On the Mother Road :: Part 9

California. Here we come.

Route 66 always welcomes us.

Honey.

I love to see the lizards in the desert! Check out that tail!

Tammy ❤ Scummy.

Beaten and broke down.

Oh Canada!

Roy’s Motel.

A very very old volcano.

Route 66.

Don’t do it!

What an awesome trailer!

Elmer’s Bottle Tree Ranch in Oro Grande,CA!

The bottles are lovely, but look at that printing press!

Cacti.

Insulators.

N Roll.

I liked this miner. He made out big on his claim!

So many pretties.

No one else was at the Bottle Forest so it was nice to explore without getting the the way of other people….or them getting in the way of my photos!

I think the cacti was my favorite!

Well?

Madonna of the Trail.

Kitty sittin’.

I didn’t see much of the Hollywood sign, but I did see it! LA was not fun to drive in.

We made it to the end of the trail! I drove all…ALL…of Route 66. I thought I would cry when we made it to Santa Monica Pier, but LA sucked the life out of me, so I had no tears to shed.

Santa Monica Pier.

This pigeon boy posed for us! What a way to end the trip!

On the Mother Road :: Part 8

Groceries.

Prairie dog!

So cute! there were hundreds of these guys on this part of the drive.

Cute tummy.

Checking out their surroundings.

DeSoto’s Salon.

We were actually able to eat here! In the middle of nowhere!

Route 66 Grill.

Land. Well played.

Very old 66.

Tree in the middle of the road.

It’s hard to see but there’s a cow and her baby under that big bushy tree.

Seligman, AZ.

We ate snow cones here.

I have a really strong hatred for Betty Boop. I just don’t get why she’s a thing.

Eric bought a real Route 66 road sign here!

Cars.

Grand Canyon Caverns! Yes we took the tour! I love me some caverns.

They actually have concerts underground! And there’s a hotel room you can rent! Sadly it was booked the night we were there or I think we would have spent way too much money to sleep underground.

It was a really clear night at our campsite. I tried some long exposure photography.

And I caught a passing train!

Bert’s Country Dancing.

I love this section of 66.

Old cop car.

We explored.

Eric really wants a car just like this.

Hackberry General Store. We bought some old license plates here and I bought some old Arizona Highways magazines.

Hackberry.

On the way to Oatman, AZ!

Watch out for wild burros!

I love the desert. There was actually water coming from a spring here. And there were goldfish in the water!

A popular place to spread ashes. They have quite the view.

Welcome to Oatman!

i told you there were wild burros!

This gal was very pregnant.

The burros are somewhat tame. They always expect you to give them treats. Most of the stores in town sell treats for the burros. Some of the really young babies had little notes taped to their heads that said…”Don’t feed me!” They just need mama’s milk.

Look at those big ears!

It was soooo hot here! I was one sweaty beast.

Just hanging out on the stoop snoozing.

On the Mother Road :: Part 7

Good morning! What a way to start a day, huh?

The sky in the southwest never disappoints!

A church blending in with the hills.

Moccasins for the entire family!

The Continental Divide!

Blue Spruce Lodge.

A cowboy Muffler Man.

Arizona.

Friends along the road.

Geodes! I love rocks and minerals so the rock shops in Arizona were super exciting!

Rock Shop dinos.

I bought some Arizona petrified wood at this shop.

More dinos and geodes.

The Wigwam Motel was our home for the evening!

The happy (and tan!) couple!

Wigwam sunset.

The motel has old cars stationed throughout the parking lot.

Morning dinos.

Rawr!

So much petrified wood!

Pow Wow Trading Post.

Bucket of Blood Street!!

b Horsehead Crossing.

Inside our Wigwam. They’re actually quite a bit bigger than they look from the outside.

An old campground.

Here it is! Jackrabbit, AZ.

This side of the billboard needs some loving!

Eric rode the rabbit.

And I hugged the rabbit.

On 66 in Winslow, Arizona.

Do you remember that song by the Eagles called “Take it easy?”

“Well, I’m a standing on a corner in Winslow, Arizona and such a fine sight to see. It’s a girl, my Lord, in a flatbed Ford slowing down to take a look at me.” Take it easy.

Broken down map.

I’m not sure what this was, but I’ll take it!

Giant dreamcatcher!

We took a tour of Meteor Crater. It’s impressive, but you might not be able to tell that from the photo.

Storm clouds over the crater.

Please slow down! Baby calves on roadway.

Two Guns, AZ.

Old mountain lion cages for tourists to gawk at mountain lions. That’s just rude.

See? Mountain lions.

Super cute graffiti!

Twin Arrows, AZ.

On the Mother Road :: Part 6

Good morning, Tucumcari!

Can you spot the little lizard?

Outside of Tucumcari we stopped at an old swimming pool.

Broken down.

Wilkerson’s.

Church in Cuervo, NM.

Old 66. What a view!

The road REALLY deteriorated. The Yaris is pretty much an ATV.

We were way out in the middle of nowhere. We didn’t pass one car. At one point we stopped and turned the car off. You could literally just hear the wind. Nothing else. Those kinds of experiences make you love life and the ability to travel!

We had beautiful weather while on this road.

Trust someone, Little Robot.

About an hour after exiting that gravel 66 road we encountered some hail!

There were some incredible downpours throughout the day in this part of New Mexico. Look at that water!

Pecos National Historic Park…and some rather threatening clouds.

You could actually use the ladder and step down into the kiva.

Inside! It was so cool underground.

Ruins.

There was some construction going on around the ruins. I think they were (hopefully) trying to restore more parts of the ruins.

Note the Sangre de Cristo mountains in the background.

Blooms.

I was on snake patrol. But I only saw some red ants.

Lovely colors!

We also visited Glorietta Pass Battlefield which is close to the Pecos ruins.

St. Francis of Assisi in Santa Fe!

Santa Fe is littered with beautiful buildings.

I really wanted to buy one of these cute little bunnies! They were $80 a piece though, so I just settled for a photograph.

We hiked La Bajada in New Mexico. This is a famous Route 66 road.

Morning on La Bajada.

Madonna of the Trail in Albuquerque, NM!

The Desert Sands Motor Hotel.

Gorgeous!

We were in Albuquerque on July 4th. Fei’s Cafe is a vegan cafe that was sadly closed for the Fourth.

But Mint Tulip was open! This was our first time visiting Mint Tulip. We had lunch and then ice cream. And then we went back later for milkshakes. Oh my! Vegan goodness galore!

Albuquerque had a big fireworks display that we stayed for. We also had some fries and corn on the cob.

You could see storms rolling in as night approached. Check out the lightning!

Happy 4th!

It started to rain right before the fireworks display started. People started to scream and run. I guess people in Albuquerque aren’t used to the rain.

Eric and I crawled under a picnic table to watch the fireworks while not getting wet!

In the morning I spotted that nasty little critter when we packed up the tent. OMG gross. Go away little guy!

Cat photos. Everyone likes cat photos!

Juniper and I were hanging out this afternoon. She was rolling around and just asking to be photographed!

She ignored me for the most part.

She was sleepy.

And I just love that little face!

Rollin’!

Scratchy back.

And dirty paws.

She’s active in the afternoon when we come home from work. If it’s after 3pm…she’s zonked out on “her” chair.

Shy little girl.

Deep in thought. Not really deep…she probably just saw a fuzzy on the floor.

Close your little mouth baby kitty!

Two paws up for kitty time!

On the Mother Road :: Part 5

We spent the night at the Blarney Inn in Shamrock, TX. Just a wee bit of Ireland!

Shamrock also has a blarney stone. What’s a blarney stone you say?…” is a block of bluestone built into the battlements of Blarney Castle, Blarney, Ireland. According to legend, kissing the stone endows the kisser with the gift of the gab (great eloquence or skill at flattery). The stone was set into a tower of the castle in 1446. The castle is a popular tourist site in Ireland, attracting visitors from all over the world to kiss the stone and tour the castle and its gardens.”

And I kissed that blarney stone!

Rattlesnakes.

Devil’s Rope Museum in McClean, TX.

The barbed wire museum wasn’t open so we drove around McClean for a few minutes to pass some time. This old gas station was lovely in the morning light.

We even found a dirt road before the museum opened! Lucky little devils.

Whoa!

The Devil’s Rope Museum had a collection of salt and pepper shakers, because, why not? I’m loving that kangaroo and joey shaker!

An armadillo made out of barbed wire.

More barbed wire than you can shake a stick at!

Fancy wire.

And a big ‘ol block of wire!

Super Service Station.

Alanreed, TX.

The Leaning Water Tower of Britten, TX.

Groom, TX is home to the largest cross in the Western Hemisphere.

Bug Ranch.

Promoting peace.

John Lennon.

Cowboy Motel.

Cadillac Ranch in Amarillo, TX.

There were a ton of people there the day we were, but I somehow managed to get a few photos without people in them. Also…people like to spray paint the cars, which I think it wonderful! Except people leave the empty spray paint bottles all over the ground when there are trash cans at the parking lot of Cadillac Ranch. Shame on you, litter bugs!!

I spray painted a cat face and Juniper’s name on a car.

Juniper Purrito!

Bates Motel? Let’s go!

Seems legit, right?

Boot tree in front of Dot’s Mini Museum in Vega, TX.

Dot’s Mini Museum.

Inside the museum. We left a Polaroid Land Camera photo next to a Polaroid photo someone else left there!

Adrian, TX is home to some fun and quirky signs!

Adrian is also the midway point of Route 66! We’re half way there! Adrian is also home to the Bent Door Cafe. I love the door! Also…you’re or your? It’s like nails on a chalkboard to me.

More signs in Adrian.

Loose at Night.

I think was my favorite sign in town.

How does your garden grow.

Holly hawks.

The old cowboy took off his hat.

Cats make me enormously uncomfortable. I never know what a cat is thinking.

Art is what you can get away with.

Who stuffed that white owl.

Midpoint Cafe, Adrian, TX.

Midpoint.

Wonderful view!

There’s the New Mexico border on the Interstate. We didn’t take the interstate…we found a dirt road to make our way into NM.

There’s our dirt road!

And look who we found crossing the road.

I was trying to make a turtle face. Apparently turtles always have their eyes closed.

I love the buildings in New Mexico! I love the desert too. I think it would be fun to live in NM someday.

The Pony Soldier Motel.

The Lasso Motel. What a beautiful broken down sign!

This was home for the night. The Blue Swallow Motel in Tucumcari, NM! We booked a room here two months in advance. This motel is always sold out. There was a mega surprise waiting for us at the Blue Swallow when we got there. They knew we were on our honeymoon and they made it a memorable stay for us. Eric and I both agree that this day was our favorite day on the trip! I can’t wait to tell you about our stay at the Blue Swallow. I have a ton of pictures to share, so I have a post dedicated to just the motel!

On the Mother Road :: Part 4

Totem Pole Park in Oklahoma.

This park was great! It was one of my favorite things in OK!

See the turtle at the bottom?

There were all sorts of sculptures around the park including a fun picnic table.

Guarding the road.

I think this was a little gift shop. We were there early in the morning so it wasn’t open. ..if it even still is.

Good luck!

The next stop was the Catoose Blue Whale. This is probably one of the top three iconic things on Route 66!

Little benches and tables near the Blue Whale.

The Blue Whale!

Open wide.

You could actually climb up in the head of the whale. There’s Eric!

In the belly of the beast.

This used to be a popular swimming spot, but it didn’t look like water you’d want to swim in now. There were quite a few turtles swimming there though!

The Oasis Motel.

Thank you, Tulsa!

The Rose Bowl.

The Desert Hills Motel. What a gorgeous sign!

The Cyrus Avery Centennial Plaza. Cyrus Avery is the “Father of Route 66.”

It was quite the lively sculpture.

Old Route 66.

The detail on the sculpture was wonderful.

There was even a grasshopper on the grill of the old Ford.

A 1920’s era bridge.

The Skyliner Motel. These motel signs sure beat Motel 6.

Another sneaky Meramec Caverns sign on a barn.

A rather beat down gas station.

66 sign on the wall of the gas station.

Round Barn in Arcadia, OK.

Inside the round barn. It was kind of trippy looking up at the ceiling.

Right outside of Oklahoma City is a town called El Reno. This is the spot were a giant tornado killed three storm chasers this past tornado season. Eric and I were fans of the show, Storm Chasers, so we were familiar with the men killed. We were only about a mile away so we decided to go pay our respects.

There was already a memorial setup for the storm chasers. We left some of our wedding flowers for the guys.

Tornado damage.

At least people can have a sense of humor.

No more billboards.

I was worried about running into a tornado while on the trip. We hit some rather bad storms, but thankfully no tornado. Tornado Alley is one place I do not want to live!

Calumet Chieftains.

Pony Bridge, Route 66.

The Glancy Motor Hotel!

This was a “hip” Route 66 museum. It wasn’t my favorite, because they seemed like they were trying to hard. You don’t have to try hard…you’re Route 66!

Big Bug!

Cotton Boll Motel.

I was a creeper and wanted a photo of the herd of cat on this front porch. They were so cute!

India food! We actually went there to find India food. And it was so good! They made it vegan for us too!

Western Motel.

Overgrown Route 66.

Harley and Annabelle’s in Erick, OK.

So many fun signs!

Harley and Annabelle’s.

No place like Texola.

There’s no other place like this place anywhere near this place so this must be the place.

My first time in Texas! And I will say that I was kind of upset I didn’t see one cowboy in chaps. Assless or otherwise.

Conoco Gas Station in Shamrock, TX.

Wide angle madness!

On the Mother Road :: Part 3

Route 66 emblem on the pavement near John’s Modern Cabins.

John’s Modern Cabins…or what’s left of them.

We had to walk through some brush to get to the cabins. That was a bad idea when we realized we had ticks all over us. I was so creeped out until I showered that night. I checked every inch of me and every inch (inside and out!) of my clothing for those pesky ticks.

John’s not so Modern Cabins.

An awesome No Trespassing sign directed at one guy! Burn!

The Munger Moss is one of the most famous motels on 66. We sadly didn’t spend the night here.

Rest Haven Court.

One of two turtle rescues we performed on the trip! This guy was crossing a busy road and we helped him along.

Antique.

Fantastic fence along 66!

Glass bottles in cement. I would love to do this someday.

This was in a little “village” type thing. The guy who built the village collected old buildings and cars to make a town of his own.

I love the paint of the buildings and bird houses.

Planes and automobiles.

Shiny.

This lovely lady was perched atop the airplane.

Sassy gal!

Danger ducks.

More fabulous sculptures in the little village.

Happy little car.

Highway Patrol.

Moon barn.

Mail Pouch Tobacco ad.

Probably the most famous drive-in on Route 66! There was a weird guy watching us the whole time we were taking photos. I think he was the cranky caretaker.

Carthage, MO.

Mater!

Palace Drug Store ghost sign.

Murder brothel.

Bridge in Kansas.

A very bare and beautiful downtown.

Conoco Station.

Original 9 foot road segment on 66. Also known as the Sidewalk Highway!

At least we know!

Cafe.

Possibly old tourist cabins? Lovely though!

On the Mother Road :: Part 2

Morning sun in Lincoln, IL.

World’s Largest Wagon and Big Lincoln.

Old 66.

Our Lady of the Highways Shrine – Raymond, IL.

Jesus. Just Jesus.

Mega blue sky!

Cemetery in Mt. Olive, IL.

Mother Jones’ grave site in Mt. Olive, IL.

Old Shell station.

President Lincoln’s tomb.

Rub the nose of Lincoln for good luck! I rubbed it and wished good luck for my niece, Tessa, who was born that day! Yay Tessa!

Inside Lincoln’s tomb.

President Lincoln.

Mama bird near the tomb.

Fantastic buildings!

More old road on 66.

There are some turkey tracks in the cement on a segment of 66.

There are the tracks!

An old jail. The ivy makes it almost seem cozy.

A homemade 66 monument.

Humpin’ to Please!

Henry’s Rabbit Ranch.

Hop on!

The Bel-Air Drive In.

Chain of Rocks Bridge spanning the Mississippi River!

The Great Mississippi River!

Awesome buildings on the Mississippi.

On the Chain of Rocks Bridge in Illinois.

And on the Chain of Rocks Bridge in Missouri!

This sign was kind of sad! A missing tortoise. I’m not sure how you lose your tortoise. I hope they find the guy. Or I hope he lives a happy life in the wild.

Meramec Caverns.

A beautifully restored Phillips station.

The World’s Largest Rocking Chair!

Just another gorgeous sign on the Mother Road!

On the Mother Road :: Part 1

And she begins!

Dick’s on 66.

The Rialto Theater in Joliet, IL.

The Gemini Giant!

We got caught in some heavy rain early in the day.

The Riviera Restaurant. I really don’t like Betty Boop. She’s like nails on a chalkboard to me!

An old jail in the shadow of Betty Boop. Doooom!

Gardner, IL.

Dwight Windmill – Dwight, IL.

One of MANY old gas stations we saw along the way.

Old Mobil Station.

Standard Oil Company Station.

Meramec Caverns! I love the ads on old barns. P.S. We went to the caverns! But that’s for another post.

Pontiac, IL.

Pontiac, IL.

More murals in Pontiac.

The school bus of Route 66 legend Bob Waldmire! We were able to tour it too!

Bob Waldmire was vegan too!

Friends don’t let friends eat meat.

Inside the bus.

Bob Waldmire sadly died in 2009, but his bus is just the way he left it.

Inside the Route 66 museum in Pontiac.

Route 66 road core samples.

Bob Waldmire’s VW Bus. The Bus is on display in the museum. They were lucky enough to be able to add this to their collection!

License plate collection in the museum.

Bruce Springsteen…apparently working on a dream.

Royal Blue Shoes.

This place was closed. I have a feeling it’s not opening anytime soon.

Muffler Man with (vegan) hot dog.

Handmade signs litter Route 66.

Lincoln and a Muffler Man.

Lincoln, IL.

We made it to camp early this night and went to see World War Z! It was my first 3-D movie as well.

Home for the night.

Lincoln, IL. – Taken from the Roadside America website… “It commemorates the day in 1853 when the future 16th President, who was then just an Illinois lawyer, christened his namesake community by slicing open a melon and pouring its juice onto the ground. In agreeing to lend his name to this place, Abe reportedly said, “I never knew anything named Lincoln that amounted to much.” “