Historic Route 66 to California

April 27-May3

April 27: We left our home around noon after taking a nice walk with our dog in the morning. After driving through only minor traffic, we arrived at our Harvest Hosts destination at Cam’s Corner, in Claysville, PA around 6:30 PM. The drive was pretty uneventful and we were happy to have nice driving weather throughout the day. 

April 28: In our effort to slow our trip down, we decided to stop in Columbus, Ohio, which was about halfway between where we spent the night and our next stop. We loved the rhythm of the day with a midway stop that allowed for walking around sightseeing. In Columbus, we started in German Village, stopping at the visitors center, getting a map, and watching a short video about the history of the neighborhood. We were happy to find free street parking on 4th and Jackson. We enjoyed walking around, looking at the shops, and stoping into the Book Loft, a really amazing 32-room bookstore. After eating lunch in the van, we drove up to the Short North and the Italian Village to walk around there. We enjoyed walking the neighborhoods  and were glad that Columbus turned out to be a worthwhile visit. 

After leaving Columbus, we stopped about 45 minutes west at the Hartman Rock Garden, which was a really fun garden with replica buildings and castles made from stone. We found the garden using our Road Trippers app, one of our favorite trip planning tools. We managed to also find diesel for $4.85 a gallon, a rare find due to the US-Iran war, and then drove the rest of the way with traffic while passing Indianapolis heading to our Harvest Host, Silver Feathers Acres, a lovely horse farm that had a shower we could use! What a treat! We made a donation of $20: totally worthwhile! There were horses in the stable and on the property, as well as some other farm animals. And we could hear birds, frogs, and peacocks in the area as well. 

April 29: After a really good night's sleep, we hit the road around 8:30 AM. On our drive, two warning lights went off in the van, the ESP and a little tire. After a quick call to our mechanic at home, we pulled over, turned the van off and on, and the lights turned off. Luckily they did not go back on during the rest of the trip. Along the drive, we also saw an eagle flying, a beaver dam, and a lot of dead (roadkill) armadillos. We would really love to see a live armadillo…

We then continued our drive, heading toward the Cahokia Mounds, the largest pre-Columbian site outside of Mexico, located just east of St. Louis, MO. The mounds were really cool and from the top of Monk Mound, we could see St. Louis and the Arch, which we had visited in 2024. After walking around, we made lunch (chickpea sandwiches) in the van, and then headed to Springfield, MO.  We were curious about the town where Route 66 started, and headed to the  C St. historic district. While nearly everything was closed when we arrived, the strip of stores that we saw were very quiant. 

We arrived at our destination of Cook’s RV Motor Park in Springfield, a small, tired RV park off of a busy road, but run by very nice and helpful people. We made a dumpling dinner, took a shower, and watched some TV in the van. 

April 30: Today we decided as we were driving through Tulsa to stop and see the town and then also to drive through Oklahoma City. In Tulsa, we walked through the Pearl, Greenwood, Deco, and the Cherry Street Districts, and then drove to Route 66 Historical Village, which didn't really exist. However, along old Route 66, we stopped at a huge Goodwill store and purchased a T-shirt, pot lid, and soft-sided storage unit for the van. 

In Oklahoma City we stopped for vegan ice cream at the Boom Town Creamery in the Paseo Arts District. We got one salted caramel and tea flavored ice cream, and one strawberry basil and chocolate. We tasted the pickle flavored ice cream, but it was weird. Then we drove through Mesta Park and downtown, passing the Murrah Federal Building. Being a bit underwhelmed by Oklahoma City, we headed to our destination of the evening, a Harvest Host stay at the Cactus Inn in historic McLean, Texas, where we arrived around 7:30 PM. Upon arrival, we learned that McLean was the birthplace of the original Phillips 66. Driving along the main drag, which is the original Route 66, we felt like we were driving through a set of the movie Cars, passing old eateries and service stations with old cars strewn along the way. As the sun set over the dessert, we ate a late dinner of butternut squash soup and settled in for the evening. 

May 1: Because we had arrived later in the evening yesterday, we wanted to drive through McLean one more time as it is a fun little town. Then we headed toward Amarillo, where we stopped at Palo Dura Canyon, the second largest canyon in the US that we found using our Road Trippers app. We were hoping to have time to hike a little bit but ended up just driving the 16 mile paved Scenic Drive. Palo Dura Canyon is spectacular with lots of camping and hiking available. We saw a bunch of wild turkeys and a couple of deer and a bunny along the way. We will definitely return to camp and hike on another trip. 

Leaving the canyon, we drove a long four hours to Bernalillo, NM where we were staying at the KOA. After a quick shower and setting up camp, we met family and drove to Corrales where we had a beer at a local brewery and then visited the beautiful historic Old San Ysidro Church where there was an art show. After that, we drove back to Bernalillo and had dinner at the Range Cafe. After a long day, we came back to the van and quickly fell asleep.

May2: Thankful for a leisurely morning, our family members picked us up around 9 AM and we headed to Petroglyphs National Monument where we stopped at the Information Center. The volunteer there gave us a nice history of the area and thoughts about how to view the petroglyphs. She also mentioned that there was a baby roadrunner in a tree that we got to see.

We then took a 2.2 mile hike out to Rinconada Canyon and saw so many beautiful petroglyphs. Then we drove to the Boca Negra area with a small loop where we hiked three short trails starting with the Mesa Point Trail, Macaw Trail, and Cliff Base Trail. Seeing so many petroglyphs up close was really amazing. Leaving the petroglyphs, we headed into Old Town in Albuquerque and had lunch at the Sawmill Market. We had a really good powerbowl at Little Green Gems restaurant. After lunch, we walked through Old Town, perusing the little shops. Old Town is a really quaint area of town. At the Blue Moon Marketplace, we purchased a hanging piece of art for a tree at home. Then we drove over to Nob Hill and had a quick beer at the High and Dry Brewery, watching a roadrunner cross the street. 

By this time it was pretty late in the evening so we came back to the KOA. We walked over to the Kaktus Brewery where there was live music but we didn't love the vibe so we came back and had some snacks and wine at the KOA picnic table. The original plan was to take the Sandia Peak Tramway, but we ran out of time and decided we would save that for another trip. 

So far, the weather has been in the 60s during the day and 40s at night. We had a little rain the first two nights and the first night we arrived in Albuquerque, but the rest of the time has been beautiful.

May 3: We got up early, had toast for breakfast and then packed up the van. Leaving the campground around 8:15 AM, we headed back to the Petroglyphs National Monument because they had a recycling center that we wanted to use. Then we headed toward the Walmart in Gallup, New Mexico to pick up some groceries. First we stopped for gas because we found diesel for $4.98 per gallon, the cheapest we had seen in a while. The drive to the gas station took us through one of the poorest sections of town on Old Route 66. Many people were begging for money as we stopped at the gas station. Then we drove a short distance to the Walmart. They also had pretty cheap diesel which had not shown up on our Gas Buddy app. After restocking with fresh fruit and veggies, we headed west toward Williams, Arizona for our next night’s stay, a Harvest Host at Double M Stock Dogs. 

The drive took us through Navajo nation land and then past Petrified Forest National Park, which we visited last year. We were happy to drive past it again as the landscape was beautiful. 

As we approached the turn-off for our final destination and messaged with our Harvest Host, we realized that the drive to our destination included 5 miles over a slow and bumpy dirt road that turned out to be fine, although we lost one of our center wheel caps along the way. We also realized that because Double M Stock Dogs was surrounded by the Kaibab National Forest, we could have simply found a camp spot along the way and boondocked much closer to the road. Regardless, the location was absolutely beautiful with a huge meadow with cows, horses, dogs, and geese. After walking around the property, past a small pond, and unsuccessfully looking for a new-born colt, we headed back to the van for dinner, a sunset, and a wonderful night’s sleep.