A Great Southwest Road Trip

It's been more than two years since Kathy and I had our last trip together, visiting Austria and Italy for the 2018 European Mission's conference, Refresh Europe. This morning, newly vaccinated, and one-year-Covid-stir-crazy, we set out on our own version of the legendary Route 66 road trip.

We woke up at 4:00, and were in the car and on the freeway by 6:00 am. I spent most of the night dreaming that I had already woken up and was trying to remember everything we had to pack. I hope we didn't forget anything. Those of you who have seen the thirty-five pound carry-on suitcases that we've lived out of in the past, would be shocked to see how much more we could carry when we have our own car.

Traffic was light out of Orange County, through the El Cajon Pass to Barstow, where we made our first IHop stop for breakfast by 7:30. I highly recommend the 55+ Rise and Shine breakfast for $ 8.19.

Turning off on US 40, the Purple Heart Highway, we spent our time remembering road trips when we were children, and listening to Tony Hillerman's Sinister Pig on CD. Jim Chee and Joe Leaphorn unearth a scheme to smuggle cocaine through an abandoned oil and gas pipeline from Mexico.

The road from Barstow to Needles (on Colorado River) goes through the Mojave Desert which is empty and desolate. Running alongside the highway, about a hundred yards away, was a fence; we both wondered what it was for. It didn't seem like it was there to keep people out (or in). There were no cattle who could wander on to the road and pose a traffic hazard. I Googled "mojave fauna" to see if there was a wildlife situation. I was surprised to see that there were Big Horn Sheep and Mojave Mule Deer, but we didn't see any.

We crossed the river at Needles. Kathy pointed out that it was probably named after the jagged sawtooth mountains running right next to the highway. Heading up through Kingman, we stopped for a late lunch in Seligman, Arizona. The Pixar founder, John Lasseter, researching the history of Route 66 for his upcoming film Cars, met the Seligman barber Angel Delgadillo, who told him about the day that Interstate 40 opened, (in 1970), bypassing the town, drying up the traffic (and business) in one day. Lasseter took the idea and came up with his fictional town of Radiator Springs, modeled loosely on Seligman.

Instead of drying up like the other towns on the former Route 66, Seligman has capitalized on the film, and on Route 66 nostalgia to hang on. Micheal Wallis, Route 66 historian and author of Route 66: The Mother Road, covers the history of its most famous institution, the Snow Cap Drive In, opened in 1953 by Juan Degadillo, the brother of the barber who entertained Lasseter. We had to give it a try.

Unfortunately, the wind was blowing about 30 mph, it was about 40 degrees, and the Snow Cap had no indoor dining. Some other passing tourists, braving the elements, offered to take our picture in front of the Snow Cap's frontage automobile, advertising "Good Dead Chickens." Being the wimps we are, though, we headed further down Route 66 to the Roadkill Cafe.

Despite the corniness, the food was excellent. Kathy had a Philly Cheese Steak sandwich and I had a French Dip. Large servings, quality ingredients, friendly service. I recommend it if you ever visit. Maybe you'll be more adventurous and order the Buffalo or Elk burger.

In the late afternoon we arrived in Williams, where we'll take the train tomorrow to the Grand Canyon (with a thousand other people). We got a nice room at the La Quinta Inn. I got it because it included a free breakfast, but with the pandemic, you get a "breakfast bag" to eat in your room. I'll let you know how it goes in the morning.

The weather is pretty cold as you can see. Yes that is snow around the La Quinta sign. I also mentioned that it was pretty windy. The only hat I brought was my Panama to keep the sun off of my head. That didn't help with the cold. So, after we unpacked, we drove back to town (three blocks). Along the way, we stopped by the railroad depot to pick up our tickets, thus avoiding the hordes in the morning. I got a nice red-white and blue beanie. It really does keep my ears warm, and it's quite fetching.

After that, we walked through the historic district and did some shopping. We then sat in the car and listened to another chapter of the Sinister Pig. Neither of us were hungry after our late lunch, so we headed back to the hotel around 6:00. Tomorrow, the Grand Canyon.