#RoadTrip2014 :: Along the Way with J & J

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Special Post – Our Time in Friendly, Arizona

By jayjazz · Comments (0)

Tuesday, May 13th, 2014

Ok, there is no such place but you wouldn’t know it. All of the people we have met have been super friendly, despite the harsh Arizona landscape in which they live. From the folks manning the visitor centers to the proprietors of each small shop, we have seen nothing but smiling faces. Here are four standouts:

Pita Pit Pete

This is the guy who took our order at the Pita Pit in Flagstaff, AZ. This young man evoked something that most super chains have failed to teach their employees about sales: anticipation. After listening intently to how my pita would be “designed”, I couldn’t have wanted anything more at that moment. We also talked about our trip a bit and he invited us to stop back in on the way home. His name really wasn’t Pete, of course, but I’m sure he won’t mind.

KOA Kevin

Kevin is the gentleman who assisted us yesterday at the KOA campground we chose to refresh out tanks. Just so happens he is a tech guy and he and Jay discussed nerd stuff for a bit. Kevin asked if we had a blog and he have us his. He and his wife use it to post info about their hiking adventures and business. Kevin suggested we visit Google AdSense to try to make some money off of our adventures. We told him we don’t have enough traffic coming through our blog but were working on it (HINT).

Tape Ball Chuckie

Chuckie is the young guy that changed our oil at the Firestone garage in Williams, AZ. He was quiet but nice and was a good sport when Jay asked for a picture of him and the giant tire tape ball that the station has on display. Chuckie mentioned that the tape ball was at one time in the Arizona Highways Magazine.

Mustard Girl

As I mentioned, we have met a bunch of different people on our trip so far and among those, there are a few who have really stood out. Mustard Girl is such a character. She was the young girl who took our order at the famous, wacky Snow Cap Drive-in in Seligman, AZ. In the span of about three minutes, she pulled more gags on us than any circus magician and we all had a good laugh when I countered with a couple of my own (I have been known to be funny). I, unfortunately, didn’t get her real name but it wouldn’t matter if I did. We will always remember her as Mustard Girl.

~J&J

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Categories : #RoadTrip2014, Route 66

Tags : Arizona, Road Trip, Route 66, RV Travel

Day 12 – The Grand Canyon State

By jayjazz · Comments (0)

Tuesday, May 13th, 2014

After spending the night at a Walmart in Flagstaff, we set out to find the visitor’s center to get our Arizona 66 passports stamped. Downtown Flagstaff was so cool that we decided to hang around a while and explore the area. We stopped at several little shops and picked up a few goodies to take back with us.

We hadn’t planned on eating out but we walked by a place called The Pita Pit that looked too good to pass up. The service was super friendly and our pitas were made fresh right in front of us, kind of like Subway but way better. I guess you could call them “Pita Artists” ;o) After lunch, we needed coffee. There is no shortage of coffee shops in the area so we stopped at the first place after the Pita Pit, an organic café called Flag Buzz. Jasmine got an Americano and I had a Mocha Latte. The barista even made a yummy looking flower in the foam. Starbucks never makes a flower for me!!

A priority for us today was visiting the local Camping World to get an oil change for Lady T and refresh our tanks. Unfortunately, the store in Flagstaff didn’t offer dumping or propane and had no availability for an oil change. We quickly searched the internet and found a Firestone service station in Williams, AZ that could take us right away. Heading west, we also found a KOA Campground to dump and refill our water and propane. We met a nice gentleman named Kevin who helped us and chatted for a while about traveling and blogging. More on him in our special post to follow.

The Firestone station was right off the highway. When we arrived, a nice kid named Chuckie hooked us up on the spot with an oil change and refilled our wiper fluid. More on him in our special post for today.

The town of Williams is considered the gateway to the Grand Canyon. We visited the Grand Canyon several years ago so we instead cruised the “66 loop” downtown. There was so much to see and photograph so we parked for a while and enjoyed a cool walk around town.

Between the next two towns, Ash Fork and Seligman, the longest stretch of uninterrupted original Route 66 carries road trippers all the way to California. This was excellent news for Lady T, as her stamina has definitely been tested this last week and a half!

Our next stop was the town of Seligman, which is a pretty popular 66 area with lots of unique shops and restaurants. We arrived a little late for most of them but luckily, both the Snow Cap Drive-in and Angel’s Route 66 gift shop were still open. We got a passport stamp in the gift shop and had some “smiley” fries and a hefty helping of 66 kitsch as the Snow Cap. Look for more about the Snow Cap in our special post for today. From Seligman, we continued on Old Route and admired the stunning landscape at dusk. We took lots of pictures but unless you see it in person, you can’t truly appreciate what it looks like and how it feels.

The Kingman Flying J truck stop will be our home for the night. As we pulled into the lot, we noticed a few huge buses parked horizontally at the entrance. I commented that they must definitely have someone famous inside. Sure enough, we saw a man in the store who was wearing an all access pass for the 70”s band Earth, Wind & Fire!

We now have less than 80 miles to go before we reach the California border. We are amazed that we have come this far in only 12 days, with the promise of more adventure to the end of the Mother Road and beyond. We have seen so many wonderful places and have met so many nice people. Our hope is that our blog will serve as a tribute to those who continue to preserve this amazing experience for future travelers.

Don’t forget to follow us on the Blog, FB and check out our special post for today.

~J&J

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Categories : #RoadTrip2014, Route 66

Tags : Arizona, Road Trip, Route 66, RV Travel

Day 11 – Standing on a Corner…

By jayjazz · Comments (0)

Monday, May 12th, 2014

Happy Mother’s Day!

This morning we explored the Indian village of Lupton and visited the Teepee trading post. Lots of cool looking Teepees and gifts. There was also a painting on one of the canyon walls with fake animals attached at the top. The wall itself had a giant indent which made for a cool looking cliff. Before hitting the road, I went up to the roof to secure the solar panel so the 50 mph winds wouldn’t jar it loose.

Heading west, our first stop was The Petrified Forest, which is the only national park on Route 66. The park provided breathtaking views as far as the eye could see, with several opportunities to stop and admire the artist that is Mother Nature. The wind was nasty already and the wide open spaces made it very difficult to take pictures. We almost got caught in a dust devil and when we both tried getting in the rig at the same time, our park pass got blown clear across the road. We recovered it and moved on.

Heading into Holbrook, we stopped at the famous Wigwam Motel, where the rooms are shaped like teepees. This location was added to the National Register of Historic Places back in 2002, ensuring it will be around for many more folks to enjoy for years to come. We also got our Arizona Route 66 passport stamped at the Holbrook Visitor Center.

We made a quick stop at the Geronimo Trading Post to see the world’s largest piece of petrified wood and I tried a few cowboy hats to take some pictures. The Geronimo had several beautiful pieces of petrified wood that were polished to make tables and chairs Very nice and very expensive.
The Jackrabbit Trading Post, home to the famous “Here it is” sign, was unfortunately closed by the time we arrived. However, we took advantage of a traditional 66 photo opportunity astride the giant jackrabbit sitting out front. Good times!

We completed our day with, you guessed it, standing on a corner in Winslow, Arizona! For anyone who is not familiar with the reference, it’s a line from the Eagles song “Take It Easy”. The brief mention of Winslow in this popular sing-along has basically guaranteed an infinite stream of visitors from all around the world. There “Standing on the Corner” gift shop offers tons of trinkets and their radio plays the Eagles 24×7. When Jazz asked the proprietor if she ever plays anything else, she replied: “what else would you want to hear when entering the store?” Point well taken. Winslow is also the home of the largest Route 66 emblem painted onto the road heading east on 66

Tonight, we will rest at a Walmart in Flagstaff. We plan on exploring the area in the morning then will sneak over to the local Camping World for an oil change and general inspection. After that, onward to California!

~J&J

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Categories : #RoadTrip2014, Route 66

Tags : Arizona, New Mexico, Road Trip, Route 66, RV Travel

Day 10 – Leaving the Land of Enchantment

By jayjazz · Comments (0)

Monday, May 12th, 2014

Started out this morning to find the Route 66 Diner in downtown Albuquerque. There was a ton of vintage 66 and 50’s memorabilia inside and out and the waitresses wore 50’s style uniforms. Jazz couldn’t resist ordering old fashioned “pan fries” (aka home fries) and we shared them as we admired the largest Pez dispenser collection we have ever seen.

We decided to backtrack a bit to visit the one of a kind Tinkertown Museum in Sandia Park, which is located on the historic Turquoise Trail in New Mexico. A total labor of love, the museum was established by artist Ross J. Ward and includes hundreds of hand carved miniature figures and dioramas. Several displays were interactive and we had fun making these elaborate scenes come alive. The museum also houses lots of antique style games and an automated one man band machine that rocked! Tinkertown was an inspiring and entertaining place and definitely worth the short drive off course to see it.

Going back through Albuquerque and on to McCarty’s, we stumbled upon a short side trip to the El Malpais National Monument.” El Malpais” (bad land) has the largest contiguous lava flow in the US. We didn’t get to see the lava but we did see the Southwest’s largest free standing arch, La Ventana. It was an amazing sight! Got some great pictures and took a few beautiful panoramic photos on my phone.

Our next stop was Grants, NM where we saw some vintage signage and then pressed on towards Gallup. Gallup, NM is known for the world famous El Rancho Hotel & Motel, which is right on the 66 strip. This location is still in operation today and all the rooms are named after famous people who stayed there while in town. They called Gallup the “Hollywood of the Southwest” and dozens of stars, such as John Wayne, Clark Gable, May West, and Humphrey Bogart frequented the hotel. The lobby looked great filled with Southwestern-style décor, with a player piano and a fireplace, while the grand staircases revealed several autographed photos displayed on the second-floor walls.

Gallup was our last stop in New Mexico and we could not leave without having ourselves an authentic burrito. On the way out of town, we stopped at El Charrito restaurant and had a bean burrito with all the sides. It was very good and just what we needed to complete our journey through this gorgeous state.

We just stopped at the Arizona border and will spend the night at the Arizona Welcome Center in Lupton. Tomorrow we will continue our adventure on America’s main street. It’s hard to believe that we only have two states left until our Route 66 journey comes to an end. We are enjoying the road more and more each day and we hope it will only get better!

Don’t forget to follow us!!

~J&J

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Categories : #RoadTrip2014, Route 66

Tags : Arizona, New Mexico, Road Trip, Route 66, RV Travel

Day 9 – The Santa Fe Trail

By jayjazz · Comments (0)

Saturday, May 10th, 2014

It was a nice change last night to stay in an RV park instead of a Walmart parking lot or a truck stop! We were able to settle in a little early and get laundry done, clean the “house” and take a little walk to snap some pictures. Stepping into the park office was like stepping back in time. There were a bunch of magazines from the mid-1960s that you could browse through while listening to the wobbly ceiling fan keeping its own rhythm.

We got going just after 10AM, stopping at the Santa Rosa travel center for a bit then returning to 66 on a pre-1937 route up to Las Vegas, NM. There was supposed to be an older hotel but when we got there the building had been changed and converted into an inter-modal station on the rail line with a little visitor’s center.

Leaving Las Vegas, we jumped on the Santa Fe Trail/Old 66 and skipped a couple small towns on our way to Santa Fe. We were aiming for the Miraculous Staircase, which was supposedly built by a “mysterious carpenter” back in 1870 inside the Loretto Chapel. He showed up with tools and a donkey built the staircase and then disappeared without pay or thanks.

Our adventure in Santa Fe was unique. After maneuvering the narrow one-way streets to find some place to park we ended up taking up two metered spots from where we wanted to be. Downtown Santa Fe had lots of great shops and vendors. The vendors set up on the common were all America Indians selling their crafts. All of the items were handmade and beautiful. One of the vendors we spoke to said that in order to get a permit to sell at that spot you had to be both the artist, Native American and your products had to be 110% hand made. Awesome!

Returning to Lady T, we had a classic J&J moment. Getting into our parking spot was tricky, as there was a tree with low hanging branches and Jasmine guided me in so we didn’t catch anything on the roof. Upon leaving, Jazz was paying attention to the branches and didn’t notice we were a little too close to a parking meter. Ouch!! We didn’t like the bumper cover anyway.

Luckily, the cover is still on and was already previously damaged. We pulled into a parking lot across from a Whole Foods so Jazz could get some food and we could tape up the bumper. While doing so, we ran into a nice older couple from California who travel in their RV to teach acupuncture all over the country. Dan, the gentlemen, spent a few moments looking at our atlas and recommended several nice spots along the Cali coast to visit.

On our way to Albuquerque, we stopped at a couple of small towns for photos and just enjoyed the scenic sunset over the New Mexico buttes, mesas and plateaus. Very beautiful lands out here… everything is either red dirt or brown with some green. There was also a pretty purple plant that we couldn’t identify and it was the only other color out there.

We finally crossed the Rio Grande and arrived in Albuquerque where we saw some cool neon signs on a part of the 18 mile Route 66 strip. Found ourselves a Flying J truck/RV stop just on the outskirts of the city and will be spending the night here overlooking the city lights below.

Tomorrow we should finish up New Mexico and get into Arizona. We have driven 2790 miles since we left home a week ago and Lady T is being worked hard so it’s almost time for an oil change. We plan to visit a Camping World in the next couple of days to have her looked at.

~J&J