Get Your Kicks on Route 66

We recently took a trip along Route 66. If you want small town America, this is it.

We started at Albuquerque and drove R0ute 66 to Flagstaff. We stopped for lunch in Albuquerque at the 66 Diner. It is a 50’s style diner, complete with black and white checkered tile floor, turquoise tables, stools and countertops, and a soda fountain. We got a good sandwich and an incredibly large milk shake, served cheerfully by the server in a retro style outfit. It set a good tone for our trip, and we were on our way.

We passed over the Rio Grande River, which we somehow were not expecting, and traveled through the first of many beautiful landscapes. We passed through Gallup, New Mexico (It is mentioned in the song) and arrived at the Americana Motor Hotel in Flagstaff. It is a multi-colored hotel with an astronaut out front and a mirror ball, complete with lights, in every room. (Yes, in fact, I did turn it on.) There is a pool and a courtyard with outdoor sitting areas, hammocks, and a firepit. They also have a little food place (I would not call it a restaurant exactly) called Baja Mar that will make you a delicious meal; we had a surf and turf quesadilla at the recommendation of the cook, he was right, it was yummy. Flagstaff is a great place. It would be an easy day trip to all sorts of places, such as the Grand Canyon, Meteor Crater, Painted Desert, and the Petrified Forrest., among others.

We didn’t hit any of those (yet). Instead, we hopped on I40 and drove straight to the Santa Monica Pier. We stayed in a Holiday Inn Express in LA, as we had a free night’s stay, and drove to the pier. It is the end point of Route 66 (or the start, depending on your point of view, I suppose.) We had dinner there and watched people for a while. It was cold, so Austin still has not stepped foot in the Pacific Ocean off the West Coast. Ah well, maybe another time.

The next day, we headed east on Route 66. We drove though Pasadena, which was very pretty. Not to cast aspersions, but it was much prettier than LA. In Pasadena, we stopped at a little place called The Donut Man. Every day, they make fresh gourmet donuts and “regular”ones that are a step above your average donut. (Or even a step above your above average donut.) You go to the window and order and walk away with your purchase. The day we were there, they has stuffed donuts that had apple pie filling, or strawberries and cream. We didn’ t get those (too messy). I got a cinnamon one and Austin got a maple glazed. To say they were incredibly good is selling them short.

It took an hour and a half to get out of the LA area-it’s huge. After LA, we stopped by a small roadside museum. The man there used to work for the railroad (Sante Fe). I told him my dad used to work for the D&RGW (Denver and Rio Grande Western), and we had a conection and conversation about railroads. I have a picutre from this museum of a quilt made up of one inch squares. If you have ever made a quilt, you have to wonder at and appreciate the amount of work in that!

In Eastern California, they have what are called Cinder Cones. They are old volcanos that rise about 800 feet above the desert floor. Surrounding them are miles of black and hardened lava flows. At one of these, there is a parking lot, you can get out and walk up to this pavilion. No one else was there, not even another car passing on the highway. And because it was a lava field in the middle of the desert in the middle 0f a 109 degree day, there were no birds, no bug sounds, no wildlife, nothing. Not a sound. It was beautiful and eerie all at once. It felt for a moment like we were standing on an alien landscape.

Of course, there are many little towns with historical signs that dot the roadway. The ones that thrilled me the most were a series of Burma Shave signs. "“Passing cars/When you can’t see/May get you a glimpse/Of eternity/Burma Shave.” There were maybe seven or eight of these. I never thought I would actually see one, it was truly stepping back in time. As for the towns themselves, well, some towns are still thriving, some are just getting by, and some are gone. Lost to the desert.

We stopped at the Meteor Crater, which was created 50,000 years ago when a mutli-ton meteor hit the Arizona Desert. (OK, not Arizona at the time.) There is a life size statue of an astronaut at the bottom of the crater (the astronauts used to train there) but from the top of the crater, it looks like a small toy. If you could put the Washington Manument in the crater, it would just reach to top. Humbling, somehow.

Another thrilling stop was Winslow, Arizona. You can stand on a corner with a building in the background that has the name of the town painted on it. There is even a flatbed Ford parked at the corner. There is your earworm—if you know, you know. It was such a fine sight to see.

Our accomodations that night were at the Wigwam Hotel In Holbrook, Arizona. They are individual tepee rooms (not canvas, they are solid buildings), with old cars (Studebakers and the like) parked at the tepees, so that you feel a bit like a time traveler when you pull into their lot. The beds are comfortable; we had a good night’s sleep and were on our way.

On our last day, we went to the Painted Desert and the Petrified Forest. I am out of words to describe the wonder that we found here, except to say we found some of the most breathtaking panoramic vistas. They were truly a pleasure to see. Nature is amazing.

This is getting long, but I wanted to tell it. Of course, the best part of the trip was the time my husband and I got to spend together-we road trip well. I don’t know when we will travel the rest of Route 66. But I can hardly wait. If you like road trips, I recommend this one. There are plenty of kicks to be had.

Happy Trails,

Kathie