Route 66 - Amarillo (Amarillo, TX)

2013.09.02 - Labor Day

Directions:
From the east it starts near Lake Michigan in Chicago and from the west near Santa Monica Peer on the Pacific Coast. However, if not traveling the whole Route 66, then exit 68B on I-40 and head north on Georgia St. to the 6th Avenue intersection where Amarillo's Route 66 district begins.

Every Trail:
We parked on Tennessee St, about half way through the district, started Runkeeper and a new app, Every Trail. I first visited Every Trail when scouting for nearby hikes, but it wasn't until this trip to Albuquerque and back that I discovered its true purpose. For one, Every Trail runs a slide show of every photo taken at its GPS location along the route. Which is fun to watch especially on this magical Mother Road. Another reason, is it gives a running elevation graph with info on duration, length, average speed, vertical up, and vertical down. A link to this trip is on the webpage under the name Route 66 - Texas.

Walk:
Venturing west, we walked on the north side of Route 66 while enjoying the fanciful buildings to the South. Yet at the corner of Route 66 and S. Fairmont St. is a converted car hop restaurant from the what could have been American food to Filipino food. A good sign of the changing times. So many buildings along Route 66 are abandoned while this one lives on.

Another stable on Route 66 are biker bars and here in Amarillo, there are a couple. Skooteerz is at the corner of Western St. and Route 66 on the edge of the district. Here we turned around and head east. Another biker bar is the Broken Spoke Lounge and can be found between Louisiana and Virginia Streets.

If body art is desired there is a tattoo shop on Prospect Street. But there is also street art along the Route. Across from Cornerstone Church of Amarillo is a storage container with purposeful graffiti. The haunted house at Virginia St. has historic marker in the tombstone. Between Kentucky and Florida Streets PacMan is chasing ghosts. Then on the north side between Kentucky and Alabama is my favorite. A mural of a container store truck with Route 66 on the backside. I just love murals. The last bit of art is for Ladies Bling, a biker shop mural.

Lastly, Route 66's character is reflected in its buildings. From the Solitary building at Belleview St. to Mama's Garden between Maryland and Tennessee to Cowboy Gelato between Florida and Kentucky. What could quickly be passed and missed in a car is in full display on foot. If I get the opportunity to drive Route 66 from Chicago to Los Angeles again, I hope to do the same as I did that day. Get out, get up close, and feel the ever changing heart of what once was and is America's Highway.

Numbers:
The time spent walking was 56 minutes and 17 seconds for a distance of 2.17 miles. Our vertical up was 620 feet and average speed was 2.3 miles per hour while sightseeing.

Total blogged miles: 231.10 miles.

River Parks Trail (Tulsa, OK)

2013.05.17 - -This past weekend in Tulsa, OK became one experience building on itself and then exponentially with the next. It started with me getting the wrong dates at the Hyatt Regency downtown, and the understanding front desk clerk changing them while honoring the same low price. As a bonus, right outside the hotel doors, Mayfest was happening with live music and food abound. Couldn't have been a better start to the weekend and after getting our entertainment fill, we went to bed because we had a nice hike planned the next day.

We decided to start our trek just east of Route 66 and Riverside Dr. The River Parks Trail follows the Arkansas River and is paved wide enough to allow two lanes for bicycle traffic and a wide enough lane just for walkers. Where we took our first steps is an arch acting as both a starting point and finish line.

Coincidentally, there were a few caches hidden along the way and as it turned out they were near some very interesting public art. A sculpture of two deer named Nature Works hosted one cache, while another was near an amazing suspended cube. In total we found 18 caches along this stretch. It was fun finding a cache and learning more about Tulsa.

On this stretch of the River Parks Trail there is a hut where one can stop, get a cold one, and cool off for a bit. Blue Rose Cafe is also here. With their slogan being, 'No Crybabies, it is a neat motorcycle, bicycle, walker restaurant with live entertainment and good food. We didn't stop on our hike, but took note and after we were done, came back for our celebration lunch. 

We walked for a bit and then came to where we were about to cross on the Midland Valley Trail and River Trails Pedestrian Bridge. Stopping for water near a sailboat sculpture, we drank up as it was getting warm, but the thought of some wind passing through sails would have been very much appreciated. While there, On the Arkansas, a beautiful out of service fountain rests. An island of circles, must of sprayed magnificently at one time, and yet may circle back to do so again.

Careful on the pedestrian bridge as walkers, hikers, and bikers all use it to cross the river, but it is only wide enough for those on two legs and not wheels. If you see a road bike flying towards you, it may be best to move aside and avoid a collision. At the center of the bridge, in one direction, downtown Tulsa is set with the River at the fore front offering an awesome photo opportunity. The other side looks down river in the direction of where the Arkansas leads into the Mississippi.


It wasn't surprising that the western side of the River was less used, yet the trail was just as wide. It was pleasant to just walk for a bit without the big crowds. We stopped for a couple more caches, but also found symmetry under a bridge and a red robot on a tree. As mentioned before, some treasures cannot be found without exploration.

Our next stop was River West Festival Park and the floating amphitheater. Two cables keep it anchored and make it easy to pull to shore. One of these days, we'll have to see a show just to see how the stage comes to live and gain more perspective.

Our final stop was a reward on itself. The Cyrus Avery Centennial Plaza has eight flags, one for every state Route 66 travels through. They are placed from east to west starting and ending with Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California. We first discovered this site on our Route 66 trip early one morning while leaving Tulsa. It had just as much significance then, as we relived it again.

An amazing sculpture illustrates East meeting West as they do in Oklahoma. Before Oklahoma, there is a perception of cars and business men and after, there are cowboys and stagecoaches. Not far from here, the original Mother Road can be traveled and it transcends time. I can still envision people down on their luck during the Dust Bowl traveling this legendary road to a better life out west. In the photo on the left, there are three roads, the old closed off Mother Road, a new Mother Road, and the Interstate. Not hard to tell which had the most interesting stories.


We hiked 5.08 miles in 3 hours : 14 minutes. We averaged 38 minutes : 18 seconds a mile including a lot of caching. Our fastest mile was the 2nd mile at 30 minutes : 50 seconds.

Trail Miles Blogged: 37:13 miles.