2geonomads

I have promised myself that after yesterday’s War and Peace blog I will try to keep it short today.

Up early for a 7.00 breakfast as we have another long day ahead.
Mick is driving and Doug navigating.
Leave Gallup passing no more than a cursory glance at the famous El Rancho Hotel, where the rooms are named after various film stars who have stayed there, and the Giant Muffler-Man Cowboy.
Pass through some stunning scenery as we approach the border with Arizona and drive through Defiance-Manuelito on the NM side to Lupton in Arizona. NB- Arizona does not have Daylight Saving time so our clocks go back one hour.

Mick Doug Fred the 3 Amigos

Genuine Navajo Indian Trading Post gives us a chance to buy some gift items. The State Line is at the base of some majestic cliffs and a line of plastic models of animals sit atop the cliff face.
At Exit 339 we drive up the ramp to find the road closed and have to do a U-TURN and turn back on the I 40 in an easterly direction. The two ‘ gentlemen ‘ who had been so noisy from the back seats fell strangely silent for a while as their aura of driving and navigating invincibility was shattered in one fell swoop.
Travelling west we pass through the towns of Chambers and Navajo and reach the turn off to the sites of the Painted Desert and Petrified Forest. Truly remarkable scenery with the pick of the sites being the Tepees and the Crystal Forest.
We decide to continue the loop to Holbrook and Mick hits the equivalent of a hump-back bridge on the road out. Next time we need a vehicle with a sun roof.
We are delayed by road resurfacing and the strange experience of having to follow a pilot vehicle through the repaired section. Clearly the authorities do not trust the drivers to slow down and avoid windscreen damage. The surreal situation was underlined with one of the pilot drivers wearing a Foreign Legion neck and face protector like a beekeeper!
At Holbrook have lunch at the supposedly well-regarded Jo and Aggies Cafe. What a far cry from the Badlands Diner of the previous day. This time the waitress ( owner) was the most surly, unattractive women one could ever meet. Our service was in sharp contrast to the loving care and attention that she seemed to be showering on a group of German Bikies. We gave her a tip, they didn’t , and in any case doesn’t she realise that we were on the side of her country during the war. That should count for something!
Move on to Winslow, where we come across the Standing on the Corner’ statue of Glen Frey which is dedicated to the Eagles song ‘Take it easy’.

OF at Statue of Glen Frey , Member of Eagles band and writer of song “Take it Easy”

Heading west through the towns of Two Guns and Twin Arrows straight into the eye of a very severe storm, which made driving a nightmare ( I had taken over at Holbrook ). Shortly after Winslow we turn off another Micon, the famous Barringer Meteor Crater , which is quite awe-inspiring. Sadly the storm continued so our outdoor tour of the crater was cut short.

Some info on this site: the crater is 700 feet deep and 4000 feet wide. It is named after Daniel Barringer, a Philadelphia mining engineer who spent 26 years attempting to find what he believed would be the giant iron meteorite. His search proved to be futile but the crater now carries his name in recognition of his efforts.

http://www.barringercrater.com/

A funny sign on the way to the crater reads : car speed 50 mph, meteorite speed 26000 mph!

Incidentally, the crater has been frequently used to train Apollo astronauts .

Arrive at Days Inn at Flagstaff, $159 a room, a real shock after so many cheap hotels.
Dinner at the Galaxy Diner across the road. Long queue but we three scruffs manage to be served very quickly by accepting bar stools rather than a table. The diner is clearly the place for all the beautiful people to be seen but it just goes to show that beauty doesn’t always get the results. The lovely young things are probably still waiting the queue this morning.

Cheers
The Obese Ferret.