Flagstaff. Breakfast at Mama Zips, overcast and cool. It was actually chilly this morning, a first for this trip and a welcome break from surface of the sun temperatures although it would reach 107 degrees later in the day. The plan of action was to see some of Route 66 and then head for either Barstow or Lake Havasu (to go see London Bridge). The choice was going to be based on when the truck driver with the MINI was going to arrive in Tulare, to drop the car at Grandmas.
The plans of mice and men. So we travelled on a bunch of old Route 66, got an ice cream and milk shake at the Snow Cap and yes, the bloke who runs it it totally weird, the rumors are in fact true. After that we headed on a bunch of back road, through Kingman, AZ on our way back to I-40. And then the road turned into a track. What emerged was a vista of browns, reds and yellows in the rocks and the brilliant of greens new growth cactus. Eventually we arrived in Oakman, where not only did Clark Gable spend his wedding night but the whole town is run by donkeys wondering the streets. No, George W was not in town, he was in Beijing for the Olympics. The town itself is an original gold rush town, still preserved with this covered saloon and by the looks of it a few prospectors still remain spurs still intact.
The people described in Steinbecks "Grapes Of Wrath" must have been really pissed at the dust bowl of the mid-west to even attempt this trip in the 1930's. It was pretty crazy in 2008 on Route 66, and despite being amazing to look at it was hard core desert with few offers of redemption.
It was at this point we pointed the car to California and decides to forego both Barstow and Lake Havasu and go directly to Grandma, not passing go or collection $200 in the process. For us it was the end of Route 66 and it some ways the romance of this journey. What was going to be a 300 miles / 5 hour drive turned into a 545 miles / 10.35 hour drive-a-thon. Kids did not complain (they had only their second dose of fast food on the trip) and a couple of DVDs and we were off to the races, again.
Palm trees. That was the first sign I was in California. The second was $4.79 / gallon gas. We were running on fumes and in the middle of the Mojave desert... what were we going to do! The Mojave was our last desert, and in a way kind of unremarkable in comparison to the painted desert and other we have seen. But it will always have a place in at least my photographic heart, its where I fell in love with color photography.
Couple of days off at Grandma's and then the final leg to the Bay Area. All we have to do is get the furniture delivered when we actually own the house... oh, and there is that minor detail of closing on the house. Keep 'em peeled Danno.
States
- Arizona
- California
Food Count
- Breakfast : Eggs, Bacon & Hash Browns and Mama Zips
- Lunch : $6 burger at Carl's Jnr (it was only $3.99 plus tax)
- Dinner : Cheese on Toast at Grandma's
