June Trip-part 9

Day 16 - Missouri, Arkansas, Tennessee, Kentucky

Grand children Bryce & Alyssa

As it turned out, this was to be our last day of travel. Kathy was originally going to be off work the day after we got back, but circumstances prevented that from happening and so she wanted to get back to have some time before she went back to work. We planned to visit my son (Chris) and his family in Blytheville, Arkansas and then head back to Lexington, Kentucky.
So we plotted a course southeast from West Plains and headed off cross country. In a hour or two we were there, had a nice visit with them for awhile before starting the 6 hour drive home.

The trip back home was pretty much uneventful. Right before we left I setup the GPS for our destination in Lexington and we took off to find our way. Odd thing is it took us on the back roads that I had never been before and we ended up on I-155, just west of the Mississippi river! That was a major shortcut for sure. 

Once we went across the bridge we found ourselves in Tennessee and shortly thereafter the only part of the trip which is not a freeway through the town of Union City, Tennessee. Other than a few traffic lights, this is pretty much like the rest of the trip with a 4 lane highway with slightly slower speed limits. Then before you know it, you are back in Kentucky.

We stopped and had our final trip meal at a Cracker Barrel restaurant near Calvert City on I-24. We had previously tried to find a Cracker Barrel restaurant on the trip, but this was the first time we found one at a time we were wanting to eat. I believe I had the meat loaf dinner, which was excellent, as was the service. Just can't beat this place for a uniform experience each time.

In no time at all, we found ourselves on the Western Kentucky parkway for the long stretch of road with not much to see. As we got closer to Lexington, everyone was quiet for they knew the end of our journey was near. Not much else to tell, we arrived at our destination around midnight.

After winding down from the trip, I spent the night with Jim and Melody, anticipating being picked up in the morning by Randy and Autumn, which I was. We were supposed to go to my grandson Billy's baseball game, but it was rained out. So we had lunch at La Rosa's and then I returned back home to Seymour.


A few final words to my traveling companions, my brother-in-law Jim and sisters Melody and Kathy, I just want to say that I truly enjoyed the experience, even though it may not have seemed so at the time. I love you guys and I really do look forward to doing it again some day. Just give me a chance to rest up from this trip!

June Trip-part 8

Day 14 - New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas

After the morning ritual of showers, packing and a quick breakfast, we were once again on the road headed east. I believe we stopped at a Stuckey's on the way where this picture of the big 66 sign was taken. In no time at all we found ourselves just outside of Amarillo, Texas, where our next stop was to be.

It is visible from I-40, but we exited to get a closer look at the Cadillac Ranch. Quite a sight to see, 10 old Cadillacs buried front down with their tails in the air at a predetermined angle. Primarily an art statement, the creator invites those who stop by to paint a message or two on any or all of the cars.

As you can see in the picture, our names were painted, but I doubt very much they were visible for long as many people stop by to do the same thing. Just another attraction of out trip, which I hope to see again when we do the complete Route 66 discovery tour the next time.

Once on the road again, we turned northeast at Amarillo and headed towards Oklahoma, and then Kansas, and our next stop. We saw a lot of oil wells along the way, but not a lot of anything else. Of course by this time, all of the scenery was pretty much the same as we had been seeing all of our trip, so even the picture takers (Melody), was quiet. A rare occasion for sure!

Our next stop was Dodge City, and despite no sign of Matt, Doc, Festus, Miss Kitty or Chester, Melody did find a steer she tried to milk! It seems the old west portion of this town was destroyed by 2 fires in 1885, so a replica was constructed and maintained, complete with a twice daily gunfight enacted  by local characters.

And this replica was not just a facade, you could walk through each store and look at the various old artifacts and photos from the day. Quite interesting to be sure. This included being able to get a drink at the Long Branch saloon or a meal at the restaurant.

Once done here we continued on to Wichita, where we found a suitable hotel to spend the night. We had been watching a storm coming our way while we were in Dodge City, so by the time we stopped and got a room, then went to a nearby Denny's for a meal, the storm had caught up to us. We were drenched when we left the restaurant, but that was really the only time we had a problem with rain the entire trip!

Day 15 - Kansas, Missouri

Our target for this day was Branson, Missouri and in no time at all we found ourselves right in the middle of it. It was decided we would forego the tour of Ripley's Believe It Or Not there and instead just view the sights and have a meal.

Once we left Branson, our primary target was West Plains, Missouri, where we hoped to find accommodations for the night. The initial outlook for our last night on the road was kind of bleak, due to events taking place in this college town and we ended up settling for a less than stelar example of a hotel. At least it was fairly clean and cheap! We managed to get 2 adjoining rooms for less than the price we were used to paying for one! Melody told me the next morning that she spent the night holding on to her switchblade knife. LOL!

June Trip-part 7

Day 12 - Nevada, Arizona

We left the lap of luxury in the desert and headed east this morning. Once we were away from the city, we found ourselves at the nearby Hoover dam. With freshly charged cameras the photo opportunities were many and so the girls took off walking across the dam while Jim and I found some shade near the car to wait for them.

Once they had all the pictures they wanted we picked them up and headed towards our next destination, which was the Grand Canyon. We found another place to take some pictures along the route as Jim spotted this old car lot in the middle of nowhere. After many pictures had been taken we were once again on the road towards a very big hole in the ground.

It was getting close to dark by the time we finally got there, but we still managed to get many photos of the canyon and surrounding area. It is difficult to find the words to describe this wonder of nature, but it is indeed Grand, with a capital G!

We were supposed to drive on to Winslow, Arizona, but as late at it was, we decided to find a room in the nearby Flagstaff, Arizona. Unfortunately, we could not locate a suitable place, so we ended up driving on to Winslow and quickly found a room there. Just time for a quick bite to eat and then to bed to get ready for the next day's adventures.

Day 13 - Arizona, New Mexico

Before we left Winslow, we decided to visit the corner made famous by the song, so yet another photo session was found here. The flatbed Ford truck was parked there, along with a statue of the song's author, Jackson Browne. In addition there was a mural on the wall of the nearby building portraying a girl driving the flatbed Ford. A large Route 66 sign was painted on the intersection so I had a have a picture of that. 


We weren't the only ones there at the time, a couple from Nova Scotia in the pictured hot rod was doing the whole Route 66 thing. Kind of made Jim and I want to do the same thing some day. Lots of stuff to see on the mother road.

Once we left Winslow, our trip mainly consisted of driving. As we would not able to get to our next attraction before dark, we decided to spend the night in another Route 66 town near the Texas border, Tucumcari, New Mexico. More pictures to take and then a meal and a good night's rest.

June Trip-part 6

Day 10 - California, Nevada

It had become our practice to find a place for breakfast once we left the hotel of a morning and then not stop to eat again until suppertime, as we carried snacks in the car to keep us going through the day. Today was no different as Jim spotted a nice little local spot called TNT's Cafe to stop at. This was about the best place we ate at the entire trip, generous portions, friendly service and good prices. It was crowded, but that is understood once you eat there.

Once again our original plan had to be altered. No one wanted another long drive day so it was decided to forego our trek to Scotty's Castle in Death Valley and just drive directly to Las Vegas and find our hotel there. So the autopilot was turned on and away we went into the desert.

Of course no trip of this type would be complete without at least one stop to see some of the touristy stuff, so we did just that. Not sure what this little display was supposed to be, but I snapped a picture of it anyway. Lucky we didn't need gas if you caught the price on the sign! Oh well, onward towards our destination.

If you like heat, sand and sagebrush, you will love the desert. Not a lot else out there, but still a sight to behold. I guess there are some things in the desert, Las Vegas was built right in the middle of it, but not a lot else until you get to the outskirts, where casinos are popping up left and right.

After a few hours of driving, we reached our destination (Caesars Palace) where Jim had once again secured a free room for a couple of nights this time. I made it as far as the bed, where I pretty much remained for the entire time. Others brought me food from time to time and I did watch some TV, but I had no desire to get out and walk amongst the throngs of people.

Day 11 - Nevada (Las Vegas)

Jim, Melody and Kathy did all the walking and riding as it turns out, they found a bargain tour bus to ride around and view all the sights of Las Vegas. Including the one place I really did want to visit, the Gold and Silver Pawn shop, where the Pawn Stars show is taped.

Of course there were other sights to see, but from the hotel room, I could not say exactly what they saw. I do know I woke up the morning after our first night with my bed covered in cards with various pictures of girls with phone numbers printed on them. I suppose some of those girls only operate out of the city as I don't believe prostitution is legal in Las Vegas proper. 


My mini vacation from our trip made it possible for me to continue as I was just about to wind down completely. I know my companions probably didn't understand this, but going from doing nothing at all for so long to taking a trip of this type really wore me out, even though I didn't get out and walk the streets as they had. I was looking forward to heading back east as I hoped the trip would be a bit easier to handle as our plate was not as full on the return ride.