We slept like rocks and it felt great. Losing an hour wasn’t bad either, as we got some additional sleep and still had the entire morning to get going. We were still behind schedule but closing in quickly. Our original plans called for a visit to Paulo Duro Canyon or also known as the Grand Canyon of Texas and dinner at the Big Texan, a local restaurant oddity, known for its 72oz steak dinner challenge. Because we got in so late, it did not appear that we would get everything done and reach Holbrook, Arizona in time to do what we planned. We were going to take the kid’s to Petroglyph National Monument in New Mexico. The folks there were conducting a seminar on how to make arrowheads and knife points out of local obsidian and other local materials, a process called flint knapping. We called Petroglyph first thing in the morning and were told that all of the seats available for the class were taken, so that took a little pressure off. The kid’s were disappointed, but hey there was still the Big Texan. Since Petroglyph was out of the picture, it freed up some time for us to visit Paulo Duro and the Big Texan for lunch, before heading to Arizona.
I’ll say one thing for Amarillo; it sure is flat. Anyone that gets hit by a daytime tornado out here would have to be blind and slow. You can see for miles in every direction, it is unbelievable. You get to Paulo Duro along the flattest stretch of highway you have ever seen, and then all of a sudden you are at this beautiful canyon. It is gorgeous! I have to say that Paulo Duro is a must see for anyone who visits Amarillo. We briefly walked along part of the rim and visited the visitor’s center before plunging into the caynon itself. Because we were pressed for time, we chose to drive the 6 plus mile loop and stopped intermittently for pictures and stuff. Pretty amazing stuff! Because we spent so much time at Paulo Duro, unfortunately we did not have the opportunity to go to the Big Texan for lunch.
We left Amarillo around 3:00pm and headed west. As we were leaving Texas and heading into New Mexico, we encountered some of the most beautiful scenery either of us has ever seen. Vistas and mountains, Mesas and high plains all painted in vivid hues of purple and green, white and pink. It was remarkable and instantly made everything we had encountered to date worth it. Well ok, maybe not the RV ordeal or the Jeep debacle. But it definitely more that made up for the bone jarring ride through Oklahoma and Arkansas and the creepy little deputy in the backwoods of Tennessee. We got into Holbrook, AZ around 10:00pm local time, again tired but excited that the journey was now going to begin in earnest. Holbrook is an old Rout 66 town and is home to the famous Wigwam Motel. It was also earned the reputation in the 1800’s as being “the town too tough for women and children”. I don’t know about that as my wife is pretty tough, but I do know that tomorrow we would be on schedule for the first time and things were looking up.
I’ll say one thing for Amarillo; it sure is flat. Anyone that gets hit by a daytime tornado out here would have to be blind and slow. You can see for miles in every direction, it is unbelievable. You get to Paulo Duro along the flattest stretch of highway you have ever seen, and then all of a sudden you are at this beautiful canyon. It is gorgeous! I have to say that Paulo Duro is a must see for anyone who visits Amarillo. We briefly walked along part of the rim and visited the visitor’s center before plunging into the caynon itself. Because we were pressed for time, we chose to drive the 6 plus mile loop and stopped intermittently for pictures and stuff. Pretty amazing stuff! Because we spent so much time at Paulo Duro, unfortunately we did not have the opportunity to go to the Big Texan for lunch.
We left Amarillo around 3:00pm and headed west. As we were leaving Texas and heading into New Mexico, we encountered some of the most beautiful scenery either of us has ever seen. Vistas and mountains, Mesas and high plains all painted in vivid hues of purple and green, white and pink. It was remarkable and instantly made everything we had encountered to date worth it. Well ok, maybe not the RV ordeal or the Jeep debacle. But it definitely more that made up for the bone jarring ride through Oklahoma and Arkansas and the creepy little deputy in the backwoods of Tennessee. We got into Holbrook, AZ around 10:00pm local time, again tired but excited that the journey was now going to begin in earnest. Holbrook is an old Rout 66 town and is home to the famous Wigwam Motel. It was also earned the reputation in the 1800’s as being “the town too tough for women and children”. I don’t know about that as my wife is pretty tough, but I do know that tomorrow we would be on schedule for the first time and things were looking up.
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