Author: kimspathway

Wed 11 July – 2493 steps
No songs come to mind
We decided to do the long haul to Austin in one day. It was approximately 500 miles and should have taken about 8 hours.  The scenery was not thrilling because we were going straight down the motorway on the quickest route available. We did see oilfields, churches, crosses, mealies and wind farms. (Have I mentioned I am fascinated by wind farms. They have an ethereal beauty)
I never realized Texas was so green.

The trip was uneventful other than the traffic as we came into Austin. It was horrendous and added at least another hour and a half to our trip. They are busy with roadworks everywhere. The highways and interchanges are incredible. I had to take loads of pictures of the construction so David could look at them later. There are so many levels that are so high, it is like going on a roller coaster. Again, not my best, so I closed my eyes.

Chuckle of the day: None that I can remember, in fact I have blocked most of the day out of my memory bank.
What I learnt: The good citizens of the USA back in the day when they were naming towns and cities did not have much imagination and many names are repeated in different states. There are 9 places called Memphis that are not Memphis of Elvis. There are 88 different cities and towns throughout the country called Washington and at least 34 states have a Springfield.

 

Tues 10 July  – 4591 steps
Songs: Route 66 by Bobby Troup but covered by many others; Is this the way to Amarillo? by Tony Christie; Cadillac ranch by Bruce Springsteen;

We followed Route 66 where possible from Albuquerque to Amarillo. When you leave Albuquerque, there is a singing road. There are grooves in the road work, like rumble strips, that are precisely positioned that when you drive over them at 45 mph for the quarter-mile stretch, you can hear “America the Beautiful” play through the vibrations in your car’s wheels. So cool.
David replaced the unnamed horse with “Is this the way to Amarillo?”
The highway is very busy, so many trucks. Strange how some of the towns survived the bypass and still function and others just died. Clines Corners, for example, has a thriving business including a huge memorabilia shop that has an awesome boot section.  We were definitely leaving Indian teritories and entering Cowboy country.

We found an awesome motor museum in Santa Rosa. There was a huge double cab Chev truck, that even had compartments under the load body and a tricycle I thought we could fix for Sophia.

Glenrio is a small ghost town as you enter Texas.  It has an old gas station and diner as well as some old cars which look like they belong in the museum.

We stopped in Adrian for cousin Ady. It is the mid point of the original the Route 66; 1,139 miles separate it from Chicago and Los Angeles. Not much there though.

After that it was mostly on the freeway. There were huge cattle feed lots and oil depots. We also made a brief stop at the famous Cadillac ranch just outside Amarillo, but decided not to go join the crowds and put our names on the decaying cars as is the tradition.

We checked into our RV park and quickly got ready to be picked up by a free limo service offered by The Big Texan Steak Ranch. The limo arrived, cowboy driver and horns on the bonnet! The restaurant is famous for its 72 oz. (2.02 kg) steak, the “Texas King”, which costs $72, but is served free to those who can eat the steak and the trimmings (bread roll with butter, baked potato, shrimp cocktail, and salad) in less than one hour. The advertised live music was in actual fact 2 old cowboys, not very good, coming to your table and offering to play you a song for a tip. It was a bit like the balloon guy at the Spur on Rivonia drive when we first arrived in Joburg.

Chuckle of the day: Business lunch and road signs warning you not to enter Texas and the whole Big Texan Ranch experience

What I learnt: I believe people romantise the idea of  traveling down route 66. It ties in with a nostalgia for simpler times, a yearning for a slower pace. Without time travel, the only way we can achieve this is to sometimes disconnect, take time out and be present with real people.

 

 

Mon 9 July  –   5867 steps
Neil Young sings “So I’ll stop when I can,
find some fried eggs and country ham
I’ll find somewhere where they don’t care who I am,
Oh, Albuquerque, Albuquerque”
So we drove to Albuquerque.
As you leave Farmington, there are rock formations which would have been perfect for playing “Tintin on the moon” as we did as kids.
Along the way, we crossed the border into New Mexico and stopped for a delicious Mexican lunch in Cuba. Before Albuquerque we joined the Historic Route 66.

We got to Albuquerque early enough to take an Uber into the Old town, where we wandered around looking at the loads of galleries, clothing and souvenir shops.
Soon our route was guided by the need to find a restroom. Finally,  we stopped in at a tavern and had a cool drink, before going to supper at St Clairs winery. There we samples 3 different red wines, a merlot; pinot noir and a cabernet.  All 3 samples add up to about 1 glass. I found them all slightly sweeter than our wines at home.

What I learnt: There was one shop that specialized in “Day of the Dead” art which I do not enjoy. From what I read, the Day of the Dead takes place on November 2nd and is often combined with Catholic All Saints day. It pays tribute to the departed. Skeletons and skulls made of paper maché, wood, chocolate or sugar are seen as a playful symbol of life after death. Skeleton bride and grooms are seen as a symbol of eternal love. It is not macabre or sinister, but even though I researched it and now understand it better, I still do not like it. It makes me feel uncomfortable. Alas, poor me.

Sun 8 July  – 9206 steps, 18 flight
We set off early, stopping at various view points along the way. On top of one hill you get a clear 360 degree view of the surrounding area. We drove on until we could join a cycle path which does a loop showing the earlier dwellings the Ancestral Pueblo people on top of the Mesa Verde, as well as views of some of the cave dwellings.

The mesa dwellings are fascinating. They were semi-excavated, with brick walls and would have had a roof structure. They are separated into different functional areas, including a kiva or gathering place, which was built with a vent behind the fire place, to allow fresh air in. The structures are so well preserved and explained. They indicate that a well-organized, sophisticated people lived there.

We then drove to another section of the park, where we went on a guided tour of the Cliff Palace. It involved winding your way down into the cave, around huge rocks; on uneven, dusty, stone staircases; more than a few wooden ladders and the incessant, baking sun. They tell you if you are afraid of heights, have bad knees or other physical challenges, not to do it. I had serious doubts about doing the tour, but thankfully David encouraged me and I made it.

Standing in the ruins was a very humbling experience. Our guide was very knowledgeable and respectful of the culture of the Publeo–Indians who once lived here. No-one knows why at some point, all across the region, people started moving down from the mesa tops to the caves below.  They built elaborate structures, however, they only stayed there only for a short period and then moved on. There are various theories as to why this happened, but there is no real answer. The theories  adapt as more research is done.
Of course, once the tour was complete we had to make our way to the top again on the other side. A breath-taking experience in both senses of the word.
It was getting late, so we finished driving around the park, and headed off in a south easterly direction. We found an RV park in Farmington. It poured as we arrived. If I remember correctly, it was the first rain we have had since we have been here. Certainly welcome after all the desert.
What I resolved to do: Keep up my get fit programme and have a knee replacement so I am ready for Machu Picchu!
What I learnt: In each of the kivas is a small hole in the floor called a sipapu. It is believed to symbolise the entryway where the ancestors emerged from an earlier world into our present one.  There is a sacred site in the Grand Canyon, believed by the Hopi to be the original sipapu and many make the arduous pilgrimage to visit the site. It ties into my belief system.

Sat 7^th June  – 4260 steps
Today was a driving day, from Flagstaff to Mesa Verde National Park, via Oljata Monument Park and 4 Corners,  a total of approx 350 miles and 6 hours of driving through desert. “la, la, I’ve been through a desert on a horse…”
It was a long haul, but totally worth it.  The mesas and buttes are incredible and the landscape goes on forever. From Arizona, you cross into Utah and then into Colorado. Most importantly, most of the area falls into Hopi followed by Navajo Reservation. All of it is very harsh environment. All along the road at different tourist spots, there are local Indians selling jewelry and craft. It is very much like driving through Swaziland in that respect. Most of the stores carry similar items and prices do not vary from stall to stall.

We also stopped at 4 Corners where the 4 state borders meet perpendicularly. The states are Arizona, Utah, Colorado and New Mexico. It falls under the control of the 2 Indian reservations. There was a bit of a queue and it was incredibly hot, but worth the picture.

We crossed into Colorado and also Ute territory. Less of desert here, there are green space so farming occurs and a casino.

We finally reached our destination, the campgrounds at Mesa Verde, at 6pm and had a relaxed night in a beautiful surrounding.
Chuckle of the day: The lady selling jewelry at Elephant’s feet, said they are also known as horse foot and donkey foot or Republican and Democrat
What I learnt: The reservations have there own president. There are 22 candidates running for the upcoming elections. When I asked the jewelry vendor if any of them were good, she said no. How sad is that.

 

Fri 6 July  – 5186 steps
Before we left Williams, we stopped at Bearizona. What an impressive sanctuary. All the animals have been rescued. You start with an approximate 3 mile drive through various designated areas. All the animals are shedding their winter coats, but otherwise look well cared for and have lots of space.

Then you arrive at the walking section, where they keep the smaller animals as well as the baby bears and a jaguar. We stopped for coffee and I had a corn dog covered in cheese for breakfast. They have a machine that dispenses melted cheese. I need one for Christmas at our Kei Mouth House.

The bear cubs were definitely the cutest, but too busy eating breakfast to pose for photos. They put their food behind the tree trunks. The other impressive thing is they apparently use old caravans and RVs to form the basis of their faux rocks. This is far more than a zoo and I recommend it to anyone travelling in that area.

We drove a short way to Flagstaff. David got on his bike and found a nearby hill to cycle up.
Highlight of the day: Seeing bears, I was beginning to think they were long extinct.
What I learnt. We all know you shouldn’t believe everything you are told. All the RV parks I phoned said they were fully booked, nothing available, including the KOA. So I went on line, using the KOA app and managed to book a site for the night.

Thurs 5 July   9644 steps 5 flights
At 7 am we returned to Williams where we gathered in an arena at the train station for a live shoot out. It was a very amateurish cowboy skit and the hidden microphones did not work very well, which made it difficult to hear the dialogue. Although that may have been a blessing in disguise. However, I think the kids enjoyed it, especially when the dying cowboy nearly lands face down in a pile of horse manure and at least we were sitting in the shade. Then we boarded the train and sat in a cool lounge with dome windows on the way to the Grand Canyon. To be honest, there is not a lot to see on the way there, but it was a very relaxing trip and we had some entertainment when the roving minstrel came by and sang a few foot-stomping, hand-clapping, old-fashioned ditties.

Then we hopped on a bus which drove us to a few different lookout points. The Grand Canyon is indeed the most incredible, vast chasm and no photos can hope to do it justice. To put it in perspective, the white line you see in the Colorado river is actually a rapid that is over 300m long and 100m wide. We were lucky enough to see a condor. The bus returned us to the village where we had lunch and continued to explore till we took the train home at 4:30pm.

In the late afternoon the colors of the canyon start changing. In retrospect, maybe we should have spent the night in order to watch sunset or sunrise over the canyon.
On the trip back, the train was “hijacked” and boarded by “train robbers”, but during their show, while we were waiting for them to reach out cabin, the train stopped again, and an ambulance and fire truck arrived and finally the paramedics took someone of the train on a stretcher, with oxygen mask and drip. It was very interesting to see how efficient they were and how none of the motorists who had been stopped by the train crossing the road got impatient. It whole thing took about 35 minutes. The train continued and the robbers found our compartment, we tipped them a dollar each. They were followed by the sheriff. Ham acting, but good fun.

Chuckle of the day: Kneeling buses and Americans with their dogs

What I learnt: I have a healthy respect for heights and keep what I consider to be a safe distance from the edge. David too. The ground is covered with loose stones and dust and is very uneven, one misplaced step and goodbye. It happens, apparently a few every year, mostly men aged 21 to 30.
I have to ask “Am I over-cautious because have I inherited the “fears”of my father or am I just sensible?” which leads to the questions “Do the people who we saw posing or doing yoga positions on the edge of the precipice or on rocks that jut out over the canyon think they are invincible or do they think at all?”