What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas!
If I put that you can all think of the "Prince Harry" moments I had, yes!
Dream on!
Monday, 6 May 2013
Sunday 5th May Via Oatman to Vegas
Off on the final stretch of the old road in Arizona today
and on to California
The migrants in the thirties drove along this part of the
route thinking they were nearing California but as the progressed west they saw
these hills looming and must have wondered how they would cross them,
But cross they did following a winding, cliff side hugging
road, so steep in parts that they had to reverse up. I’ve always thought they
did that because reverse gear is lower than first. That is part of it, but I
now know from talking to the old guy in Kingman that it was also because most
of those early vehicles had gravity fed fuel systems and if they went up too
steep a hill the engine starved of fuel. Ok, boring!
Nestled on the west side of the hills is Oatman. Bypassed by
the Interstate in 1952 it is a gold mining town which is trying, and succeeding, just, to
survive by being a living museum of its past.
Then a long drive down from Oatman to Needles and across the
Colorado to California.
At this point I doubled back along the Interstate to Kingman
and up the 93 as I wanted to go to Las Vegas and see the Hoover Dam and Boulder
City on the way.
The road to the dam was a beautiful sweeping road with views
of the Colorado River of he the west and of course the Hoover Dam is on the
river.
When I was last at the Hoover Dam you could drive across it
but they were in the process of building a massive bridge across the gorge
above the dam as a by-pass. This time that bridge was finished and in use and in
fact all road traffic across the dam has been stopped. You can though still
park up and walk across but the day had been too long for that.
Saturday 4th May - Route 66 Fun Run, Kingman, Arizona
This is where I am so far - it now has 3 sections https://maps.google.ca/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&oe=UTF8&msa=0&msid=200059512251364914226.0004daba15b3107f38ef0
What can I say about today – No, as you now know I haven’t died but I admit I am pretty close to heaven. Kingman, as I’ve said, has a good Route 66 Museum and is home to The Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona.
It
celebrates the old road – and there are 200 miles of it surviving in Arizona - in many ways but once a year the Association
organises a Fun Run for the many vehicles associated with the road as it was,
has been or is now. The vehicles gather in Seligman on the Friday evening,
drive the 89 odd miles of old road to Kingman on the Saturday where they park
up and are judged, though I don’t know on what criteria given the range.
All
day in Kingman there is stuff going on and the continuing stream of vehicles
into the town is fascinating – ok, I guess you have to be there.
On the Sunday they all drive the final
stretch of old road in Arizona via Oatman to Topcock.
I had done or was to do all that run and so with a bit of sweet
talking – which again is helped by my “cute accent”, well they think it is – I got
on the run and was actually allowed to pass through the portal for an official photo, to you no big deal but to me…. Well, the
grin is still there.
Again, met some great people – this particular couple where
lovely, sat in their car, in 32°C
all day, except when he got out to talk to me about various bits of it during
the day,
Can’t say much more about the day really so will just show a
few photos of the vehicles, I have “several” more – they go from the old
sublime to the modern ridiculous but all are amazing.
I hung on to it as long as I could because one thing was certain, that maxim wouldn't hold true in my next port of call .....La Vegas!
Friday, 3 May 2013
3rd May Grand Canyon to Kingman, Arizona
Back on to Route 66 today.
As I rode down south from the Grand Canyon the wind got up
again. Why can’t the God of Wind give me a break, surely I don’t deserve this,
especially when you consider how many kites I have sacrificed to him when the
kids were young. It was coming
unmercifully from the east. An old fishing maxim came to mind, “When the wind
is in the East it’s neither fit for man nor beast”. Strange I should remember a
fishing maxim, especially as I’ve never been fishing, apart from the times with
the kids when we had run out of kites!
Hunkering down to my right to get a bit of shelter I noticed
the road signs. One of the features of US highways is their “Highway Adoption”
scheme where individuals, families or organisations can adopt stretches of road
and then take responsibility for clearing up the rubbish along that stretch.
They shouldn’t have to do it of course, but do thanks to the mindless idiots
who throw stuff from their vehicles. In return for their adoption they get
signs advertising their business, commemorating their loved ones and the like.
You see many to police officers or service men and woman or a dear mum and dad.
That particular stretch of road was sponsored by Marvellous Mary’s. I don’t
know who Mary is but at that moment in time, much as I enjoyed riding, I wished
I was at Mary’s discussing her marvels. But no, on to Williams I pressed.
Williams was apparently the last place on the old route to
be bypassed by the Interstate. It is a small town whose main claim to fame appears
to be the fact that it is the kick-off point for the Grand Canyon Railway which
has been transporting tourists to the canyon Park since 1901. It is also the
start of a series of towns which appear to be able to maintain a thriving Route
66 presence. Yes, there is the tackiness but lots of history and humour.
 |
| |Have absolutely no idea why there is a bear coming out of a furniture shop.... |
Would be worth going back though as if the blood from the gunfight mixed with the wet white liner they will now have pretty pink road markings I guess.
Came across this place. Don’t know who the lady leaning out
of the window is, don’t think it can be Mary
but hey, in the slightly adjusted words of Leon
Redbone, “She ain’t Mary, but she ain’t bad and Mary’s not here”. ( if you want a bit of light accompaniment click She ain't Rose )
 |
| The first sighting of Elvis - bet it's not the last... |
Just west of Williams there begins the longest stretch of
continuous old route 66 in its journey, running all the way to the Californian
border. And it is one of the most gruelling and exciting stretches. Initially
it parallels the Interstate but well out of sight of it and the desert flowing
with the contours of the land alongside the railway tracks. The terrain again
becomes short Arizona scrub and that red soil that lifts in a breeze and gets
up and goes in anything like the wind I was on the ride. This train is coming
out of dust caused by the wind, not by the train itself.
Eventually Seligman comes up and that place was 66
memorabiliaville.
Saw this and thought I’d found another “project” until I recognised the trousers and realised Mick Symo was ahead of me….
In a place Called hackberry this wonderful stop could provide hours of interest for people like me.
What that stop did as well though was reinforce my view that I was doing the trip the right way for me. We are all different but a group on a guided tour was there at the same time and the chivvying by the organiser who was driving the “luggage van “would have ended in tears if I’d been part of the group. Compare that group ...
to the bikes of “independent” travellers.
Along that part of the road I began to see neat red wooden signs, each a little way down the road and each with a line of a “safety first” verse, so you’d get;
If daisies are your favourite flower
Push up to 60 miles per hour;
and
He shot over the crossing
As the fast train neared.
Death didn’t draft him,
He volunteered.
Or
At cattle crossings
Please go slow.
That old bull
Is some cow’s beau!
I had read about them, they were “invented” by a guy to help advertise his flagging shaving cream company around 1927 I think.
The old road continued to wind through the hills - now developing a style of scree type slopes with upright, flat tops - hugging the flattest line along with the railroad….
Saw this and thought I’d found another “project” until I recognised the trousers and realised Mick Symo was ahead of me….
Seligman is also the start of the Arizona Annual Route 66
Fun Run, a three day event involving hundreds of vehicles, ancient, modern and
unimaginable – but more of that later.
After Seligman the desolate landscape continued although in
some places there were well stocked restaurants and good amenities!
 |
| The Armadillo au Poivre is to die for ..... |
 |
| Wanting to die AFTER the Armadillo au Poivre............ |
In a place Called hackberry this wonderful stop could provide hours of interest for people like me.
What that stop did as well though was reinforce my view that I was doing the trip the right way for me. We are all different but a group on a guided tour was there at the same time and the chivvying by the organiser who was driving the “luggage van “would have ended in tears if I’d been part of the group. Compare that group ...
to the bikes of “independent” travellers.
Along that part of the road I began to see neat red wooden signs, each a little way down the road and each with a line of a “safety first” verse, so you’d get;
If daisies are your favourite flower
Push up to 60 miles per hour;
He shot over the crossing
As the fast train neared.
Death didn’t draft him,
He volunteered.
Or
At cattle crossings
Please go slow.
That old bull
Is some cow’s beau!
I had read about them, they were “invented” by a guy to help advertise his flagging shaving cream company around 1927 I think.
The old road continued to wind through the hills - now developing a style of scree type slopes with upright, flat tops - hugging the flattest line along with the railroad….
….and on to Kingman.
Kingman is the home of the Arizona Route 66 Association and
it has a lovely museum there.
Won’t overload you with more stuff except perhaps these
wonderful dioramas....
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