weirded out, but I really started feeling icky inside. I went to the car and closed my eyes.
When we got back to the hotel, I went straight to bed. I told Steve this morning that I was creeped out, but feeling so icky that I couldn’t even think about it. He wondered if I just shut down BECAUSE I was feeling so creepy. Could be. He mentioned that once he got everyone to sleep, he felt a bit creepy, too. I guess when you are the only ones in a big old hotel, it can get a bit weird. I kept thinking about how nice it would have been to be here during the weekend with the wedding party here. It probably would have felt a LOT different.
And don’t get me wrong; the rooms were very lovely. We had a suite with a bedroom, a large ¾ bathroom and then a living room where Emily slept. Everything was clean and updated, so it wasn’t like it was all run-down or anything. Just weird feeling all alone in a big old hotel. Oh, and I forgot to mention the trains. The Santa Fe Railroad is right outside the front of the building, and they run ALL NIGHT LONG. So they give complimentary ear plugs to all of their guests. How nice. I’m guessing the plugs shut out the sounds of the ghosts, too. (cue Twilight Zone music…)
Ah well, we survived. And now…CALIFORNIA OR BUST!
Saturday, July 28, 2007
Day #9
Half-way point! Steve and I woke up with the birds CAWING overhead, and nothing but blue sky as far as the eye could see (which wasn’t far…we are in a forest!)
The two of us left the tent and got hot water brewing for some coffee. All of a sudden, I heard a giggle from inside the tent. We had put Peter in his Tigger sweats because I was concerned about the cold in the night (it never did seem that bad), and now we were seeing Tigger emerge from the tent!
Soon we had the other two up and we were going about the business of breaking camp. Once ‘broke’, we headed over to the main Village area (Done by 9:30 this time…we’re getting better!) There are so many people at the Grand Canyon these days, that they don’t allow people to drive the rim all the way along. They now have Natural Gas busses which you can take for free all along the rim. It has really cut down on the traffic. After a quick stop at the market again to repair the car-top carrier (My Man doesn’t know his own strength!) we hopped a bus for the west side of the rim. We decided to get off and walk part way because the busses were so crowded.
We walked the rim for a bit and were surprised to see what little distance we had gone (it felt like we were almost in Nevada!) It was getting hot, and Pete wanted to be carried (which is probably why it felt like we had gone so far yet done so little), and so we decided to just get to the next bus stop which would take us back towards the village. Andy, on the other hand, when he saw the Bright Angel trail which takes you down into the heart of the canyon said “Cool! Let’s do THAT!” I said that was fine as long as he was willing to carry Pete. Oh, and I reminded him that all the signs say that the canyon is 20-30 degrees warmer than the rim. The plan was quickly squashed.
Emily and Pete had to use the facilities, and they did have them at that next bus stop, so we went there first. I only include this tid-bit because when we got to the facilities, there was a woman who had walked into one of the two “rooms”, screamed and came running back out! We could tell she was from Brazil, because she sounded just like an excited Carla or Marla.
Turns out, there was a bat down in the toilet. Now everyone else was looking in there and going “Ew” and walking out. Emily, of course, had to be the next person to look, and she was immediately concerned. The bat did not look good. Would you?
Well, just about that time, a man came to clean out the bathrooms, and we all thought someone had called a ranger or something, but it turned out he was just there to do his job. When we told him about the bat, he called a naturalist to come and ‘rescue’ the bat. We then HAD to wait around to make sure the bat was okay. Pete sat on the edge of the wall and ate veggie puffs and drank water, so he was fine. The naturalist showed up and picked up the bat and then proceeded to clean him off with clean water (I swear this is what Emily will do some day) We all got to touch the bat and get a really close look. She said he was a Pallid Bat and that he was a male (she even showed us how she could tell…don’t make me explain it) She tried to wash the chemicals off of him, and then she said she was going to let him dry for a few hours, and then set him free.
It actually turned out to be quite an adventure. The Grand Canyon was cool, but we got to touch a BAT!
We headed back and had a nice lunch at the Bright Angel Lodge, and then the kids said that they were done! So, we walked back to the car (bad idea…there had been a bus we could have taken…”Come on” I said…”It’s not that far,” I said…bad bad idea)
Anyway, there was the blessed car once we finally made it back to the parking lot, and we immediately jumped in, and Pete immediately fell asleep. It was almost in record time. The drive to Williams, AZ is nice and quick. There is a Grand Canyon train that takes people from Williams up to the Canyon for the day or more, and so this town is quite alive. We checked into “The Lodge on 66”. What a nice place! They have taken this old motor court and turned two rooms into one, so there is a sitting room with a kitchenette, and two BIG FLUFFY BEDS and a nice bathroom with a large tub (yay for Pete!)
Everyone took a shower, and then I took the laundry (we were at critical mass) across the street and got it all done in about an hour. I met the nicest people there. One couple lives on a ranch just north of here and they make their own electricity, and they have an outdoor tub and outhouse. They have horses and llamas (I learned why there are so many llamas around here…they make great ‘watchdogs’ to keep coyotes, etc. at bay, they don’t eat even half as much as a dog, and they don’t bark. When they are content, they HUM!)
Anyway, I greatly enjoyed my laundering experience. Once back at the room, we dressed and went to a very nice restaurant for dinner (reminded us of the Red Arrow Roadhouse). After dinner, we went to ANOTHER restaurant for their great pie. We rolled back to the motel like Weebles, but not before stopping at “Pete’s Route 66 Gas Station and Museum.” It was so cute and quite appropriate to our trip.
So, now everyone is snoring and I need to go to bed. Tomorrow we do the longest untouched stretch of 66 in western Arizona (when they show the Route 66 map during the Cars movie, this is the stretch they show). I am very excited! But I am also sad to leave this motel. I think this is the nicest one yet!
The two of us left the tent and got hot water brewing for some coffee. All of a sudden, I heard a giggle from inside the tent. We had put Peter in his Tigger sweats because I was concerned about the cold in the night (it never did seem that bad), and now we were seeing Tigger emerge from the tent!
Soon we had the other two up and we were going about the business of breaking camp. Once ‘broke’, we headed over to the main Village area (Done by 9:30 this time…we’re getting better!) There are so many people at the Grand Canyon these days, that they don’t allow people to drive the rim all the way along. They now have Natural Gas busses which you can take for free all along the rim. It has really cut down on the traffic. After a quick stop at the market again to repair the car-top carrier (My Man doesn’t know his own strength!) we hopped a bus for the west side of the rim. We decided to get off and walk part way because the busses were so crowded.
We walked the rim for a bit and were surprised to see what little distance we had gone (it felt like we were almost in Nevada!) It was getting hot, and Pete wanted to be carried (which is probably why it felt like we had gone so far yet done so little), and so we decided to just get to the next bus stop which would take us back towards the village. Andy, on the other hand, when he saw the Bright Angel trail which takes you down into the heart of the canyon said “Cool! Let’s do THAT!” I said that was fine as long as he was willing to carry Pete. Oh, and I reminded him that all the signs say that the canyon is 20-30 degrees warmer than the rim. The plan was quickly squashed.
Emily and Pete had to use the facilities, and they did have them at that next bus stop, so we went there first. I only include this tid-bit because when we got to the facilities, there was a woman who had walked into one of the two “rooms”, screamed and came running back out! We could tell she was from Brazil, because she sounded just like an excited Carla or Marla.
Turns out, there was a bat down in the toilet. Now everyone else was looking in there and going “Ew” and walking out. Emily, of course, had to be the next person to look, and she was immediately concerned. The bat did not look good. Would you?
Well, just about that time, a man came to clean out the bathrooms, and we all thought someone had called a ranger or something, but it turned out he was just there to do his job. When we told him about the bat, he called a naturalist to come and ‘rescue’ the bat. We then HAD to wait around to make sure the bat was okay. Pete sat on the edge of the wall and ate veggie puffs and drank water, so he was fine. The naturalist showed up and picked up the bat and then proceeded to clean him off with clean water (I swear this is what Emily will do some day) We all got to touch the bat and get a really close look. She said he was a Pallid Bat and that he was a male (she even showed us how she could tell…don’t make me explain it) She tried to wash the chemicals off of him, and then she said she was going to let him dry for a few hours, and then set him free.
It actually turned out to be quite an adventure. The Grand Canyon was cool, but we got to touch a BAT!
We headed back and had a nice lunch at the Bright Angel Lodge, and then the kids said that they were done! So, we walked back to the car (bad idea…there had been a bus we could have taken…”Come on” I said…”It’s not that far,” I said…bad bad idea)
Anyway, there was the blessed car once we finally made it back to the parking lot, and we immediately jumped in, and Pete immediately fell asleep. It was almost in record time. The drive to Williams, AZ is nice and quick. There is a Grand Canyon train that takes people from Williams up to the Canyon for the day or more, and so this town is quite alive. We checked into “The Lodge on 66”. What a nice place! They have taken this old motor court and turned two rooms into one, so there is a sitting room with a kitchenette, and two BIG FLUFFY BEDS and a nice bathroom with a large tub (yay for Pete!)
Everyone took a shower, and then I took the laundry (we were at critical mass) across the street and got it all done in about an hour. I met the nicest people there. One couple lives on a ranch just north of here and they make their own electricity, and they have an outdoor tub and outhouse. They have horses and llamas (I learned why there are so many llamas around here…they make great ‘watchdogs’ to keep coyotes, etc. at bay, they don’t eat even half as much as a dog, and they don’t bark. When they are content, they HUM!)
Anyway, I greatly enjoyed my laundering experience. Once back at the room, we dressed and went to a very nice restaurant for dinner (reminded us of the Red Arrow Roadhouse). After dinner, we went to ANOTHER restaurant for their great pie. We rolled back to the motel like Weebles, but not before stopping at “Pete’s Route 66 Gas Station and Museum.” It was so cute and quite appropriate to our trip.
So, now everyone is snoring and I need to go to bed. Tomorrow we do the longest untouched stretch of 66 in western Arizona (when they show the Route 66 map during the Cars movie, this is the stretch they show). I am very excited! But I am also sad to leave this motel. I think this is the nicest one yet!
Day #8
Well, apparently a HUGE storm hit Holbrook last night. It is amazing what a cement structure can do to completely insulate you from the outside. We had a FANTASTIC night’s sleep! (Steve even said he thought the bed was ‘comfy’!)
We had the car packed up and ready to go by 9, and we all decided that another trip back to Joe and Aggie’s was in order. Steve ALMOST ordered the Huevo Rancheros again, but he decided Mexican food twice in a row was not nice to his body, NOR to us! We took a few more goofy pictures before heading out of town.
In this part of Arizona you are mainly on I-40. To get to anything that is vintage Route 66, you have to take an off-ramp, see the thing, and then get back on the highway. Such was the case in Joseph City where we stopped at the Jack Rabbit Trading Post. This place has been here forever. They are the home of the “Here It Is” sign as well as a huge Jack Rabbit. After photos on the Jack Rabbit, off the Jack Rabbit, BY the Jack Rabbit and under the Jack Rabbit, we went inside and looked around. We were quite successful in spending our money.
Back on the highway, we decided to get off at Two Arrows, AZ to see the Two Arrows Café. Unfortunately, it not only is closed, but the two giant arrows in the ground (which were its defining item) are falling into disrepair. I read that someone is working to move the entire thing, building, arrows, and all, to Flagstaff. It kind of defeats the purpose of being in Two Arrows, AZ. Nonetheless, we took a few pictures and headed back onto the highway.
As we drove past Two Guns, AZ I read out loud a story of how it was once a tough cow town complete with houses of ill repute, saloons, and nightly gunfights. Unfortunately, there is absolutely nothing there now. Steve had the brilliant idea of opening up a family friendly saloon/café there to recapture the old west. I told him that there is NOTHING THERE for a reason! He thinks it is a viable idea. I think living the rest of my life in Two Guns is NOT a viable idea. We move on.
Our next stop was Winslow, Arizona. What a wonderful town! They have really been trying the past 5 years to spruce up the town. We stopped at a coffee house and were able to upload the past few days worth of blogs, as well as some very sweet coffee. We then ventured out to the “Standin’ on the Corner” statue. I don’t know how many of you know the Eagle’s song “Take it Easy” but the lyrics go:
“I was standin’ on the corner in Winslow, Arizona, such a fine sight to see. There’s a girl, my lord, in a flat-bed Ford slowing down to take a look at me…”
Well, Winslow has taken that song to heart and has used up every bit of it. They have the statue of man holding a guitar at one of their corners, and someone has painted a mural behind the statue of a girl, my lord, in a flat-bed Ford slowing down to take a look at him! Unfortunately, the building burned last year, and so now they have these rods shoring up both sides of that last wall standing to try to save the mural.
We took the requisite number of photos, and then hopped back into the car. Our next stop (after a “Wait! We forgot to see something! TURN AROUND” moment) was La Posada. This is a refurbished hotel in Winslow that is absolutely georgeous. It is right where the Amtrak train comes into town, so you can literally get off the train and stay in the hotel. Where you would be coming from, I have no idea, but it seems like a grand idea.
Once we had thoroughly exhausted Winslow, we headed towards Flagstaff. We noticed that the closer we got, the more the temperature dropped. In Joseph City it had been 85 degrees. By the time we hit Winona (and you thought I’d forget it!), the temperature said 65! It was drizzly and very cool, compared to where we’d been. The high point of Flagstaff was when the back seat yelled “I HAVE THREE BARS! YES!!! YES!!!” Is he a teenager or what?!?
We continued in awful traffic into the downtown area along 66, and then bailed to go north to see Sunset Crater National Park. Once we were through Flagstaff, the ride got much nicer. While it was still cool, the rain stopped and there were only a few people on the road with us. We headed into the park and stopped to climb Lava Trail. It was only .8 miles total, no biggie, right? Well, it went STRAIGHT UP and then, once you got to the top and said “Wow, a big dip in the mountain where the top blew off a volcano” you had to turn around and go STRAIGHT DOWN!! Not fun when you have a 3-year-old who stops every 15 steps, and refuses to go any further, until you take his shoe off to get the lava pebbles out of them. Only later, back in the car did I read “This trail is quite treacherous and is not recommended for the average family.” Thanks. Note to self: Read ahead.
The next stop was at the Sunset Crater trail, and, of course we all had to do the BIG loop (1.5 miles) not the SMALL loop (.5 miles). But this time I was prepared. I put Pete in Hiking Shoes! No more pebble stops for me. We walked around and I read the self-guiding pamphlet and we saw the lava flows, the twisted tree trunks, and generally learned about volcanos. It was pretty cool. I think Pete even liked it (especially kicking the rocks part.)
Back in the car we all decided that we REALLY NEEDED to get to the Grand Canyon. It was getting late. But the drive we were on took us into the Watupaki National Monument past these really cool Indian Ruins, and someone had to go to the bathroom, and, well, they WERE right there, and then the Ranger told us that we’d LOVE the Blow Hole, and, when you say Blow Hole, well, Steve can’t resist!
So, we found ourselves with another guide book, and me reading as fast as I possibly could, walking as quickly as we could past the ruins, headed as fast as we could to the Blow Hole. You know what? It WAS pretty cool! Ask Steve about it sometime. ☺
We headed back to the car, trying to finish the guide book, and me starting to sound like that Fed Ex ‘fast talker’ guy from the 80s reading as fast as I could. We returned the guide book, thanked them for the “Blow Hole Tip” (Bet you can’t find a use for THAT phrase in YOUR daily life!) and RAN to the car.
We headed north as quickly as we could, stopped for Gas at a station called “Speedy” in which the pump took FOREVER to fill our tank (what did we expect?) and then headed into the Grand Canyon via the East entrance.
I must say, if you ever find yourself going into the Grand Canyon, the east entrance is the way to go. It isn’t used as much, and so we found ourselves driving along with almost no one around us. I wanted to stop and get out and photograph, but the sun was getting lower towards the horizon, there was lightening in the distance, and Steve was in GO! GO! GO! Mode. Any shots you may see from us of the east side of the canyon will be from a speeding car.
We made it to the campsite, it was VERY cool, which was encouraging, but concerned me at the same time. We weren’t going to sweat it out tonight, but was it going to be too cold for Pete? We got everything set up, but THIS TIME I put Pete at our feet instead of our heads. Unfortunately, I put Pete’s head right at Andy’s feet, and I spent the night worrying that Andy was going to smash his skull, but we were fine.
After the tent was set up, my plan had been to go to the lodge for dinner. The sun was setting and Steve was exhausted, so we decided to go to the Village Store (which is an AWESOME store if you ever get there) to buy something there instead. On our way out we passed a HUGE Bull Elk just STANDING in a campsite checking out to see if anything good had been left behind. We took a few pictures and headed on. He was an INCREDIBLE SIGHT! After buying some simple camp food, we headed back, got a fire going, and actually had a decent meal and a decent evening.
Night #2 in a tent ended up being much more pleasant than the first tent night. The storm never hit us, but I did hear a faint bit of rain as I fell asleep. Everyone slept peacefully, for the most part, except that Steve, Emily and I all heard Andy say in the middle of the night “Oh great, now I lost BOTH my front teeth!” He couldn’t explain it in the morning. I heard a coyote, or something, howling VERY nearby at one point, but no one else in my tent heard it. I did hear the zippers going crazy on the tent next door after the howling stopped, which made me giggle. I can only guess that they either 1. Unzipped the door and ran to their car for the rest of the night or 2. Closed all the windows to keep the animal out...Ha!
Tomorrow we will actually SEE the Grand Canyon!
We had the car packed up and ready to go by 9, and we all decided that another trip back to Joe and Aggie’s was in order. Steve ALMOST ordered the Huevo Rancheros again, but he decided Mexican food twice in a row was not nice to his body, NOR to us! We took a few more goofy pictures before heading out of town.
In this part of Arizona you are mainly on I-40. To get to anything that is vintage Route 66, you have to take an off-ramp, see the thing, and then get back on the highway. Such was the case in Joseph City where we stopped at the Jack Rabbit Trading Post. This place has been here forever. They are the home of the “Here It Is” sign as well as a huge Jack Rabbit. After photos on the Jack Rabbit, off the Jack Rabbit, BY the Jack Rabbit and under the Jack Rabbit, we went inside and looked around. We were quite successful in spending our money.
Back on the highway, we decided to get off at Two Arrows, AZ to see the Two Arrows Café. Unfortunately, it not only is closed, but the two giant arrows in the ground (which were its defining item) are falling into disrepair. I read that someone is working to move the entire thing, building, arrows, and all, to Flagstaff. It kind of defeats the purpose of being in Two Arrows, AZ. Nonetheless, we took a few pictures and headed back onto the highway.
As we drove past Two Guns, AZ I read out loud a story of how it was once a tough cow town complete with houses of ill repute, saloons, and nightly gunfights. Unfortunately, there is absolutely nothing there now. Steve had the brilliant idea of opening up a family friendly saloon/café there to recapture the old west. I told him that there is NOTHING THERE for a reason! He thinks it is a viable idea. I think living the rest of my life in Two Guns is NOT a viable idea. We move on.
Our next stop was Winslow, Arizona. What a wonderful town! They have really been trying the past 5 years to spruce up the town. We stopped at a coffee house and were able to upload the past few days worth of blogs, as well as some very sweet coffee. We then ventured out to the “Standin’ on the Corner” statue. I don’t know how many of you know the Eagle’s song “Take it Easy” but the lyrics go:
“I was standin’ on the corner in Winslow, Arizona, such a fine sight to see. There’s a girl, my lord, in a flat-bed Ford slowing down to take a look at me…”
Well, Winslow has taken that song to heart and has used up every bit of it. They have the statue of man holding a guitar at one of their corners, and someone has painted a mural behind the statue of a girl, my lord, in a flat-bed Ford slowing down to take a look at him! Unfortunately, the building burned last year, and so now they have these rods shoring up both sides of that last wall standing to try to save the mural.
We took the requisite number of photos, and then hopped back into the car. Our next stop (after a “Wait! We forgot to see something! TURN AROUND” moment) was La Posada. This is a refurbished hotel in Winslow that is absolutely georgeous. It is right where the Amtrak train comes into town, so you can literally get off the train and stay in the hotel. Where you would be coming from, I have no idea, but it seems like a grand idea.
Once we had thoroughly exhausted Winslow, we headed towards Flagstaff. We noticed that the closer we got, the more the temperature dropped. In Joseph City it had been 85 degrees. By the time we hit Winona (and you thought I’d forget it!), the temperature said 65! It was drizzly and very cool, compared to where we’d been. The high point of Flagstaff was when the back seat yelled “I HAVE THREE BARS! YES!!! YES!!!” Is he a teenager or what?!?
We continued in awful traffic into the downtown area along 66, and then bailed to go north to see Sunset Crater National Park. Once we were through Flagstaff, the ride got much nicer. While it was still cool, the rain stopped and there were only a few people on the road with us. We headed into the park and stopped to climb Lava Trail. It was only .8 miles total, no biggie, right? Well, it went STRAIGHT UP and then, once you got to the top and said “Wow, a big dip in the mountain where the top blew off a volcano” you had to turn around and go STRAIGHT DOWN!! Not fun when you have a 3-year-old who stops every 15 steps, and refuses to go any further, until you take his shoe off to get the lava pebbles out of them. Only later, back in the car did I read “This trail is quite treacherous and is not recommended for the average family.” Thanks. Note to self: Read ahead.
The next stop was at the Sunset Crater trail, and, of course we all had to do the BIG loop (1.5 miles) not the SMALL loop (.5 miles). But this time I was prepared. I put Pete in Hiking Shoes! No more pebble stops for me. We walked around and I read the self-guiding pamphlet and we saw the lava flows, the twisted tree trunks, and generally learned about volcanos. It was pretty cool. I think Pete even liked it (especially kicking the rocks part.)
Back in the car we all decided that we REALLY NEEDED to get to the Grand Canyon. It was getting late. But the drive we were on took us into the Watupaki National Monument past these really cool Indian Ruins, and someone had to go to the bathroom, and, well, they WERE right there, and then the Ranger told us that we’d LOVE the Blow Hole, and, when you say Blow Hole, well, Steve can’t resist!
So, we found ourselves with another guide book, and me reading as fast as I possibly could, walking as quickly as we could past the ruins, headed as fast as we could to the Blow Hole. You know what? It WAS pretty cool! Ask Steve about it sometime. ☺
We headed back to the car, trying to finish the guide book, and me starting to sound like that Fed Ex ‘fast talker’ guy from the 80s reading as fast as I could. We returned the guide book, thanked them for the “Blow Hole Tip” (Bet you can’t find a use for THAT phrase in YOUR daily life!) and RAN to the car.
We headed north as quickly as we could, stopped for Gas at a station called “Speedy” in which the pump took FOREVER to fill our tank (what did we expect?) and then headed into the Grand Canyon via the East entrance.
I must say, if you ever find yourself going into the Grand Canyon, the east entrance is the way to go. It isn’t used as much, and so we found ourselves driving along with almost no one around us. I wanted to stop and get out and photograph, but the sun was getting lower towards the horizon, there was lightening in the distance, and Steve was in GO! GO! GO! Mode. Any shots you may see from us of the east side of the canyon will be from a speeding car.
We made it to the campsite, it was VERY cool, which was encouraging, but concerned me at the same time. We weren’t going to sweat it out tonight, but was it going to be too cold for Pete? We got everything set up, but THIS TIME I put Pete at our feet instead of our heads. Unfortunately, I put Pete’s head right at Andy’s feet, and I spent the night worrying that Andy was going to smash his skull, but we were fine.
After the tent was set up, my plan had been to go to the lodge for dinner. The sun was setting and Steve was exhausted, so we decided to go to the Village Store (which is an AWESOME store if you ever get there) to buy something there instead. On our way out we passed a HUGE Bull Elk just STANDING in a campsite checking out to see if anything good had been left behind. We took a few pictures and headed on. He was an INCREDIBLE SIGHT! After buying some simple camp food, we headed back, got a fire going, and actually had a decent meal and a decent evening.
Night #2 in a tent ended up being much more pleasant than the first tent night. The storm never hit us, but I did hear a faint bit of rain as I fell asleep. Everyone slept peacefully, for the most part, except that Steve, Emily and I all heard Andy say in the middle of the night “Oh great, now I lost BOTH my front teeth!” He couldn’t explain it in the morning. I heard a coyote, or something, howling VERY nearby at one point, but no one else in my tent heard it. I did hear the zippers going crazy on the tent next door after the howling stopped, which made me giggle. I can only guess that they either 1. Unzipped the door and ran to their car for the rest of the night or 2. Closed all the windows to keep the animal out...Ha!
Tomorrow we will actually SEE the Grand Canyon!
Friday, July 27, 2007
Day #7
Well, as you all know, we woke up early. It took us 2.5 hours to make coffee, clean up, shower and break camp. Now we know what we are up against for the rest of the camping portions of the trip.
After an ‘all you can eat breakfast’ at the campground store at 10:02 (Breakfast is from 6-10…she was VERY accommodating!) we headed back to Gallup via the way we came up. Once in Gallup, I am ashamed to say, we had a fun time at the Wal-Mart. We needed to refill lunch items, and the deli counter lady was a riot (I was all alone standing at the counter, she ignored me for 5 minutes, then finally turned around, sighed, and said “Can I help you?”…then every thing I asked for she just looked PAINED to give me!) We checked out, but didn’t leave until the ‘boys’ had purchased cool sunglasses. Now the desert will be SO MUCH MORE BEARABLE.
After warding off the beggars in the parking lot, we were on our way back down I-40, eating lunch and listening to the Cars CD. We rolled 2,000 miles in the car while John Mayer was signing Route 66. We thought that was quite appropriate!
The guidebooks I have mentioned that there was a dead-end of 66 that was tough to get to, but well worth the trip. So, being us, we tried it! We took a dirt road where a sign informed us “End Arizona Highway Maintenance”. The kids asked what that meant and Dad told them it meant we were “on our own.” We passed Jackrabbits in the road and a small hairless rodent we couldn’t quite identify (wild Chihuahuas?)
We traveled down this lonely stretch for about a half mile (road being half dirt, half old pavement) until we came to the Painted Desert Trading Post. Long since abandoned, it was quite a site. We took a few pictures but did not get close as it looks like it will fall over any minute! Jack Rittenhouse’s 1947 guide book mentions that it was a café, bus stop, curio shop and gas stop at one point. Now it is just a lonely building in the middle of nowhere.
A few yard further down the road and we found ourselves on an old bridge over a ‘river’ called “dead wash”. It is completely dry, but there are wrecks of old cars (and I mean, like 1940’s vintage?) embedded in the side of the river at the bend. There was a 66 shield painted on the bridge. It was quite an eerie site. How did those cars get there? I have so many questions…so few answers.
After many photos, we turned around and headed back towards the highway (the old road would have gone onto the Painted Desert, but that way is closed now that it is a National Park).
So, we headed into the Painted Desert National Park and Petrified Forest via I-40. We stopped at many an overlook and took pictures. We saw the old Painted Desert Inn which was refurbished in the 30’s by the Conservation Corps and now serves as an information center and gift shop.
We saw mounds of varying colors that truly looked like they had been painted. After crossing Route 66 a few times within the park (they even mention it in their guidebook…and you can tell where the old road was from the telephone poles still standing) we headed across I-40 and deep into the heart of the Petrified Forest. I tried to convince the kids that these were very scared trees, but they weren’t buying it.
We got out a few times and looked around at the amazing petrified wood (which basically means wood that is now rock…not scared wood) and even took a few hikes. So much fun in 90 degree weather, but we persevered! Pete was pretty hot, but he didn’t complain (just drank and drank and drank).
Once back in the car, we headed into Holbrook to our Motel. This was the night we got to stay in a Tee Pee! They are concrete structures that are just AMAZING! Owned by the original family, the son of the guy who built them checked us in. While we were filling out our information, a woman from Paris walked in and asked if he had anything for the night for her husband and two kids and he said No, they were filled up. I’m SO GLAD I made advanced reservations!
Once we checked out the Tee Pee (#2), we headed to Joe and Aggie’s Café. This place was given a special thanks in the Cars movie, with the tag “Hottest Chow on the Mother Road”. We weren’t sure what that meant, but once we got there, we found out! It was Mexican American fare, and their hot sauce was HOT HOT HOT! Steve LOVED it. They were all so nice in there. I saw photos of the Pixar team and they had their release letter in a catalog of letters (allowing Pixar to thank them in the credits). They also had some fun gift-shop stuff, and Pete immediately saw the Cars stuff!
After dinner, we headed over to the courthouse to watch ceremonial Indian dancing which they do every night. It was cool. Pete was completely enthralled. The outfits were GEORGEOUS. Unfortunately, the God’s of Video Taping have been against Andy. We were able to get new CDs at Wal-Mart earlier in the day, and Andy had checked them and made sure they were good, but as he went to videotape tonight, the battery died. Arguh! Glad the camera is holding up.
Speaking of camera, it is taking a LOT of time to get these photos uploaded. We’re getting them up as fast and as best we can. Hopefully there will be more soon.
As the Indians danced, we watched a fantastic lightening storm close in. As soon as they were done, we headed back to the Tee Pee and unloaded our car just before the rain really hit. Being in a huge triangular cement structure, you really don’t hear the rain or the trains that rumble behind the motel, and the bed is very comfy, so this is definitely the best place for us tonight…especially after LAST NIGHT’s sleep! Tomorrow, some of 66 and then onto the Grand Canyon!
After an ‘all you can eat breakfast’ at the campground store at 10:02 (Breakfast is from 6-10…she was VERY accommodating!) we headed back to Gallup via the way we came up. Once in Gallup, I am ashamed to say, we had a fun time at the Wal-Mart. We needed to refill lunch items, and the deli counter lady was a riot (I was all alone standing at the counter, she ignored me for 5 minutes, then finally turned around, sighed, and said “Can I help you?”…then every thing I asked for she just looked PAINED to give me!) We checked out, but didn’t leave until the ‘boys’ had purchased cool sunglasses. Now the desert will be SO MUCH MORE BEARABLE.
After warding off the beggars in the parking lot, we were on our way back down I-40, eating lunch and listening to the Cars CD. We rolled 2,000 miles in the car while John Mayer was signing Route 66. We thought that was quite appropriate!
The guidebooks I have mentioned that there was a dead-end of 66 that was tough to get to, but well worth the trip. So, being us, we tried it! We took a dirt road where a sign informed us “End Arizona Highway Maintenance”. The kids asked what that meant and Dad told them it meant we were “on our own.” We passed Jackrabbits in the road and a small hairless rodent we couldn’t quite identify (wild Chihuahuas?)
We traveled down this lonely stretch for about a half mile (road being half dirt, half old pavement) until we came to the Painted Desert Trading Post. Long since abandoned, it was quite a site. We took a few pictures but did not get close as it looks like it will fall over any minute! Jack Rittenhouse’s 1947 guide book mentions that it was a café, bus stop, curio shop and gas stop at one point. Now it is just a lonely building in the middle of nowhere.
A few yard further down the road and we found ourselves on an old bridge over a ‘river’ called “dead wash”. It is completely dry, but there are wrecks of old cars (and I mean, like 1940’s vintage?) embedded in the side of the river at the bend. There was a 66 shield painted on the bridge. It was quite an eerie site. How did those cars get there? I have so many questions…so few answers.
After many photos, we turned around and headed back towards the highway (the old road would have gone onto the Painted Desert, but that way is closed now that it is a National Park).
So, we headed into the Painted Desert National Park and Petrified Forest via I-40. We stopped at many an overlook and took pictures. We saw the old Painted Desert Inn which was refurbished in the 30’s by the Conservation Corps and now serves as an information center and gift shop.
We saw mounds of varying colors that truly looked like they had been painted. After crossing Route 66 a few times within the park (they even mention it in their guidebook…and you can tell where the old road was from the telephone poles still standing) we headed across I-40 and deep into the heart of the Petrified Forest. I tried to convince the kids that these were very scared trees, but they weren’t buying it.
We got out a few times and looked around at the amazing petrified wood (which basically means wood that is now rock…not scared wood) and even took a few hikes. So much fun in 90 degree weather, but we persevered! Pete was pretty hot, but he didn’t complain (just drank and drank and drank).
Once back in the car, we headed into Holbrook to our Motel. This was the night we got to stay in a Tee Pee! They are concrete structures that are just AMAZING! Owned by the original family, the son of the guy who built them checked us in. While we were filling out our information, a woman from Paris walked in and asked if he had anything for the night for her husband and two kids and he said No, they were filled up. I’m SO GLAD I made advanced reservations!
Once we checked out the Tee Pee (#2), we headed to Joe and Aggie’s Café. This place was given a special thanks in the Cars movie, with the tag “Hottest Chow on the Mother Road”. We weren’t sure what that meant, but once we got there, we found out! It was Mexican American fare, and their hot sauce was HOT HOT HOT! Steve LOVED it. They were all so nice in there. I saw photos of the Pixar team and they had their release letter in a catalog of letters (allowing Pixar to thank them in the credits). They also had some fun gift-shop stuff, and Pete immediately saw the Cars stuff!
After dinner, we headed over to the courthouse to watch ceremonial Indian dancing which they do every night. It was cool. Pete was completely enthralled. The outfits were GEORGEOUS. Unfortunately, the God’s of Video Taping have been against Andy. We were able to get new CDs at Wal-Mart earlier in the day, and Andy had checked them and made sure they were good, but as he went to videotape tonight, the battery died. Arguh! Glad the camera is holding up.
Speaking of camera, it is taking a LOT of time to get these photos uploaded. We’re getting them up as fast and as best we can. Hopefully there will be more soon.
As the Indians danced, we watched a fantastic lightening storm close in. As soon as they were done, we headed back to the Tee Pee and unloaded our car just before the rain really hit. Being in a huge triangular cement structure, you really don’t hear the rain or the trains that rumble behind the motel, and the bed is very comfy, so this is definitely the best place for us tonight…especially after LAST NIGHT’s sleep! Tomorrow, some of 66 and then onto the Grand Canyon!
DAY #6
After an exciting night for me (while I was doing laundry I noticed that the extension to the El Ranchero was on fire and there were firemen all over the place…it is across the street so it didn’t disturb my sleeping family at all) we had a leisurely start to our day. We ate breakfast in the hotel, and Steve enjoyed an authentic Mexican breakfast – Huevos Rancheros – complete with Mexican rice and beans, Woof! We finally headed off away from Route 66 north towards Colorado.
Almost the entire time heading up we were on a Navajo Reservation. It is truly beautiful country. We saw ranches and horses, and Shiprock Mountain (Shiprock, NM is quite a large town as towns go out here) and lots and lots of mesas/hills/mountains. It was a lovely drive north – and a nice break nice to not have to figure out where to turn next to stay on 66!
We arrived at Mesa Verde National Park around 12:45 and quickly tried to figure out the lay of the land. We decided to forgo picking a campground site until later (the ranger at the entrance said there were always plenty) and head straight in to get tickets to the guided tours. We got 3:30 tickets for Balcony House and 5:30 tickets for Cliff Palace. Both places are up in the rock and quite interesting to get to. Balcony House requires you to climb a 32 foot ladder, which Pete did with flying colors! (after his experience at City Museum I knew he could do it). We also required crawling on hands and knees through a small entrance inbetween rooms. We crawled…Pete merely bent over. Sometimes it is really nice to be 3 feet tall!
It was a bit hairy for me, though, with him. I didn’t look up as much as I should have, because I was constantly making sure Pete wasn’t walking off the edge of the cliff dwelling! Emily wondered why they hadn’t put up guardrails. * Sigh * Oh Emily.
So, after a long afternoon of pretending we were Pueblo Indians living on the side of a cliff, it was time to get camping! I have learned two things from this experience. 1. If you are setting up a campsite at 7:30 at night, DON’T try to do dinner too. We were running to get set up, cook, eat, breakdown, and get into the tent by 10. 2. Be organized INSIDE the car before you start unpacking the top. Because it never gets better inside the car once everything from on top comes down!
Since I was unable to write my blog last night (who could find the computer?!?), I can also give you the skinny on what happened during the night, in chronological order (although I can’t give you exact time which is probably a good thing):
1. We all snuggled into our sleeping bags watching lightening in the distance creep ever closer.
2. I decide to close one window “just in case”. Pete insists on closing the other window, but loses the fight.
3. I wake in the middle of the night to a cool breeze and more lightening. I decide to go ahead and close the other window.
4. Pete wakes up crying. I wrap him in blankie.
5. Pete wakes up crying again. I decide he is cold and so brings him into the double sleeping-bag with me and Steve. The lightening still looks impressive.
6. I wake up in between Pete and Steve COMPLETELY crushed (only able to sleep on my side), and so I move to Pete’s bed, which is located perpendicular to our bags.
7. I wake up FREEZING and so I try to slip down into the thin top that is Pete’s sleeping bag. I then realize that this is made for someone 3 feet tall, not 5.5 feet tall. I embrace the fetal position and attempt to continue sleeping (lightening occasionally flashes…it’s no longer threatening, just annoying)
8. Emily awakens, throws off her sleeping bag top and blanket and says “I am so HOT!” I immediately fish around, find the blanket and steal it from her. On top of Pete’s bag I can now stretch out with at least a blanket.
9. Steve wakes up with Emily and Pete pushing on him from the left, and Andy pushing on him from the right (Andy has his head completely on Steve’s pillow!) Steve picks up Andy’s upper body and hurls it towards the tent grunting “Move OVER.” I just laugh, sleeping above their heads on my tiny air mattress.
10. It begins to rain. No one cares anymore.
11. We all awake to the sun and Pete standing over us saying “The dark is GONE!” Huzzah.
Almost the entire time heading up we were on a Navajo Reservation. It is truly beautiful country. We saw ranches and horses, and Shiprock Mountain (Shiprock, NM is quite a large town as towns go out here) and lots and lots of mesas/hills/mountains. It was a lovely drive north – and a nice break nice to not have to figure out where to turn next to stay on 66!
We arrived at Mesa Verde National Park around 12:45 and quickly tried to figure out the lay of the land. We decided to forgo picking a campground site until later (the ranger at the entrance said there were always plenty) and head straight in to get tickets to the guided tours. We got 3:30 tickets for Balcony House and 5:30 tickets for Cliff Palace. Both places are up in the rock and quite interesting to get to. Balcony House requires you to climb a 32 foot ladder, which Pete did with flying colors! (after his experience at City Museum I knew he could do it). We also required crawling on hands and knees through a small entrance inbetween rooms. We crawled…Pete merely bent over. Sometimes it is really nice to be 3 feet tall!
It was a bit hairy for me, though, with him. I didn’t look up as much as I should have, because I was constantly making sure Pete wasn’t walking off the edge of the cliff dwelling! Emily wondered why they hadn’t put up guardrails. * Sigh * Oh Emily.
So, after a long afternoon of pretending we were Pueblo Indians living on the side of a cliff, it was time to get camping! I have learned two things from this experience. 1. If you are setting up a campsite at 7:30 at night, DON’T try to do dinner too. We were running to get set up, cook, eat, breakdown, and get into the tent by 10. 2. Be organized INSIDE the car before you start unpacking the top. Because it never gets better inside the car once everything from on top comes down!
Since I was unable to write my blog last night (who could find the computer?!?), I can also give you the skinny on what happened during the night, in chronological order (although I can’t give you exact time which is probably a good thing):
1. We all snuggled into our sleeping bags watching lightening in the distance creep ever closer.
2. I decide to close one window “just in case”. Pete insists on closing the other window, but loses the fight.
3. I wake in the middle of the night to a cool breeze and more lightening. I decide to go ahead and close the other window.
4. Pete wakes up crying. I wrap him in blankie.
5. Pete wakes up crying again. I decide he is cold and so brings him into the double sleeping-bag with me and Steve. The lightening still looks impressive.
6. I wake up in between Pete and Steve COMPLETELY crushed (only able to sleep on my side), and so I move to Pete’s bed, which is located perpendicular to our bags.
7. I wake up FREEZING and so I try to slip down into the thin top that is Pete’s sleeping bag. I then realize that this is made for someone 3 feet tall, not 5.5 feet tall. I embrace the fetal position and attempt to continue sleeping (lightening occasionally flashes…it’s no longer threatening, just annoying)
8. Emily awakens, throws off her sleeping bag top and blanket and says “I am so HOT!” I immediately fish around, find the blanket and steal it from her. On top of Pete’s bag I can now stretch out with at least a blanket.
9. Steve wakes up with Emily and Pete pushing on him from the left, and Andy pushing on him from the right (Andy has his head completely on Steve’s pillow!) Steve picks up Andy’s upper body and hurls it towards the tent grunting “Move OVER.” I just laugh, sleeping above their heads on my tiny air mattress.
10. It begins to rain. No one cares anymore.
11. We all awake to the sun and Pete standing over us saying “The dark is GONE!” Huzzah.
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Day #5
A nice cool morning greeted us today. After showers all around (even Pete!), we packed up and headed out to a restaurant called Kix on 66. It had AMAZING bakery items! We stuffed ourselves silly, and then drove down the main drag of Tucumcari. It really was once a bustling spot for 66 traffic. It’s holding on, but you can tell it wasn’t what it was. Steve thinks that this town looks the most like Radiator Springs so far. They do have the Tucumcari Mountain in the distance which does look like the Radiator Springs mountain in Cars.
Today was spent on and off the Route. Much of 66 is buried by Interstate 40, so there were times we were actually on the route while being on the highway! We got off a few times, even backtracked when we missed an exit, to see some of the beautiful drives that the old route offered us. As I looked across the plains towards the mesas, I could easily envision a group of cowboys and/or Indians on their horses riding across the plains.
We drove past more old hotels and gas stations. We stopped occasionally to get ice or just take a bathroom break. We enjoyed watching the storms move across the mesas as we traveled. At one point they finally found us and we drove through some driving rain in Albuquerque. We tried to get off the main highway and find 66, but we got so turned around that we got back on 40 and said “Forget it!” A ways out of Albuquerque we found the route again and started back down it.
We decided that we all really wanted to swim in the hotel pool tonight (the children had hoped for a pool yesterday, but the Blue Swallow didn’t have one), so we wanted to be sure we got to the hotel as soon as we possibly could. I did give the children the choice, however of seeing one of three things: An underground museum in Grants, NM which showed the history of mining, Sky City in Acoma, NM which was a tour of one of the oldest Indian pueblos in the area, or quite a detour to the Ice Caves to see rock and ice formations buried deep in the earth.
While Emily really wanted to see the Ice Caves, we decided it would be too long of a detour, so we decided on Sky City. While driving there, we were taken with the beautiful rock formations. We could see the city in the distance, and it was beautiful. When we got there, we realized that it would be at least an hour and a half touring, and it would cost us almost $60 for everyone to go. We decided that the Indian Cliff Dwellings tomorrow would be enough, so we headed back to the Route, appreciating the beautiful formations again.
Once back on the route, we passed lava flows which flowed here over 20,000 years ago! We stopped and touched the lava (I touched a lava!), and then headed on. We got into Gallup around 6, which was the earliest we have arrived ANYWHERE so far! We checked into the El Ranchero which is a beautiful old hotel where the stars have stayed. If you go upstairs, you can see all of their signed photos on the wall. Many a famous cowboy stayed here while filing in the area. Consequently, many a film was filmed around here.
We checked in and asked about the pool. Peter had said “We’re going in the pool!” for the last two hours in the car. The man at the front desk told us that some kids had thrown rocks in the pool over the weekend and it had jammed up the filter, and so it was closed for repair. Poor Peter! Poor kids!! We ended up offering Peter a tubby, and he seemed pretty happy with that.
We ate at the restaurant attached to the hotel. Steve really enjoyed their Mexican combo plate. Some of that stuff was HOT (spicy hot!) After that, we made a trip to the gift shop, drove down the strip (not a lot to see) and then headed back to the room for Peter’s tubby. It also had become surprisingly cold while we were at dinner! I thought this was the desert!!
Once back at the room, I was thrilled to see that they have a guest laundry three doors down from our room! I don’t have much, but I’ll do what I can before we go camping tomorrow night! Pete is done with his tubby and being a maniac, so it’s time to settle down. Tomorrow, Indian Cliff Dwellings. Not sure if the national parks have any WiFi hot spots, so it may be awhile before my next post.
Today was spent on and off the Route. Much of 66 is buried by Interstate 40, so there were times we were actually on the route while being on the highway! We got off a few times, even backtracked when we missed an exit, to see some of the beautiful drives that the old route offered us. As I looked across the plains towards the mesas, I could easily envision a group of cowboys and/or Indians on their horses riding across the plains.
We drove past more old hotels and gas stations. We stopped occasionally to get ice or just take a bathroom break. We enjoyed watching the storms move across the mesas as we traveled. At one point they finally found us and we drove through some driving rain in Albuquerque. We tried to get off the main highway and find 66, but we got so turned around that we got back on 40 and said “Forget it!” A ways out of Albuquerque we found the route again and started back down it.
We decided that we all really wanted to swim in the hotel pool tonight (the children had hoped for a pool yesterday, but the Blue Swallow didn’t have one), so we wanted to be sure we got to the hotel as soon as we possibly could. I did give the children the choice, however of seeing one of three things: An underground museum in Grants, NM which showed the history of mining, Sky City in Acoma, NM which was a tour of one of the oldest Indian pueblos in the area, or quite a detour to the Ice Caves to see rock and ice formations buried deep in the earth.
While Emily really wanted to see the Ice Caves, we decided it would be too long of a detour, so we decided on Sky City. While driving there, we were taken with the beautiful rock formations. We could see the city in the distance, and it was beautiful. When we got there, we realized that it would be at least an hour and a half touring, and it would cost us almost $60 for everyone to go. We decided that the Indian Cliff Dwellings tomorrow would be enough, so we headed back to the Route, appreciating the beautiful formations again.
Once back on the route, we passed lava flows which flowed here over 20,000 years ago! We stopped and touched the lava (I touched a lava!), and then headed on. We got into Gallup around 6, which was the earliest we have arrived ANYWHERE so far! We checked into the El Ranchero which is a beautiful old hotel where the stars have stayed. If you go upstairs, you can see all of their signed photos on the wall. Many a famous cowboy stayed here while filing in the area. Consequently, many a film was filmed around here.
We checked in and asked about the pool. Peter had said “We’re going in the pool!” for the last two hours in the car. The man at the front desk told us that some kids had thrown rocks in the pool over the weekend and it had jammed up the filter, and so it was closed for repair. Poor Peter! Poor kids!! We ended up offering Peter a tubby, and he seemed pretty happy with that.
We ate at the restaurant attached to the hotel. Steve really enjoyed their Mexican combo plate. Some of that stuff was HOT (spicy hot!) After that, we made a trip to the gift shop, drove down the strip (not a lot to see) and then headed back to the room for Peter’s tubby. It also had become surprisingly cold while we were at dinner! I thought this was the desert!!
Once back at the room, I was thrilled to see that they have a guest laundry three doors down from our room! I don’t have much, but I’ll do what I can before we go camping tomorrow night! Pete is done with his tubby and being a maniac, so it’s time to settle down. Tomorrow, Indian Cliff Dwellings. Not sure if the national parks have any WiFi hot spots, so it may be awhile before my next post.
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