Kicks: Day Thirteen (Big rocks and a teepee)

Arizona VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

We left the El Rancho and Gallup behind this morning and headed towards Arizona.

Not too far west of Gallup is the tiny town of Manuelito; although we didn’t do anything in town, we were struck by an amazing vista before us. I should say that Ken was struck by the vista. My attention was on the big bluff to the right, so I didn’t see what was happening on my left. He stopped for a picture, I got pictures of the big rocks on my right, and when he came back to the car, he said, “Aren’t you going to get a picture?” I said okay, and walked to the left of the car. I think my comment was something profound like “Oh WOW!”

The roadway was a ways above the terrain floor, and it was a really gorgeous confluence of the Rio Puerco river bed, the railroad, and the mesas slightly in the distance. Seriously…WOW!

We continued westward, and although there weren’t numerous things of particular note, one neat thing was taking a loop off the main road. This post-1937 route was formerly paved, but is no longer maintained as a paved road. It was in very good shape, and it was a pleasant detour through the arid countryside.

Unfortunately, we spent quite a few miles on I-40 today (compared to what we’ve been used to), because much of old 66 has been obliterated by the Interstate. As I read ahead, I saw that there are some beautiful stretches of “pristine” (according to my guidebook) 2-lane in western Arizona, so that’s going to be a blast!

However, it was okay, because our immediate goal was to get to the Petrified Forest National Park, which includes the Painted Desert. Double wow! It started with a panoramic view of the floor of the area, surrounded by mesas. I’m not sure what to call “the floor,” because some of this was considered short-grass prairie, and some is desert. I’ll leave that to geologists. The reddish hill formations with expanses of whiter rock stretched for some distance. I was struck by the deep blue of the sky and how far I could see, and read later that this is some of the most unpolluted air in the country. One informational sign pointed out the San Francisco peaks (north of Flagstaff) that are 120 miles away. I couldn’t see them clearly, but I could definitely see their outlines.

After that, we headed into the Painted Desert portion of the Park. The Teepees formation and Blue Mesa displayed colors of blue, purple, and grey due to their mineral deposits of manganese and carbon (the reds and oranges are due to iron). The striations were often sharply delineated, with a bright vein of purple running among the grey. Beautiful! We encountered the Puerco Pueblo, dating from 1100-1300, and it was amazing to see the outlines of the rooms, the petroglyphs, and the kiva.

		Painted Desert VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

Then we started getting into the petrified forest area. I was fascinated by this. So many of these formations looked just like a fallen tree, and it was hard to get my mind around the fact that they were solid stone, formed by millions of years of nature doing its thing. In one area, we got to take a little stroll among the trees, and you could really get close enough to see the brilliant colors of the deposited minerals in them. Bright red, yellow, orange, blue and purple, grey, white…it was just beautiful. (And let me reassure you that despite my penchant for picking up little stones at various places, or the occasional nail or piece of wood, I removed nothing from this Park. This is one of the most beautiful and amazing places in our country—in the entire world, for that matter—and I take its conservation very seriously.)

Petrified Forest VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

I’m not going to go into an explanation of how petrified wood is formed. You can google it, or you might want to check out Ken’s blog, because he may write a little bit about how it happens. I did find this really fascinating, and I said to Ken, “I wonder how the young earth creationists explain THIS?” That would be an interesting thing to hear!

Most of the petrified wood is, of course, either very rough, or only somewhat smoothed by erosion. In the Rainbow Forest Museum at the southern entrance of the Park, they had a piece of the wood that had been cut and polished by a lapidary shop back in the ‘20s (don’t worry, I had to look it up, too!). You could see the beauty of the polished semi-precious gems, including jasper and amethyst. Just gorgeous!

I’m afraid that these pictures just do not give the place or the formations justice. The colors are vibrant, and the vastness of the area is apparent. It takes some effort to imagine that this arid place was once a subtropical forest, but the realization that natural forces have been at work for millions of years in the development of this phenomenon is truly awe-inspiring. Yay, Earth! Nicely done! It also made me realize how precious and fragile our planet is. [A quick comment with blatant political overtones: For those who think that deregulation is perfectly okay, or that “people will take care of things on their own,” let me just point out that this National Park was created by Teddy Roosevelt because people were going in and carting off literally tons of petrified wood; they were blowing up the petrified trees with dynamite to extract the gems. There are far too many people who are greedy bastards and will willfully and joyfully exploit anything to make a buck. If you don’t think that’s the case, you are sadly mistaken.]

We both got a little sunburned today, although nothing too bad. It’s so easy to underestimate the intensity of this sun! We were careful about staying hydrated, though. I’m so used to the humid Midwest that this is really jarring to me. Ken had a nosebleed the other day, and my skin has gotten so dry that I’ve got a mass of hangnails on my fingers, and when I put lotion on my hands today, I could almost hear the slurping sounds as my skin soaked it up! I’m definitely going to have to be more vigilant about the lotion. (It puts the lotion on its skin....) I’ve also noticed that the elevation really gets to me. I think I’d adapt quickly if I lived out here, but this sea level gal has gotten pretty out of breath on occasion!

After our enjoyable afternoon in one of our country’s most beautiful National Parks, we continued on our way to Holbrook. After a quick stop at a neat little place called Mr. Maesta’s (lots of cool old stuff on the walls and hanging from the ceiling…I especially liked the playset oven and sink perched on an old iron stove) for a beverage and a bite to eat (I was parched and starved…I’m not sure when a beer and a BLT has ever tasted so good!), we drove around for a few minutes so I could get some googie pictures. Then it was time to check into our digs for the evening…

		Wigwam Motel VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

THE WIGWAM MOTEL! This was second only to the Blue Swallow on my excite-o-meter about the old motels we are staying at, and it didn’t disappoint. It’s a charming little place, with the teepee cabins in a semicircle around the office. The teepee cabin is surprisingly roomy, although the bathroom is still small compared to what you get in motels today. The room has slanted ceilings, and so does the shower! The little window sits low on the wall, on the straight part before the ceiling slopes inward.

It’s clean, the wall air conditioner is noisy but effective, and the wooden furnishings are original to the motel (built in 1950). It is just an adorable place, and it asks the question: Have you slept in a teepee lately?

Kicks: Day Twelve (Terrific Terrain)

El Vado Motel VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

After getting in a workout, we headed out of Albuquerque this morning. I was kind of sorry to say goodbye to the city (Shane informs me that it is the Duke City), because I liked it very much. I’m sure we’ll visit again at some point!

On the west side of town, we encountered a few more excellent signs, including that of the El Vado Motel. I was struck by how cool the building itself was…beautiful, bright white adobe. It is all fenced off, but I got a couple of shots through the fence. Apparently, there is a plan underway to save the entire building, but they aren’t quite there yet. I hope this lovely structure is saved from the bulldozer!

As we left Albuquerque, we stopped alongside Nine Mile Hill to look back at the city nestled in its valley. The Sandia Mountains rose behind the city, and it was a breathtaking sight. I bet it looks amazing in the evening, when all the lights are glowing!

Rio Puerco VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

A little ways out of the city, we came across the Rio Puerco bridge, a restored truss bridge built in 1933. We stopped to get pictures and walk across this tiny section of old 66. It was in pretty bad shape…I don’t think I’d want to drive it! I looked over the edge, and Rio Puerco didn’t look very rio-y to me! Never fear, I know that out here, the smaller rivers pretty much dry up, but go hog wild (see what I did there?) in the rainy season.


West of Mesita, we encountered another “Dead Man’s Curve” (there seem to be a lot of those on Route 66!), this one looping around a huge outcropping.

New Mexico VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

Although I still got lots of sign pictures (Grants and Gallup have plenty), the landscape reigned today, at least for me. The vast stretches of open land, sometimes with the railroad tracks running alongside the highway and the occasional train chugging along, the buttes/mesas/plateaus rising in the distance, the layers of sedimentary rock running through them, the orange-red or bleached white or pitch black colors of the rock, the scrubby and scrappy little pine trees dotting the landscape…oh, my goodness. I just wrote to Shane that visitors from Europe and Japan must think this looks like an alien landscape…I’m from the Midwest, and it looks like an alien landscape to ME! But it has such a stark beauty. Maybe it’s because you can see off into the distance so much that you get an idea of just how vast this country is. Thousands of acres of huge, sparsely populated land. WOW! It’s mind-boggling!

One area I thought was particularly striking was near McCartys, where the volcanic rock starts. Apparently these piles of volcanic rock are called malpais, and the El Malpais Conservation Area is near there. It was neat to see the red sandstone (IS it sandstone? I’m not sure.) against this black rock from lava flows.

We stopped in Grants for a bite to eat and a beverage, at a place called La Ventana. Another yummy burger! (Note to Roadies: Grants Café is now closed.)

Bluewater, NM VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

West of Bluewater, we encountered some ruins. One building was covered with graffiti, but another building was nothing but a foundation. See the doorstep in the front? Sad. We did encounter some other ruins of stone houses, but I wasn’t quite sure where to take pictures, because some of this is tribal land, and it’s not cool to take pictures. It’s not easy to pull off on some of these stretches, either.

		El Rancho Hotel VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

Our final destination tonight was Gallup. It’s a good-sized town, and one of the famous ones on the Road. It was a good choice, with several hotel options. I hadn’t planned on us staying at El Rancho Hotel, but they had vacancies, and here we are! This is one of the more famous hotels along the Road, and lots of movie stars stayed here in the ‘40s and ‘50s. They’ve renovated it nicely, and our king room is a very good size. Not so for the bathroom…MAN, bathrooms were tiny back in the day! It looks like the original hexagonal tile on the floor. Cool! The lobby is gorgeous, all southwest-ish with its heavy, dark wood furniture, red upholstery, and big fireplace. I expected Hoss and Little Joe to come strolling in at some point!

El Rancho Hotel 2 VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

They have lots of signed pictures from stars who have stayed here over the years, because various movies have been filmed in the area, going back several decades. I had to get a couple of my favorites, and it’s another place with a real key. The neon is lit, and it seems to be in good shape. All the signs are functioning, as is the neon strip under the eaves on each level.

El Rancho Hotel 3 VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

Speaking of that, we’re on the third floor, and although there is an elevator, I’m guessing that it needs some work, because it says to call the front desk for assistance with the elevator. This is probably the highest elevation we’ve been at, and wow, can I ever feel it! I’m not in bad shape, but I was panting and puffing every time we got up to our room!

And speaking of THAT, we’re staying in the Rita Hayworth room. I think they’ve just tacked the names of various movie stars who have stayed here onto each room; I don’t think Rita Hayworth actually stayed in this room. But still, that’s kinda fun and cool.

I would definitely recommend this for a stay. We had dinner and beverages in the 49er Lounge, and the food wasn’t great, but it was okay. The bartender/server was really sweet, and he had the patience of a saint considering the obnoxious guy at the table next to us. Buzz is 68 years old, he is the sales manager at a car dealer, he likes to wear a big cowboy hat and a gaudy faux silver belt buckle and invites women to bite it to see if it’s real silver, he may not be smart but let him tell you how much money he makes (he never did say…and I wanted to know!), and he was appalled that one of the women at the table had some sort of original document from someone famous that she tore up, and GIRL, you had thousands of dollars there! (Repeat about twenty times in a very loud voice. I guess Buzz doesn’t understand inside voices.) I told Ken that I can’t stand guys like that, and I have no idea how or why any woman would willingly sit at a table and listen to his line of bullshit. I’d blow him off so bad he wouldn’t know what hit him.

Anyway, Buzz did not spoil the coolness of the fabulous El Rancho Hotel. I’m very glad that it worked out that we got to stay here.

And guess what? Tomorrow we’re staying in a wigwam motel!!!

Kicks: Day Eleven (Laundry day)

We slept in a bit this morning, but eventually got up and around and downstairs for our workout. (Great fitness center at this hotel!)

Since we were staying in Albuquerque an extra day, our plan was to get into a place that had laundry facilities so we could get that done. Despite the great workout area, they didn’t have guest laundry, so we headed out in search of a laundromat. Neither of us were looking forward to it, because I recall laundromats being hot, creepy places. But I’m happy to report that it was a relatively pain-free experience, and we were out of there in about an hour with two carry-on suitcases full of clean clothes. Yay!

Then it was time to grab a bite to eat, and we found a place called Kelly’s, which is in a ‘30s-era Ford dealer building. Decent food and local brews in a neat building.

We took another drive down Central Avenue so that I could get some of the signage in the daylight. The skies were overcast, so I didn’t get that beautiful blue sky background that looks the best, but I still got some great sign shots (at least I think so!). Some of these are from last night, with the gorgeous neon blazing. The sign that heads up this blog is not a new one, but it is a fantastic addition to the great signs along Central. This is the mascot of the Octopus Carwash, and is that the cutest (and most helpful) octopus you’ve ever seen, or what??




The Premiere has a nicely lit sign, and notice the “No Vacancy” is lit! A lot of these little places are now used as weekly or monthly rentals, and are not places you want to stay at.



The Tewa Lodge has a great sign. I love the jagged red additions on the side!




This is not a great picture (pardon the blurriness), but I’m posting it for two reasons. It was a blinking sign, and it took me four tries before I got a shot of the whole thing lit up! Ken was like, “Okay, NOW!” And I’d miss it. He said, “NOW!” And I missed it. When I finally got it, I said, “Take that, Kurt’s Cameras!” I also noted the “Camera Corral” in smaller size, and shame on Kurt for not going the K route. It should be Kurt’s Kameras, with “Kamera Korral” in the smaller font. Kome on, Kurt!



I don’t recall the name of this motel, but the starburst at the top is great, as are the alternating colors and circular letters that spell out ‘motel.’




I also love the Desert Sands sign. Note how the yucca (I think that’s a yucca) at the top is echoed in the vegetation at the bottom of the sign!




The Pioneer has a great sign with a nice, swooping arrow. It lights up nicely at night, and left turns are okay!




The Zia Motor Lodge sign has both a wonderful starburst at the top as well as the New Mexico sun symbol. You see this symbol everywhere out here, and I think it’s neat. I don’t know the origin of it, and I’m guessing it’s a Native American symbol of the sun. If anyone knows, feel free to leave a comment!




I’m sorry to report that the Aztec Motel has been demolished. I’m not sure exactly when that happened, because my guidebook (the latest edition) mentions the motel’s “funkydelic” exterior and paint job, and its great neon sign. It is indeed a great sign, but it is no longer lit, and it stands in front of an empty lot. I understand that sometimes these older motels are no longer structurally sound, and cannot be renovated. I hope that someone will preserve the sign, though.

De Anza Motor Lodge VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

On a happier note, the De Anza Motor Lodge is a different story. I read an article in the weekly newspaper, Alibi (great name!) about the efforts to preserve this motel. Apparently what saved it from demolition is the murals in the basement by a Native American artist. (The newspaper is packed away, so I can’t check the name.) These are rare paintings, and because they are on the cement block of the basement, they cannot be removed without great expense. The tribe is partnered with the city of Albuquerque in preserving and renovating this motel, and both will share in the profits.

Oh snap! I just found the article online. I highly recommend this very good article about saving the De Anza Motor Lodge and about the guy who built it. It’s a fascinating story, and things are looking promising for its rebirth. I was able to get a shot through the fence that surrounds the motel, and it looks like a very cool place. These old motels are architecturally and historically significant, and need to be saved if possible.

This evening, we strolled back down to Central Avenue (definitely not as busy on a Monday night) to grab a brew, a bite to eat, and to watch the Oklahoma City-San Antonio game. It seemed like most people were cheering for OKC (as were we), and we had a nice chat with one of the guys who was also very involved in watching the game. He was really nice, and wished us a safe trip! Awww! A nice way to end our brief sojourn in Albuquerque, and it’s been such a nice place both as a city and in our dealings with people that I really will enjoy coming back here eventually.

Tomorrow’s destination is another city in the song, Gallup, New Mexico. I am really loving New Mexico so far!

Kicks: Day Ten (Albuquerque bound)

Sorry I missed an entry yesterday, but we ended up having a pretty late night (for us) down on Central Avenue and I just didn’t have it in me to stay up and do an entry. More about Albuquerque in a moment.

We headed out of Tucumcari after checking out of the Blue Swallow. We bought a few things in their little gift shop/office and chatted with the owner, Nancy (Kevin is her husband). Super nice lady. They’ve only had the place for 11 months, and she said it’s a work in progress. I told her that they’d done a great job, and I’d recommend it to anyone.

On our way out of town, we made sure to catch the Paradise Motel sign that Kevin had told us about. It really is a cool one, with a bathing beauty diving into a splash of water. Kevin said he thought that the neon still works, but the motel is a private residence now, and the owners never turn the sign on. I told him, “If I lived in a place like that, with a cool sign, I’d turn that thing on every single night!” I would, too!

Although our miles to travel were a little more than the other days, we made really good time (not that that is the goal on this trip). The towns are becoming fewer and farther between, and when there IS a town, there isn’t much to see other than some rather non-picturesque ruins and usually rundown homes (if there are any residences at all). The terrain began to change into more a more rocky landscape, with scrub grass and little bushes. Closer to Albuquerque, we began seeing more pine trees, and it was surprisingly green. (I think this might be the start of the rainy season, but don’t quote me on that. We had rain in Tucumcari the other night, and a little bit of rain here today. I’m guessing that by late summer, it won’t seem quite as green. I’m certainly no expert on this part of the country, though!)

As we were driving along in one area, the train tracks ran alongside the road, as is the case for much of Route 66’s path. A train was chugging along a bit ahead of us, and we were driving along a higher ridge than the train tracks, so we could look down and see it curving off into the valley. I told Ken that it made me think of a passenger train from the 1800s, carrying its passengers off to their wild west adventures. It was a beautiful sight, and I truly enjoyed watching the scenery change. It may be rather desolate country, but it has a strange beauty of its own. Sadly, little of original 66 survives from Tucumcari to Moriarty, so we had to drive I-40. I was itching to get back on the Road! There are is a little strip of original 66 that you can see at a rest area, a little curve south of I-40, and a bit of it that is on private property, but otherwise it is obscured by I-40.

Longhorn Ranch VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

There were a couple of decent-sized towns we cruised through along the way: Moriarty and Santa Rosa. There was some good signage in both. There were also several tiny towns that consisted of little more than a cluster of houses and few dilapidated and unidentifiable structures. There was a town called Wagon Wheel, which is a cute name, and a town called Longhorn Ranch. At first I thought the guidebook meant it was actually a ranch, but apparently it was a little town. Still is, although it’s in pretty sad shape. There was this RV Park nearby, and I’m not sure if you can read that sign, but it says “Temp closed.” I’m guessing “temporarily” has turned into a pretty long time! There is a rundown motel, and a ruin of a sign that stood in front of I-don’t-know-what. Oddly enough, there was also a building that looked like it was in pretty decent shape, with a lit beer sign in the window. We saw a sign that said it was Club 203. We enjoy finding little hole-in-the-wall places like that to quench our thirst, so we were discussing stopping in to have a beverage. As we were trying to make up our minds, I read a little further in my guidebook, where it mentioned the topless bar across from some of the ruins. We pulled up closer to the building and then saw the poster of scantily clad women. Oops! THAT would have been quite a surprise if we’d walked in there! And out in the middle of BFE, I’m guessing that the dancers might not be...well, let’s just say ‘high quality.’ It also gave new meaning as to why the Longhorn Motel is still operating next door, as well as the picture of the mysterious Longhorn Ranch sign...the one that is missing its R and N at the end of ‘Longhorn.’ Ha!


We also stopped at the famous Clines Corners, which seems to be nothing but a huge tourist trap gift shop. (It’s a restaurant, too.) And yes, we bought some stuff. Don’t judge. It was crazy in there. Tons of people, kids running around everywhere and asking for stuff, a frenzy of consumerism. It reminded me a lot of the trading posts and gift shops I remember stopping at when I was a kid. I don’t recall seeing any rubber tomahawks there, but I’ll bet you anything they had some!

We eventually got to Albuquerque, and found a hotel without much of a problem. We’re a couple of blocks off of Central Avenue, which is Route 66. Albuquerque has abundant and gorgeous signage, with many surviving pueblo-style motels (that doesn’t mean you want to stay at many of them, but the buildings are intact). Ken has been incredibly indulgent and understanding in my desire to get photos of these signs, both lit and unlit. So last night, we drove around and got lit pictures, and today we got them all in the daytime. Thanks, honey! I have really gone heavy on the sign pictures the past couple of days, so you can head over the Ken’s blog to see pictures of other stuff.

Central Avenue is really a hoppin’ place. Lots of little shops and restaurants and bars, lots of neon, and people cruising up and down the Strip. Actually CRUISING! I haven’t seen that for a while, but it’s only fitting that people still cruise on Route 66. We stopped in a couple of places, including one called The Library. We sat at the open-air front and watched the playoff game on one side and the people cruising by on the other. It will be interesting to see if Central is as lively tonight (on a weeknight) as it was last evening. The KiMo Theater is a restored 1927 theater, in what is considered “pueblo deco” style, a blending of Southwestern and Art Deco. A gorgeous building, one that I think is more beautiful in the daytime than at night with its sign lit. (I’ll post a daytime picture later tonight.)

I like Albuquerque a lot. I wouldn’t mind coming back here for a week’s vacation at some point, and we discussed today that it would be a neat place to meet up with our friends Kim and Steve for a vacation. We’ll have to remember to ask them when we see them if they’ve ever been here.

We’ll be heading out shortly to spend a little more time on Central and then I’ll do another entry after we get back. That one might be a sign entry...I’ve got a picture or two. [wink]