Texas and New Mexico trip - Amarillo 1
May 28, 2017 14:21:27 #
This day was to be my only full day in Amarillo, so plugged the Cadillac Ranch into my GPS and away I went - again taking the "scenic route" - this time by choice! I would assume by the neighborhoods that I went through that Canyon is a "bedroom community" for Amarillo, because Canyon itself seems to be a very small and laid-back town. At the end of endless turns onto and off of 2 lane and 4 lane roads, I came to a section of Old Route 66 covered in graffiti - yes the actual road.... I looked to my left and in an old corn field that had been previously harvested stood the nose-down Cadillacs. Parking is along the road, so found a place and headed to the gate that gave entrance to this attraction. There is a fenced entrance area, and then a swinging gate that you must open to gain entrance to the site. Be careful where you put your hands, because on my way out, someone had fresh gold paint on their hands that transferred to mine when I grabbed the swinging gate. The cars are a short walk off the highway, but when I got closer I noticed all the garbage on the ground. There are a couple of large dumpsters at the gate, but people use their spray cans of paint and then throw the cans on the ground. I loved the colors of the cars, but the garbage on the ground was quite a distraction and I don't understand why people do things like that.
My next stop was north of Amarillo to Lake Meredith National Recreation Area and Alibates Flint Quarry National Monument. I initially took I-40 and then transferred to Rt. 335 which is a loop around Amarillo, driving that until I got to Rt. 136 and headed north. The road to Lake Meredith is through gentle rolling hills that have no farms or towns, and no cell service, until the town of Fritch which is about 40 miles away from Amarillo. Lake Meredith is formed from a damming of the Canadian River; however, the drought for the last several years has not allowed a lot of water to replenish the lake, and the main boat launch at Harbor Bay for power boats has been closed. Small kayaks and canoes can still be used via another launch site, but vegetation can be seen sticking up through the water from the lake bed in several places, so the lake is slowly drying out.
My next stop was north of Amarillo to Lake Meredith National Recreation Area and Alibates Flint Quarry National Monument. I initially took I-40 and then transferred to Rt. 335 which is a loop around Amarillo, driving that until I got to Rt. 136 and headed north. The road to Lake Meredith is through gentle rolling hills that have no farms or towns, and no cell service, until the town of Fritch which is about 40 miles away from Amarillo. Lake Meredith is formed from a damming of the Canadian River; however, the drought for the last several years has not allowed a lot of water to replenish the lake, and the main boat launch at Harbor Bay for power boats has been closed. Small kayaks and canoes can still be used via another launch site, but vegetation can be seen sticking up through the water from the lake bed in several places, so the lake is slowly drying out.
The overview of the site
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Rt. 66
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Antelope Horns
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Loco Weed
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The closed motorized boat ramp
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May 29, 2017 08:03:08 #
May 29, 2017 10:38:38 #
jerryc41 wrote:
Interesting shots.
Thank you for looking and commenting. Glad you liked them.
May 29, 2017 12:40:09 #
May 29, 2017 12:41:43 #
May 29, 2017 14:20:44 #
ebbote wrote:
Very good series AuntieM.
Thank you for looking and commenting. Glad you liked them.
May 29, 2017 14:21:07 #
angler wrote:
Good set AuntieM.
Thanks Angler. Unfortunately my trip photos are almost over.
May 29, 2017 19:44:23 #
I'll bet the paint on those Cadillacs is at least a 1/2" think.......
Great tour!!
Pat
Great tour!!
Pat
May 29, 2017 22:13:09 #
Jay Pat wrote:
I'll bet the paint on those Cadillacs is at least a 1/2" think.......
Great tour!!
Pat
Great tour!!
Pat
At least......................some had very thick drips on them.....I can only imagine how thick those were. Thanks for looking Pat.
May 30, 2017 00:58:33 #
May 30, 2017 11:51:35 #
jaymatt wrote:
Keep the trip coming.
Only one more post unfortunately. Thanks for following along with me.
Jun 2, 2017 14:57:12 #
AuntieM wrote:
This day was to be my only full day in Amarillo, s... (show quote)
you were not too far away from lubbock, texas and the little town where i grew up auntie...o'donnell, tex...hometown of dan blocker
who was hoss in the tv shot banaza. nice shots...there's lots of interesting things to see out in that wide open country!
Jun 2, 2017 15:37:38 #
merrytexan wrote:
you were not too far away from lubbock, texas and the little town where i grew up auntie...o'donnell, tex...hometown of dan blocker
who was hoss in the tv shot banaza. nice shots...there's lots of interesting things to see out in that wide open country!
who was hoss in the tv shot banaza. nice shots...there's lots of interesting things to see out in that wide open country!
I remember Dan Blocker well - didn't know he was from Texas. If I had had time, I wanted to go to Lubbock and get a photo of "Lubbock Texas in my rear view mirror."
I definitely want to come back and do some more exploring in Texas. I am researching getting another pull-behind camper for my Sequoia, or selling that and getting a truck and small 5th wheeler to do some volunteer work in some of the parks across the country. Who knows, the wagon train may be coming to a place near you in the future. 
Jun 2, 2017 16:12:21 #
Jun 3, 2017 16:21:38 #
Lame-Duck wrote:
What an interesting and colorful series. Very nice job.
Thank you very much for your kind comments. Glad you liked them.
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