Category Archives: RT66

Cadillac Ranch near Amarillo, Texas

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Cadillac Ranch Panorama

Cadillac Ranch near Amarillo is an iconic roadside attraction along RT66.  Hundreds of visitors daily walk the 100 yards through mud, snow and heat to leave their spray paint mark on ten Cadillacs stuck nose first in a Texas cornfield.  This random act of art was created in 1974 by a group of hippies from San Francisco who called themselves the Ant Farm.  The goal of the wealthy financial backer, Stanley Marsh III, was allegedly to baffle the locals.  So ten Cadillac cars, ranging from the 1949 Club Sedan to the 1963 Sedan de Ville, were partially buried  in the ground.  Soon people were tearing off tail fins and other parts as souvenirs and spray painting the frames.  Today the cars are not all that recognizable as Cadillacs, with little left but their bare frames.  The layers of spray paint have built up to over an inch thick during the past 40 years, chunks of which are now keepsakes for people breaking off pieces to take with them.

These photos are available for sale in my RT66 Gallery.

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Tucumcari, NM Cattle Round-up

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Tucumcari Cattle Drive

Tucumcari Cattle Drive

One of the more exciting things I have done in retirement is to go on a cattle drive.  This was no dude ranch thing, rather I was the tag-along on a working ranch with 12 or so cowboys who do this for a living every day.  After unloading the horses from the trailer well before sun up, the cowboys immediately began making their horses move sideways to the left, then right, then backwards.  Then they would turn around and around in tight circles, like athletes warming up before a big game.

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Shamrock, Texas

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One of the highlights of the trip down RT66 was to see some of the restored gas stations in Shamrock, Texas.  We were fortunate to have a storm roll in and give me some good evening clouds.  The trip to the Magnolia gas station was inspired by a photo photographer Ben Wilmore created.  Here is what I was able to capture of these fine restored gas stations.  Turns out you normally need reservations in this small town due to the oil and gas boom, but since it was a holiday weekend we were able to get a place for the night.

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St. Louis Arch

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One of the first big attraction stops we made was in St. Louis.  If you are in town and ready to eat BBQ, be sure to stop in at Pappy’s Smoke House BBQ.

http://pappyssmokehouse.com/   

Pappys Smokehouse

Pappys Smokehouse

We love this type of food and place.  Pappy was there to greet us and make everyone feel at home.  There was a long line of locals waiting to get in.  I caused a bit of a traffic jam trying to get the truck out of the parking lot, but did so without a scratch….  Next stop, the St. Louis Arch.

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