May 9-12

In Gallup, NM a Route 66 must stop was the Hotel El Rancho. Since the 1940’s Hotel El Rancho has hosted some of Hollywood’s biggest movie makers and movie stars, including Robert Mitchum, Spencer Tracy, Katherine Hepburn, William Holden, Kirk Douglas, Gregory Peck, Suzanne Pleshette and many more. Even today the hotel continues to host movie crews.  Movies filmed in this area: Young Guns, Grapes of Wrath, Escape from Fort Bravo, Hallelujah, Superman and so many more.  Most of your early westerns, especially those directed by John Ford were filmed close by.

The hotel interior looks the same as it did in the 1940’s western deco, solid wood grand staircase only difference now is instead of the Hollywood stars roaming the lobby the walls are covered in their autographed photos.  This was a interesting place to loiter for a while and of course buy a T-shirt.

Our RV Park for the next few nights was run by the Ute Indian Tribe at the base of the Ute Mountains.  They have a casino and RV Park collocated with each other.  After arriving and getting situated we thought we would check out the casino. This is not Vegas baby!  Alcohol and firearms are not permitted on Indian reservation land so there is not a single cocktail waitress to be found.  Instead, there is free flowing coffee and soda. 

 Mesa Veda National Park in southwestern Colorado is a must see.  The preserved cliff dwellings and other archaeological sites of the Ancestral Pueblo people, who lived there from 600 to 1300 AD, with famous structures like Cliff Palace and Balcony House built into the cliffs.  We were so fortunate to score tickets to go on a park ranger guided tour of Cliff Palace.  The tour took us right into the cliff dwellings themselves.  Of course, there are many rules on where you can walk and what not to touch so they can continue to preserve for future generations.  It was absolutely amazing to walk in the footsteps of the Pueblo people.

 

Bucket list item, Four Corners Monument.  Not sure what we expected but we got to stand in four states at one time.  The original marker was erected in 1912 which was a simple cement pad, but since then it has been redone a few times to what it is today. 

Have you ever seen a John Ford western.  John Ford was a defining director of the American Western, famous for his location shooting in Monument Valley. He did iconic films like Stagecoach, The Searchers, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, She Wore A Yellow Ribbon, Fort Apache and more all shot in Monument Valley. 

Now we can say we were there.  We did a 15-mile drive on a unpaved, dirt and gravel road (4x4 required) into the valley, where we were able to see the West Mitten Butte, East Mitten Butte and Merrick Butte that all appeared in his films.  Walter was so thrilled to be able to take the truck four wheeling in such a remarkable place, me I needed a bladder belt.

What to our wondering eyes, we found the exact spot where the movie Forest Gump filmed the famous scene of him ending his cross-country run.  You can see parts of Monument Valley in the background.  This stretch of US Route 163 is located in Mexican Hat, UT.

Last day at the Ute Mountain RV Park. We had some household or is it rvhold things to take care of, laundry, washing and vacuum out truck, get Walter a haircut, do some moderate cleaning in rv.  We can’t be on vacation every day, but we did manage to squeeze in a quick tour of the Canyons of the Ancients National Monument Museum.  Their artifact collection from the Pueblo people was fantastic and so well preserved. 

Until we made this part of the trip we had no idea how many times we would cross the Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona state lines.  The GPS continued to welcome us numerous times to each state.  So much so that I had to stop taking pictures of the Welcome to signs.

May 4-8

We found the “Blue Hole” while driving into New Mexico, we heard about this on a rv’ers YouTube channel, so cool.  The Blue Hole is in Santa Rosa, NM.  It is a popular, circular, bell-shaped natural pool fed by an artesian well. Known for its crystal-clear consistently cool (around 62’f), water, making a year round destination for swimming and scuba diving.  It is a major tourist attraction and training site, with water that flows in at about 3000 gallons per minute cycling every six hours.  The hole is about 80 feet deep and widens from 80 feet at the surface to 130 feet at the bottom, with a cave system at its base that is now gated off.

Albuquerque New Mexico!  Let’s start by saying when you book an RV Campground you are relying on photos and past reviews online to find the best place that suits your needs with resources and locations.  We are familiar with the KOA chain of campgrounds, so we comfortably booked one in Albuquerque.  We arrived and set up, everything seemed normal at the KOA except we noticed large fencing around the park with a coded entry gate to get in, off property was different.  Route 66 was just one block over from the KOA so we ventured out to see if we could locate some of the iconic Route 66 signs before dark. 

I have not mentioned the number of homeless people that we have witnessed from big to small towns, it has been overwhelming.  Route 66, also known as Central Ave in Albuquerque has them all beat.  Central Ave is approx. 12 a mile long stretch that has homeless people on every corner, bus stop, vacant parking lot and boarded up business store fronts and more.  We were surprised and saddened to see this.  99% of the businesses on this street had bars in the windows and some sort of metal fencing around the property for security.  Part of Route 66 ‘s attraction is to see the towns that time forgot and to see the working neon signs of businesses that had to close when the highway was officially decommissioned in 1985.   Not sure if time forgot Central Ave and its people or if Albuquerque did.  Note: We did venture into other parts of the city during our stay and found thriving businesses and people.

First stop on the menu of adventures was a drive on Kirtland Air Force Base.  Walter had to get a little Military/AFB fix but that of course was a great segway for our visit to the National Museum of Nuclear Science History.  It chronicled the history of the Atomic Age, from early nuclear research to modern applications in energy, medicine and industry.  It featured exhibits from the Manhattan Project, the Cold War and peaceful uses of nuclear technology.  Located next to the building was the Heritage Park, an outdoor area with a collection of historic aircraft, missiles and other large artifacts like the Trinity Tower.

We found Old Town Plaza the historic heart of Albuquerque, founded in 1706 and is centered around a plaza with the San Felipe de Neri Church.  It features historic adobe buildings that were converted into shops, galleries and restaurants.  The area is a preserved historic district.

The weather was giving us a bit of a fit, rain then sun, rain then sun.  Why we decided to take a trip on the Sandia Peak Tramway I don’t know, except we did not want to miss out.  The tram is an aerial tramway adjacent to Albuquerque.  It stretches from the northeast edge of the city to Sandia Peak on the ridge line of the Sandia Mountains and has the worlds third longest single span.  Remember I said it had rained, guess what it does at a elevation of 10,378 ft, SNOW.  The tram ride was about 15 minutes long.  When we arrived at the top the sky had cleared and the sun came out but the wind was raging and blowing the snow that was left on the trees through the air, but what a view.  You could see the entire Albuquerque valley floor and beyond.

Our last day was a hiking day.  We drove about an hour and a half to Jemez Springs historic site to explore the ruins of a 17^th century Spanish mission and a prehistoric village.  Then on to the Valles Caldera National Preserve (volcanic caldera) for a 5-mile hike.

We have been having such good time with so many experiences, I totally skipped over two places since the last post.  Right next to our rv resort in Amarillo was a spin off of the Cadillac Ranch, the Slug Bug  Ranch.  We did not spray paint any of them but had fun walking around it.

The U -Drop Inn Café in Shamrock, Texas is a historic Art Deco landmark on Route 66, famous for its unique architecture and as the inspiration for Ramone’s House of Body Art in the Pixar movie Cars.  A popular stop for Route 66 travelers (yes, we stopped and had meatloaf sandwiches and milkshakes, yum) legend has it Elvis once sat in one of the corner booths as well.

April 29-30

We ran out of Missouri for Oklahoma.  We weren’t more than 20 miles in Oklahoma when a rock hit the windshield.  Crap not again, this happened last year too (we just replaced the windshield for this trip, it barley had 3,500 miles on it). We found a Safelite in Oklahoma City to get the windshield repaired.  Thank goodness for Sifelite, or maybe they should be saying thank goodness for the Kueck's as we seem to be keeping them in business.

We found many of the route 66 iconic landmarks, more giants, the blue whale, largest totem pole and the Tulsa Oil Man.

We learned through some Route 66 YouTube videos about the Rock Café and their oatmeal pie.  We made sure we stopped, what a hoot.  The café is in Stoud, OK.  It is a historic Route 66 diner, famous for its unique sandstone construction and its connection to the Pixar movie cars.  The owner inspired character Sally Carrera in the movie.  It’s known for classic American comfort food with a twist, like alligator burgers and German Jagerschnitzel, Oatmeal Pie and has been a popular stop for travelers since opening in 1939.  We had a burger and of course split a piece of oatmeal pie. The pie is an original recipe from WWII  when pecans were too expensive.  Since I don’t like pecan pie this was right up my alley, it was wonderful.  Already found the recipe and will be making it myself.

We found the iconic red round barn that was built in 1898.  It is 60 ft in diameter and 43 ft high.  It has gone through many stages of restorations through the years; it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

What would be a road rip with out a picture of the largest pushpin and soda bottle.

We spent 2 days in Oklahoma City so were able to visit the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum.  Another museum that was on our punch list but not a bucket list item.  Let me tell you, we spent almost full day there and really glad we did.

On the road again heading for Texas.  As you can tell there are so many things to see on Route 66.  Again, some are historic and some are just fun stops.  Found a large bottle of milk that was from the days when you could drive through and get milk and eggs. 

The 30 ft Spaceman statue in Weatherford, OK that is a prominent silver helmeted landmark erected in 2025 to honor astronaut Lt General Thomas P. Stafford from the Gemini and Apollo era.

Before we crossed the state line to Texas we found a Route 66 Museum in Clinton, OK.  It is a must stop for Route 66’ers.  It is dedicated to the history of the “Mother Road” it offers a chronological journey through Route 66’s history, featuring exhibits on transportation culture, the Dust Bowl the Big Band Era with artifacts, vehicles and a1950’s diner replica.  Basically, it takes you from 1920 to 1970 history.

May 1-3

We got settled into the Big Texan RV Park in Amarillo, TX. And then decided to do a little Route 66 recon while not towing the trailer (little easier to navigate).

And what did we find but again an iconic stop, the Cadillac Ranch.  Just out in the middle of a dusty field.  Fun stop, so many people came armed with their spray paint cans (we did too) to make their mark (we did too).  Then down the road in the middle of nowhere is the “Second Amendment” giant.  People were just drawn to these two places, don’t blame them.

Now for the piece of resistance, we have made it to the midpoint of our Route 66 journey.  The Midway Cafe in Adrian, TX.  Is a famous Route 66 landmark marking the exact halfway point between Chicago and Los Angeles, known for its classic food, especially homemade pies.  We of course had a piece of their Elvis Presley pie (peanut butter, chocolate and banana) 

That night we headed to the Big Texan Steak House, famous for the 72oz steak food challenge.  No, we did not participate in the challenge but did have some awesome steaks.  If you’re interested the restaurant has a live feed of the special table where people participate in the challenge on their website. See table challenge table in middle of room.

Our last day in Amarillo was spent the day doing a hike at the Palo Duro Canyon State Park. (The Grand Canyon of Texas) Only 6 miles but it was not flat, hills and rocks (kind of kicked our butts).  Took us 4 hours but well worth it to see the Lighthouse rock formation.