We had no WiFi, or had inadequate WiFi service, so far along the road. So, we are covering several day in today's session of entries. We stopped at McDonald's along the way to check our email and check out the weather forecasts for our destinations. Today, Thursday, we finally have the WiFi service we need to get things done.
It has been hot and windy all day, and we were glad to finally see some green in the landscape just before leaving Texas. Thank goodness we're out of Texas!!! Oklahoma is very green and lots of trees, but still hot with strong winds. We had planned to camp just outside Oklahoma City, but decided that a hotel, and far away from the city would be better. So we are in Shawnee, OK, tonight. Not too close to the freeway. We dined at Denny's since it was close enough to walk. Linda opted for a salad after having the steak and potato on Wed.
It is humid here, and still in the 90's. The desk clerk said it will get to the low 80's - high 70's tonight, but the Internet check on the weather didn't agree. Doesn't matter anyway, since we are sleeping inside tonight.
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Amarillo, Texas, 06152011
We stopped at Cadillac Ranch, a point of interest Dan found on the Internet.
On the other side of the fence: Standing along Route 66 west of Amarillo, Cadillac Ranch was built by a group of art-hippies imported from San Francisco. They called themselved the Ant Farm, and their silent partner was Amarillo billionaire Stanley Marsh III. He wanted a piece of public art that would baffle the locals, and the hippies came up with a tribute to the evolution of the Cadillac tail fin. Ten Caddies were driven into one of Stanley's fields, then half-buried, nose-down, in the dirt (supposedly at the same angle as the Great Pyramid of Giza). They face west in a line, from the 1949 Club Sedan to the 1963 Sedan De Ville, their tail fins held high for all to see on the empty Texas Panhandle. The public is invited to spray paint these monuments.
The wind was howling and the temp. was in the 90's with not much change expected for the night. The rates at the Amarillo KOA were about the same as the Americas Best motel, so we opted for the motel. It was in the process of being renovated and the room had fresh paint, new carpeting, new matress & bedding, new bath linens, but the same old furniture and curtains. It was a non-smoking room, but the drapes reeked of tobaco smoke. At least the bed was nice so we could get some sleep.
The wind was howling and the temp. was in the 90's with not much change expected for the night. The rates at the Amarillo KOA were about the same as the Americas Best motel, so we opted for the motel. It was in the process of being renovated and the room had fresh paint, new carpeting, new matress & bedding, new bath linens, but the same old furniture and curtains. It was a non-smoking room, but the drapes reeked of tobaco smoke. At least the bed was nice so we could get some sleep. We had dinner at the Big Texan restaurant, renowned for it's offer of a free dinner of: 72 oz steak, three breadded shrimp, baked potato, salad, and a dinner roll, IF you can eat it all within 60 minutes. There were 2 takers on Wed. evening, both young men. We didn't stay to see if either of them accomplished this fete, and we have no idea what one is charged for the meal if one cannot finish it all in the alloted time. However, our meal was delicious and enough to take with us for another meal. The TV program Man vs Food did an episode here.
The restaurant was an amazing place and we would have marvelous photos . . . if we had remembered the camera!!! Remember the mantra?
New Mexico
This abandoned house is behind the rest stop just after crossing the state line. We couldn't resist taking photos.
We spent the night at a home in Albuquerque. The hosts made a nice dinner and drove us to the Sandia Mtn. tram station which is located about half way up the mountain. We purchased something to drink and sat on the balcony to watch the sunset and overlook the city. However, Dan & Linda both forgot to take the camera along and missed a great photo opportunity. The montra is, "Always have the camera." Should be easy to remember, right? The hosts fed us a light breakfast and we were on our way to Texas Wed. morning.06132011 Holbrook, AZ
KOA campground where we camped. The wind was really blowing when we arrived. The park manager told us that it would die down and the temp. would cool down at dusk. We decided to shower and get dinner before setting up the tent so we wouldn't have to worry about it blowing away.
This is where we had dinner. Dan found the cafe on the internet with a coupon for a free deep fried apple enchalad with the purchase of 2 dinners. The food was good and the apple enchalada was delicious. As is the case with most Mexican food places, there was way too much food on the plates.
The Wigwam Motel which is directly across from the restaurant. Vintage cars are part of the setting.
We happened to be in Holbrook when there was a performace of dances by the local Native Americans. The dancers varied in ages from about 4 yrs. to adults. The apparell was beautiful and I wish we could have seen more of the fronts.
It had been a long day with the hike at the Walnut Cyn. ruins, so we didn't stay long. We had to get the tent set up & ready for the night. The wind did stop and the temp. did cool. The KOA servs pancakes for breakfast for $1.99 per person, all you can eat, so we had a nice breakfast before heading out on Wed. morning.
Walnut Canyon Ruins in Arizona
Park entrance. We visited this one on our last trip 3 years ago, but a landslide had blocked the path to the ruins. We hoped that the path would be cleared by now and were glad to find out that it had. Now we could hike to the cliff dweller ruins and actually step inside!
Looking across the canyon to the ruins on the other side.
The dwellings were built under the natural overhang of the cliffs. This is the remains of one of the rooms.
Here I am looking at soot stains from the fires that were built inside this room.
A view of 3 rooms in this section. There were dwellings that still had the stones and mud fronts with small doorways and vents, but visitors were not allowed to enter. We walked past dwelling sites on the shady side of the cliff, then the sunny side.
Pretty cactus flowers were a surprise.
Now we must return to the top of the canyon. This marker at the beginning of the return path will give everyone an idea of how far down we were from the visitors' center.
This is the view from the stone marker!!! Thank goodness we brought water as the weather was hot and dry.
This was a highlight which burned a lot of calories, and left us both with some sore muscles.
Park entrance. We visited this one on our last trip 3 years ago, but a landslide had blocked the path to the ruins. We hoped that the path would be cleared by now and were glad to find out that it had. Now we could hike to the cliff dweller ruins and actually step inside!
Here we look back from the first section of stairs leading to the ruins.
Looking across the canyon to the ruins on the other side.
The dwellings were built under the natural overhang of the cliffs. This is the remains of one of the rooms.
Here I am looking at soot stains from the fires that were built inside this room.
A view of 3 rooms in this section. There were dwellings that still had the stones and mud fronts with small doorways and vents, but visitors were not allowed to enter. We walked past dwelling sites on the shady side of the cliff, then the sunny side.
Pretty cactus flowers were a surprise.
Now we must return to the top of the canyon. This marker at the beginning of the return path will give everyone an idea of how far down we were from the visitors' center.
This is the view from the stone marker!!! Thank goodness we brought water as the weather was hot and dry.
There are several landings with benches for resting. We were at about 6000 ft. above sea level here and needed to stop a few times to catch our breath and get the heart rate back to normal. One of the drawbacks of living a sea level.
This was a highlight which burned a lot of calories, and left us both with some sore muscles.We had lunch in the picnic area before heading to our next camp site.
Grand Canyon - 06122011
Our Camp site
This is our first time setting up the new tent.
This is our first time setting up the new tent.
It goes up quickly & easily. Ready to spend the night. 
After getting the campsite ready we drove to the South Rim Village for some groceries. We then hiked to the edge of the canyon. The canyon is hazy, but still amazing.
Angel Canyon:
Dan is afraid of heights, but never seems to have trouble at the edge of the Grand Canyon.
After hiking back to the Village, we had sandwiches at the market for dinner, then went back to the campground. There was no internet access, but we could download these photos from the camera. The weather was beautiful, but was quite chilly at night. The moon was almost full and provided plenty of light for getting to the restrooms after dark.
After getting the campsite ready we drove to the South Rim Village for some groceries. We then hiked to the edge of the canyon. The canyon is hazy, but still amazing.
Angel Canyon:
Dan is afraid of heights, but never seems to have trouble at the edge of the Grand Canyon.
After hiking back to the Village, we had sandwiches at the market for dinner, then went back to the campground. There was no internet access, but we could download these photos from the camera. The weather was beautiful, but was quite chilly at night. The moon was almost full and provided plenty of light for getting to the restrooms after dark. The tent and bed pad worked very well and we slept well. Dan made breakfast Monday AM with his tiny camp stove. In all it went very well and was quite enjoyable.
Ready to hit the road (or "Are we going to the Moon?)
We will be spending 3 nights in Las Vegas before catching the I-40 East. We've all seen Vegas so we need no photos.
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