Tucumcari Tonight!

September 12 - Tucumcari

Our first day on the road was -- a day of adjustment.  Although we knew that our first day was an ambitious one, we added even more to it before we began.  We had originally planned to head west out of OKC, but our OKC friends said that we "had to see" two sights a little to the east of the city.  So we obliged.  It turns out, however, that because we had to come back through OKC and because OKC is so big, OKC seemed to act as a great gravitational force against which we had to struggle to break free.   We thought we'd never get out of OKC!  When we finally did, we were about two hours behind the time that we initially thought that we'd go west.  We then learned for the rest of the day that one thing that Route 66 does not allow you to do is make up time.  So we have had to adjust:  we can't think about making time, we need to think about just "experiencing" the road.  After driving a certain way for almost forty years, that's easier said than done.  As it turned out, once it got dark, we had to abandon the Mother Road for I 40 because we couldn't see where we were, much less any of the sights that we were supposed to see.

Our day started by traveling to Arcadia, Oklahoma to see two things.  The first stop and the official beginning of our trip west along the highway was the Round Barn.  (We got there just before 10.)  As the character who runs the place, a good ol' boy aptly named "Butch," says, the Round Barn isn't that special.  It's not the only round barn in Oklahoma, but it is the only one on Route 66.  Butch was probably more worth the trip than the barn was.  He lives next door and has been keeping the place up and tending the gift shop since 1992.  Clad in a dirty red hat and red suspenders, he has a great act down, cracking jokes and telling stories that last just long enough for you to make your way all around the first floor/gift shop.  From the photos on display, it would have been really cool to see the second floor and the construction of the roof.  Unfortunately, as Butch informed us, you can only see that if you rent it out.  We were tempted, but passed.

At the start of our trip at the Round Barn in Arcadia

Just down the road from the Round Barn is "Pops."  Here is what the outside of Pops looks like.

Pops - view from Route 66

As you can guess by the name and by the exterior, Pops sells all manner of soda or pop, depending on where you're from.  It carries over 560 different types.  It is a combination gas station/diner/gift shop.  We had some yummy egg sandwiches.  Certainly worth the stop.

Front window display at Pops

Top ten best seller list at Pops

Some of the more unusual fare at Pops

From Arcadia, we traveled through Edmond and then OKC.  It seemed we encounterd a never-ending parade of red lights and strip malls, punctuated only by the state capitol building.  The capitol wasn't finished until just before the state's centennial two years ago.  The Indian at the top of the dome was added then.  OKC must hold the honor of being the only capital which has an oil well on its statehouse grounds. (We left the capitol around noon.)

The "new" top to the Capitol dome

Oil rig on the Capitol grounds

We had several stops before we finally made it out of OKC.  We had a low pressure warning on one of our tires.  We had to stop at a Walmart.  We had to stop at a Radio Shack.  All of these stops, of course, were undertaken in a driving rain.

When we were free of OKC's orbit, we progressed as smartly as one can along Route 66.  We passed along the north shore of Lake Overholser, with its not so lovely views of refineries and other industrial plants on the far shore.  We saw the Overholser bridge under which a scene from the movie The Grapes of Wrath was filmed.  We traveled through Yukon, with its huge flour mill complex.

The towns started to spread  out.  From Yukon, we traveled some pretty isolated road.  For a good part of this stretch, the road was a two lane concrete affair with slight curbs on either side.  There were no shoulders.  Once we got out of "town," we probably encountered less than ten cars or trucks on the road.  (When you think of that it makes sense -- who would want to travel on a rickety old road when they could travel the fancy schmacy interstate and go a lot faster?)

We also learned (still dealling with some rain) that the drainage off of these roads, especially in the low parts, wasn't that good.  In fact, the advancements in road technology became immediately apparent.  As we saw the cars on the interstate in the not so far distance whiz along, we had to slow down every time that there was a low spot in the road.

As we approached El Reno, we went over a bridge called a pony bridge over the Canadian River.  This bridge had 38 "pony trusses."  Pretty neat for an old road.

Pony bridge across the Canadian River

We got to a town called Hydro at about 2:15.  Hydro was best known for Lucille's Roadhouse.  The original is nicely preserved but is closed.  The "new" Lucille's is a few miles down the road.

The "old" Lucille's

The "new" Lucille's

About an hour and a half later, we pulled into the first Route 66 Museum on our trip, in Clinton, OK.  It was very well done, with plenty of interesting information about the start of the road (Good Road Associations), its construction, the Okies' move west and the heyday of the road in the late 40's through the 70's. 

Route 66 Museum in Clinton

Martha enjoying one of the exhibits

Pumps and soda machines

One mode of travel down the Mother Road

The Campbell Family Crest

Almost everything on Route 66 after Clinton entailed going from the north frontage road along side I 40 , switching to the south frontage road and then back again.  And with each switch, there were stops and turns. The road was primarily two lane black top with no shoulders.  Most of the towns were essentially wide spots in the road with silos and a few blocks of buildings.  Probably our favorite place along these stretches was Elk City, which had another Route 66 museum (although we were too late to see anything arriving at 4:30 when it closed at 5).

Route 66 Museum sign in Elk City

Giant kachina outside Route 66 Museum in Elk City

We then traveled through some pretty desolate parts of Oklahoma, ending in Texola.  As we traveled into Texas, we noticed the welcoming attitude and amenities.

Texas hospitality

In Shamrock, Texas, there is a neat art deco building on the former site of the U Drop Inn.  It is now used as the headquarters of the Shamrock Chamber of Commerce.

Former U Drop Inn in Shamrock, Texas

After Shamrock came McLean, which was trying mightily to grab hold of the Route 66 nostalgia.  They rescued part of the famous "Rattlesnacks Exit Now" sign, had the only "Burma Shave" type signs that we had seen, and had restored the first Phillips service station built in Texas.

Formerly part of "Rattlesnakes Exit Now" sign

Replica of the first Phillips 66 station built in Texas at this location in McLean, Texas

From McLean to Amarillo, the road was very straight and the land was very flat.  They don't call it "the wide open spaces" for nothing.  It was so flat that you could see the next town after leaving it's neighbor because you could spot the next town's grain silo or water tower in the distance.

The only things even remotely worth seeing on this stretch were two "Taj Mahal" rest stops in Donley County. 

In Groom, Texas, they tried to attract the tourist trade by erecting a giant cross (or as the Catholic in our group called it, "a honking big cross") and a leaning water tower.  Although we saw both in the distance, when we got into Groom, the only thing that we could find was the cross.  Somehow, the water tower had run away.

A "honking big cross" in Groom, Texas

A few miles later, we arrived in Conway.  We had to double back along I 40 to find the Bug Ranch, a take off on the famous Cadillac Ranch.

Bug Ranch near Conway, Texas

We made it to Amarillo at about 7:45.  We found the Big Texan Steak Ranch.  It is a motel and restaurant.  It is pure Texas -- big and audacious.  It is the home of the Big Texan Steak Challenge -- any customer eating a 72 oz. steak, a side of shrimp cocktail, a baked potato, and a salad in one hour gets his or her meal for free.  (Losing customer pays $70.)  Some fool was taking the challenge when we were there.  (After 38 minutes when we left, he hadn't even eaten half of his steak.)  They have a trio playing and touring the room playing western music.  And the food is good too.  David had a 16 oz. filet.  Martha had ribs.  Both were excellent.

A can't miss sign along I 40 in Amarillo

You can tell you're in Texas

Not quite our size

David contemplates taking the 72oz. steak challenge

By the time we finished dinner, it was 9:15.  We decided to forego Route 66 because we couldn't see anything.  For example, we drove past the Cadillac Ranch, but we couldn't see it.

The interstate was uneventful.  We passed some stockyards in Wilderado -- quite stinky and dusty.  The speed limit in New Mexico was a welcoming 75 mph.  We arrived at Tucumcari at about 9:45 Mountain Time. 

The Motel Safari is "vintage."  Whatever your image of a one story motel  from the 50's is, this motel is it. (Photos to come in our next post.) The rooms have a large flat screen TV and a vintage looking CD player which, since we've been in the room, has been playing Tucumcari songs.  Who knew that there were that many?

The hotel boasts the best beds in town.  We'll let you know whether that's false advertising.