This post will discuss Route 66 in Texas. In a few months we will travel a little more south in Texas the most populous state in the southern region of the United States, after we return from the Northern part of Mexico and the Baja California.
Route 66 has many names, The Mother Road, The Main Street of America, The Will Rogers Highway. When it comes to quirky roadside attractions, a small-town Americana feel, vintage charm, and a wide variety of things to do, you will find them along this route. Luckily, there is a short-but-sweet stretch of Route 66 in Texas!
Despite being, geographically speaking Texas is the largest state along Route 66, Texas is home to only 290 kilometres of Route 66. The road cuts straight across the Texas Panhandle in the far Northwest.
Crossing into Texas at the ghost town of Glenrio was disappointing, the town is full of abandoned buildings.
One of the most famous towns along the portion of Route 66 in Texas is Adrian, Midway Point along the historic Route 66, exact 1822 kilometres from Chicago, and 1822 kilometres from Los Angeles.
The Midpoint Cafe has had many names, owners, and iterations since it first opened in 1928, but today, it remains proudly in the centre of historic Route 66, with a slogan that reads “when you’re here, you’re halfway there.”
Just before Amarillo is Cadillac Ranch a classic Route 66 roadside attraction: it is colourful, kitsch, and more than a little ridiculous. Ten Cadillacs are lined up neatly in a row with their frontends buried in the desert and every inch of visible surface covered in thousands of layers of spray paint courtesy of the tourist visiting. The stall at the entrance sells the spray paint and of you go. From what we are told this is now one of the most famous stops along Route 66 in Texas. Bruce Springsteen named the song Cadillac Ranch in his 1980 album The River.
Just past Cadillac Ranch is the 2nd Amendment cowboy; this huge cowboy (statue) in yellow shirt that reads “2nd Amendment Cowboy” is placed in front of 3 classic Cadillacs.
Halfway the night we were woken by thunder, rain, and gale force winds, this did not get better for the rest of the day and in the neighbouring state Oklahoma, a tornado watch was in place.
Amarillo is the only city along Route 66 in Texas. (the Lone Star State) Route 66’s most famous restaurant is Big Texan Steak Ranch where you can get a 2KG steak plus vegetables, and chips and if you can eat the steak in 1 hour it is free. If you take the challenge, you will need to sit on a small stage-like table at the front of the restaurant. If not, prepare to cough up US $72.
Palo Duro Canyon, the second-largest canyon in the USA, nicknamed the Grand Canyon of Texas, is located just 30 minutes off Route 66 and is worth a detour. Unfortunately, due to atrocious weather, rain, hail, sleet and gale force winds, we decided against a visit and drove east towards Oklahoma. According to other overlanders Palo Duro Canyon is the most spectacular and scenic landscape feature in the Texas Panhandle, with a descent of some 800 feet to the canyon floor.
Combine City. when Orville Ladehoff did not know what he was going to do with a broken-down old combine, his wife said why do you not just bury it as a joke. That was the spark that ignited the farmer’s crazy idea — not to bury, but to “plant” combine harvesters on his two-acre plot of land.
Ozymandias on the Plains, two vast and trunkless legs of stone stand in the middle of no-where! Named for a 19th-century Percy Shelley poem that references an Egyptian King, Ozymandias on the Plains may look like a damaged statue, but it was built to look exactly as it does. Local self-taught artist Lightning built the sculpture McDuff, who specializes in altering found objects to make new pieces of art.
The VW Slug Bug Ranch just outside Amarillo is a copy to the more-famous Cadillac Ranch but done with five VW Slug Bugs.
McLean. Once a thriving town on Route 66. Boosted not only by Route 66 visitors, but by ranching and the oil boom, McLean’s entire Commercial District is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is a must-see when driving the route through Texas.
Groom is a small town on Historic Route 66 in Texas. It is famous for its 198 foot tall giant cross, and its leaning water tower. This leaning water tower may look like it’s on the brink of falling over, but it was put there as an advertisement for a truck stop (which no longer exists)
On our way to Oklahoma, we stopped at Shamrock which is known for its classic Art Deco architecture, the famous Conoco Tower Station and U-Drop Inn Café. Built in 1936 at the cost of $23,000, this gem of a building got its start in the dust when the idea was written on the ground with an old nail.
Texola is located on the Oklahoma/Texas border; this town has been claimed by both Texas and Oklahoma due to the changes of the state border numerous times.
Till next time from Oklahoma
Robert and Clary
This entry was posted in Latest Update