Scratch one more item off the bucket list.
I’ve been back a week, and am feeling the gravy slowly clear from my arteries.
The last segment of our Route 66 saga left off in Oklahoma, with the remaining Midwest miles being fuelled as much by beef as by petrol.
Day three had us departing the historic Campbell Hotel in a steady rain. With wipers going full tilt, the Neilmobile (piloted by Neil Vorano, not Moore) somehow got lost in Tulsa’s morning rush hour.
We soon rejoined our convoy of Canadian journalists, hosted by Nissan Canada, in nearby Chandler, Oklahoma. Here, we visited Jerry McClanahan’s gallery where he signed the EZ 66 Guide that each of us were following.
Evidently, it wasn’t EZ enough for the Neils.
Like our tour guide Gary Fleshman, McClanahan regularly scouts this network of roads, also receiving updates from fellow Route 66 explorers who help update his guide and website with details on construction, detours and closed sections.
Down the road from Chandler, we witnessed an “inflow boundary plume.” In lay terms, it’s the beginning of a tornado. This one reached ground level and had already begun to turn, but Fleshman pointed out that this time of year they don’t usually have enough energy to form a full-blown twister.
We could have renamed our event “The Nissan Stormchaser Tour” but the funnel soon dispersed.
Next up was the Round Barn near Arcadia, OK. Built in 1898 and restored in 1992, it was used as a landmark and meeting point along Route 66. Its parabolic roof creates some odd acoustics.
On to the Route 66 Museum in Clinton. For those of you familiar with John Steinbeck’s classic, The Grapes of Wrath, you’ll gain insight on the thousands of tenant farm families who fled the Midwest dustbowl and used the “Mother Road” to reach southern California in hopes of a better life.
Steinbeck’s portrayal of the journey was bleak, and at the museum you’ll see an old truck similar to what the Joads would have loaded – with family members and everything they owned.
Fortunately our conveyances – a fleet of 2015 Nissan Rogues and Altimas – were far more comfortable with their “zero gravity” seats, and infinitely more reliable. We had no worries about fixing them by the roadside.
Travelling Route 66 today requires a keen eye and a guidebook, and a willingness to hop on and off the Interstate system. Sections of the old route have been entirely decommissioned, some have been paved over and lie “beneath” the Interstate, and others run adjacent to the new asphalt.
Our group had an edge, as Fleshman had travelled the route approximately 120 times, and knew every inch – currently travelled or not.
Crossing into Texas, we began noticing fewer trees and more sagebrush, with the landscape now more arid.
The Chamber of Commerce in Shamrock, TX was our next stop. Originally a Conoco service station in the 1930s, the restored building now doubles as a visitors’ centre. It was also the inspiration for Ramone’s body shop in the movie Cars.
Temperatures throughout Oklahoma were balmy compared to our starting point in Chicago, but began to drop as we climbed in altitude and crossed the Texas panhandle.
Here, we witnessed a spectacular sunset just east of Amarillo. The interplay of orange and purple on the puffy clouds spanning the big Texas sky was stunning, and it was the perfect end to a long drive.
As was our dinner stop at The Big Texan steakhouse, fronted by a giant cow statue, with a shooting gallery inside. Despite an overdose of red meat over the past few days, I thought better of ordering the salmon…
DAY FOUR
Day four began just west of Amarillo at one of the route’s best-known attractions: Cadillac Ranch. This unique piece of public art – ten vintage Caddies buried nose-down in a cow pasture, is truly an oddity. Despite being on private land, an unlocked gate welcomes you not only to view these vehicles, which range from the 1949 Club Sedan to the 1963 Sedan de Ville, but also to paint them.
Midpoint Café at Adrian Texas was our second stop of the day. As the name suggests, this is the halfway point between Chicago and Santa Monica with 1,139 miles to each.
The original café was built in 1928 and expanded in ‘47, but this thriving business declined when Route 66 was later bypassed by I-40. Efforts to revive the historic route began in 1987, giving the Midpoint a boost and allowing it to continue as a popular waypoint for a piece of pie and a good cup of diner “joe.”
Moving west through cattle country, we stopped at Glenrio, a tiny ghost town on the border between Texas and New Mexico. There’s little here other than a dilapidated motel, café and Phillips 66 service station. But it’s a worthwhile stop for photo buffs.
Keep in mind, however, these buildings are on private land and are likely unstable. Locals also say there’s an abundance of snakes in the area, (the ground is riddled with burrows), so it’s best not to wander.
And with the aggressive attitude here towards property rights (some believe they can shoot you for entering their land), I’d rather chance it with the snakes.
The old dirt section of 66 from here is well kept and you can see for miles, with the only interruption being distant buttes and mesas. With BTO’s “Rolling Down the Highway” on satellite radio, I couldn’t imagine a better way to pass the miles.
But there’s more here than just open range, as you’ll spot some unique finds in the middle of nowhere – like Mother Road Memory Iron. Here, we found aging, but remarkably well preserved vintage autos – Studebaker, Nash and others – under the intense late-morning sun. Owner Danny Ellis pointed out that “if it has any rust, it didn’t come from around here.”
To the west, Tucumcari is a goldmine of classic Route 66 motels. Shutterbugs could spend hours here snapping the colourful signs, or an evening taking in its show of neon.
The route continues its scenic ways past town. Flat lands become hilly, with flash floods and dry riverbeds carving up the red soil. Distant buttes add to the ruggedly beautiful landscape.
Back on I-40, the striking backdrop is replaced by billboards, and no shortage of them compelling us to stop at the Flying C Ranch in Encino. So we did.
This mecca of kitsch carried all the usual mugs, signs, coasters and figurines you’d expect, along with a rack of dead animal headwear and a wall of fireworks. The sign exclaimed: “Fireworks! Year ‘Round Awesomeness.”
I had my eye on the in-store special: a mattress-sized box for only $599.99. After all, we were camping the next night…
A short time later, we rolled into Albuquerque, where I subsequently made a wrong turn – two to be precise.
Even with the EZ Guide to Route 66, the Neil team was really no sharper than Bugs Bunny.
Stay tuned for part four - the final installment of our Route 66 saga.
This article originally appeared on Wheels.ca: https://www.wheels.ca/
Neil Moore is a seasoned automotive journalist who is hesitant to reveal precisely how many ‘seasons.’ His passion for all things automotive has been published in many newspapers, magazines and websites – a mix of articles that inform, entertain and occasionally stir the pot. Neil is also a member of AJAC (Automobile Journalists Association of Canada).
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