November 9 - Drove 482 miles today - 36.2mpg
Woke up to President-Elect Trump - 4 more years of having to explain that we're not related.
Route 66 was also known as the Mother Road, the Main Street of America and this, the Will Rogers Memorial Highway.
Cafes, motels, all saw their customers evaporate. In its day, much more fun to see neon signs dotting the side of the road than today's bland "La Quinta" and "Best Western" corporate logos.
The museum has scads of memorabilia for sale to add a nostalgic touch to that special man cave, or perhaps garage work bench.
Everything has to start somewhere, but "Oklahoma City"??
After a breakfast of somber eggs and weeping waffles, we headed on the road at 9:30am bound for ROUTE 66.
Established November 26, 1926. Decommissioned June 26, 1985, but only after it had been replaced in its entirety by the Interstate Highway System - what they call "the long goodbye".
As it is, our 246 mile foray onto the 2,448 mile (at one time) road has occurred within days of the 90th anniversary of its establishment. Go 90th!!
This museum in Clinton, Oklahoma is great. Covers the entire history of Route 66 in an informative and fun way.
Route 66 was also known as the Mother Road, the Main Street of America and this, the Will Rogers Memorial Highway.
Descriptions of the road in different eras, from beginning to end, when it was decommissioned.
It's apparent in which era these were traveling the road.
The start of a billion dollar a year business, to which we humbly contribute as we wend our way along.
Half forgotten headlines ripped from the news of the day.
It was really WW II that sounded the death knell for Route 66. The Germans had the Autobahn on which to move military equipment around rapidly. The U.S. had lots of two lane roads with lots of stoplights. We needed freeways with two lanes in each direction, separated by a wide median and with limited access from side roads and no stop lights. So this was a matter of national defense and that is how President Eisenhower sold it - the Feds paid 50% of the construction cost.
Cafes, motels, all saw their customers evaporate. In its day, much more fun to see neon signs dotting the side of the road than today's bland "La Quinta" and "Best Western" corporate logos.
Now parking meters take credit cards and input from a cell phone app while running overtime at a restaurant downtown.
They looked like you had a bazooka hanging at the side of the car...but "cool" looking.
A mock up of a '50's diner. We don't recall seeing "Sonic" joints in California, but in other parts of the country they seem to be on every street corner.
One wall of the entrance lobby.
By the time '57 Chevys hit the road, Route 66 days of glory were already past.
As noted in the sign, this turnkey diner could be bought for $5,000, with payment on the installment plan paid monthly to the manufacturer. This one was opened by a mom and pop in 1956 and closed only 8 years later. Bad timing.
The inside is a time capsule of how it looked the day the door was locked for the last time over a half century ago.
Our next stop today was to the U-Drop Inn and Tower Service Station in the town of Shamrock. It's a beautiful example of Art Deco design from the 1930s. No more gasoline comes from the pumps, as Norm found out after waiting a half hour for a pump jockey to show up. 😄
The station has been scrupulously restored to original condition, including the colors. The building doubles as a visitor's center and pulls in 3,000 visitors a month in season. We were told that most of the for-profit nostalgic sites along Old Route 66 close after November 1, when door traffic drops precipitously. Seems it's also tied to Chicago weather, Chicago being where the road begins - L.A. Usually being referred to as "the end" since who would want to leave sunny L.A. to drive to Chicago?
Make your friends green with envy.
The gas station was the inspiration for the one in Pixar's movie "Cars".
Whoa!! A bit of incongruity here - a bank of Tesla charging stations right next to the U-drop Inn, but nicely placed out of sight until you round a corner. When we came out we found the Fit had moved itself next to one of the chargers. Really spooky. Must be that "Cars" movie at work.
Here we are at Cadillac Ranch, 9 miles west of Amarillo, Texas. Norm is standing at the spray painted gate to the sculptures. This is a world renowned pilgrimage site for fans of "what the hell?"
It's a hike out to the 10 vintage Cadillacs half buried nose down.
Spray cans litter the area - Pam left her mark on one of the cars. Applying graffiti is all part of the surreal experience. Dali, you are everywhere, even way out in an open field in Amarillo. Yes, "surreal" is definitely the proper word.
The cars, each a different model from 1949 to 1963, display a history of the fin styles. Lined up facing west, it is said that the (now graffiti-covered) cars are standing at the same angle as the Great Pyramid of Giza.
This sign gives Pam a warm and fuzzy feeling. And then there's that "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" thing.
Not far out of Amarillo, heading southwest and before being welcomed into New Mexico, we passed through Hereford, Texas and its miles of surroundings. Hereford is known as "The Beef Capital of the World". We agree. Picture that you've just shoved your cupped hands into a bag of "gardener's delight" manure fertilizer, then lifted out a heap of the stuff, smashed it into your face and inhaled deeply. And then more deeply. That's Hereford and it's surrounding environs.
We arrived at our hotel in Roswell, New Mexico at 7:15pm after making another time change - gaining another hour. Brrrrr - it feels like there is snow outside - 47 degrees. Guess we'll have to get our jackets out.
This is what was waiting for us at our hotel to welcome us. Will we turn into a pod person overnight? We'll tell you tomorrow...or will we.
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