April 10th Part Two – After leaving Elk City, OK. we continued our trip and tried to stay on the old route as much as possible. For most of the morning, we were the only car on the road, it was so nice to be able to pull over on a whim for a photo or two, or to just enjoy the serenity.
We crossed over into Texas and stopped into the U-Drop Inn and Tower Station. This spot is one of the many iconic attractions. Situated at the crossroads of I-40 and US Route 83, it is considered the “gateway to the Southwest”. The Inn is an Art Deco masterpiece from 1936, it was beautiful. We pulled in for a quick visit, but that turned into a few long chats with locals, and a great lunch at the café. The town of Shamrock was first named in 1890 by an Irish immigrant named George Nickel and later incorporated in 1911. We were told this is the place to be during St. Patrick’s Day, as the celebrations, festivals, parades, etc. go on for a few days. There’s even a fragment of the real Blarney Stone in the local park. If you plan on going, book early, the population of the town triples during that time. ☘️
Our next stop was the Cadillac Ranch. Just a head’s up, when traveling down I-40 don’t be confused (like we were), by the other roadside attraction called the Slug Bug Ranch, which is just east of there. Personally, I think it was a cheap knock off, but who am I.
The Cadillac Ranch is right off a section of the old route, in a large cow pasture. Be sure to wear old shoes, sometimes it can be dirty. The Ranch consists of 10 vintage Cadillacs that are buried nose first into the ground. The car models range from 1949 to 1963 and are used to show the evolution of the tail fin. The installation was created in 1974 by the art collective Ant Farm made up of three artists. You can either bring your own can of spray paint, buy one from a very entrepreneurial guy at the gate, or like we did find a half full can on the ground near the cars. The cars are covered in decades of paint, which melts and resets in the Texas heat. Layers, upon layers of paint have changed the look of all of the cars but has not made them unrecognizable.
Next up was a big milestone for our journey, the halfway point on Route 66, in Adrian, Texas. We made the stop at the Midpoint Café for a photo op and a quick trip around the store. Time to leave Texas, and in case you are keeping track, Texas has over 19,000 windmills 😁
Heading across the border into New Mexico and our overnight stay at the Blue Swallow Motel in Tucumcari. This is a popular stop on the route, and we lucked out getting a room. I am so happy we did, this place is a blast from the past. The latest owners Robert and Dawn, Robert is from Cheshire, CT, purchased the 1939 motel in 2020, and have been doing a great job of keeping it as original as possible. We were happy to chat with Robert who was a wealth of information about the history of the hotel, the previous owners and even a little gossip about them as well. And here’s a kicker, each room has its own attached garage. I don’t think I have ever seen this before. The true magic happens at night when all the neon lights are on, it’s magical. We shared the hotel with a group of Brits and couple of other travels. Before dinner, we grabbed a bottle of wine and some beer, we wanted to sit out in the courtyard and enjoy the night and the lights. Unfortunately, that was short lived as a storm came in. They need the rain here, so no complaining on our part.
Tomorrow, we head across New Mexico for a two-night stay and respite in Gallup.
See you down the road.
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