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| Route 66 Auto Museum |
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| 1931 Ford on top of a 16 foot tall pole. |
As you drive through Mexico you will continue to see the older hotels and signs along Route 66. A lot of the hotels continue to remain open. Thefurther I drive west the more the open roads become the open roads. Route 66 has changed a lot from how it started in Illinois. It is still fun seeing everything, but things are fewer and further between.
Once I made it to Albuquerque I came to Muffler man Fidel. I drove around the block to get a picture of him. He is atop a Vietnamese Restaurant across from the fairgrounds on Route 66.
Just before you leave Albuquerque on the right hand side I found this car with the Mother Road tag and Route 66 shield on it. As you pass it up on the left you will see the Route 66 Casino. You can find the Casino a top of 9 Mile Hill. It is named for the distance from downtown to the top of the hill. Elevation 5834 feet above sea level. 
There were still a lot of things going thru town, but still trying to be to Arizona on time I was mostly looking and taking a couple pictures and moving on down the road.  |
Route 66 was marked on the road so yep, I took a picture. The Route goes thru the Laguna Indian Reservation. Along the road you pass a rock formation called the Owl Rock and then around Dead man's Curve.
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| Owl Rock |
Along the Route you see lava rocks. From what I can find the area is called The McCarty's Pahoehe Lava Flow ( named El Malpais or evil country by locals). 
Driving west further on Route 66 you drive pass a town called Thoreau, NM. Just west is the Continental Divide. When you drive Route 66 you have to cross over the interstate to find this sign, easy to miss. The elevation is 7245 Feet. " Rainfall divides at this point. To the west it drains into the Pacific Ocean, to the east, into the Atlantic."
Gallup is the last town before crossing the stateline into Arizona. Route 66 continues to follow the railroad west. Most of the drive you will find the tracks along Route 66.
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| View from Route 66 |
I crossed into Arizona and stayed in Holbrook, AZ. I will have some pictures of the Petrified Forest and the Painted Desert. For now that gets us to Arizona.
