Our Cross-Country Journey (Part 2 of 2)

Part 5 (last) of a Series

We left Oklahoma City on the 12th of July, headed west on I-40. Those of you who have driven that particular highway know two things: A) it mostly follows the route of the famed and former US Route 66, and 2) it is long, mostly straight, and almost completely boring. Other than certain tourist stops such as Garth Brooks’ honorary street in Yukon, Reba McEntire’s hometown of Elk City, or the Indian Market marking the Continental Divide between Grants and Gallup in New Mexico, it’s miles and miles of get to the next town–or truck stop–for a rest stop and fresh cold drink.

To be fair, coming over the hill into the Rio Grande Valley and seeing the city of Albuquerque stretching out in front is sort of pretty. I will mention here that DW and I took I-25 north to Santa Fe, where we stayed for a couple of nights and saw a Flamenco show as well as many other arts. Oddly, I have no photos of that stay. I’m really not sure why. Also, Flagstaff, AZ, and the surrounding forest are refreshing; a splash of green in the sandstone desert.

After leaving Santa Fe, our next stop was at The Lodge at Sedona, AZ. One small aside, as I’m reasonably certain the statute of limitations has expired: heading west on I-40 after leaving Gallup, NM, I noticed DW had dozed off. I was normally driving between 75 and 80 mph. I was curious if 100 mph would feel any different. I slowly pushed the accelerator until the needle just passed the 100 mark. It didn’t really feel any different, so I didn’t keep it there long. I let the cruise control take over again, and on we went. DW didn’t even stir, and to this day (unless she reads this post) I don’t believe she knows of this.

Of course it was dark when we checked in to The Lodge. The next morning after breakfast, I took a few photos of the grounds, including the “Labyrinth”, an arrangement of stones so you can either solve it or step out of it.

There were also horseshoe pits, shown here with my new car. As you may know, between Sedona and Flagstaff lies the Oak Creek Canyon, a wonderland of sandstone that has been cut by water into fantastic shapes. Not as vast as the Grand Canyon on the other side of Flagstaff, but certainly every bit as impressive. The Lodge has views of many of the formations near town.

Even driving the main street (US 89A) through town offers great views, like this one.

After getting some snacks and drinks together, we took 89A north along Oak Creek to the junction with I-17, then through Flagstaff, off to US 180 north. Our destination was the Grand Canyon. Along the way, there are a few scenic turnouts, but really only one large one as far as I recall. We took a few photos there.

 Since much better photographers than I have published photos of the Grand Canyon, I’ll just leave you with these three, to round out my post.

After the Grand Canyon, we went on to the Las Vegas area to spend the night, then drove back home to Reno the next day. And washed the car. No, I think we waited until the next day for that.