The Great Loop - Our other Blog

 Come aboard and travel with us as we circumnavigate the eastern half of the US by boat.  

America's Great Loop

www.looperasyouwish.blogspot.com

June 5 Take me Home , Country Roads

June 5   Whirlwind cruising at high speeds on I-10, I-20 and I-85 instead of those nice easy going but slower country roads gets us back home quickly.

June 3  travel from Tuscon AZ to Pecos TX.  Desert and mountain travel.   Running alongside the Mexico border again for awhile.   Wind is blowing.  Car is attacked several times during the day.  Dirt devil shoots across the highway bringing several tumble weeds with it hitting the front and side of the car.   Next up was an area of intense bugs that decided to commit suicide all over the windshield.  Then  a pickup in front of us ran over a big piece of plastic something and kicked it back at us.   Came at us airborne hitting the passenger side windshield at the top corner.  We thought it was just a scuff mark on the windshield. However, upon inspection when refueling there was a small indent on the roof above the windshield.  Oh well, car passed 100K so it's due a few bumps and bruises.   Next we got caught in a minor sandstorm in Texas  - makes you nervous entering an area with multiple big yellow hiway signs telling you what to do in a serious sandstorm with limited visibility.  And finally we had the Border Patrol  doing a stop and inspect before reaching Pecos.   Fun day but covered about 500 miles.   Hotel actually has their full breakfast in the AM.  First time the entire trip.

We pick up a hitchhiker in New Mexico

Sandstorm ahead!!

Yup - We're definitely in Texas

June 4  we hope to make Shreveport but give up short after hitting miserable traffic going through Dallas/Ft. Worth.  Not a very picturesque drive today - mostly going through oil fields. We make reservations at a Hampton Inn in Canton.  Get a confirmation number as we know it will be a late arrival because we stop for a steak dinner.  Been wanting  one of those big Texas steaks and find it at Four Winds Steakhouse in Wills Point.  26 oz. bone-in ribeye. Pricey but delicious.   We head down the hiway to the hotel.  Arrive and find out while the national reservation system is good at TAKING reservations they are not good at making sure the local hotel requested actually HAS rooms available.  Seems I remember a Seinfeld episode like this dealing with a rental car.   There is a festival in town, a wedding party, and a sports tournament.  They are booked solid and  can do nothing but apologize.  We wind up going another 30 miles east to Kilgore TX.  Finally fall into bed.  

Lot's of nothing out here ....

....except Texas oil fields.

June 5 we start the day with another full breakfast at a hotel - pretty limited Covid restrictions in this part of Texas.  We learn that Kilgore is the sight of the East Texas oil field discovery in 1930.   Like right downtown!  They actually have a park called  "The World's Richest Acre".  At one time 24 oil drilling derricks were situated on the one acre that was main street.  They actually tore down all the buildings to put up more derricks and moved main street over a few blocks.   It was a boom town that grew so fast and got so rowdy the National Guard had to be called in numerous times to settle things down.  At one time there were 1,100 wells just within the city limits.  They now have a display of derricks on the property.  All the wells in town have been plugged although there are still plenty still going in the surrounding area.   We drive by for a photo op and hit the road.   As we head further into east Texas it becomes more rolling wooded countryside.  Starting to look more like home. Original plan is to bed down in Birmingham.  We stop there for some SAW's BBQ and then decide to push on.  It's only 4 more hours and we can sleep in our own bed.  Lots of traffic going through Atlanta but everyone is driving crazy fast so we make good time.  Pull into the driveway at 10:30, unpack the car and fall into our own bed after 5 weeks of fun but exhausting travel. 

"The World's Richest Acre"

Crossing the Mississippi at Vicksburg

June 2 On The Road Again..

 June 2  - We're in Tuscon, AZ

Since crossing the Route 66 finish line at the Santa Monica Pier we've still been traveling.    We spent the balance of Saturday driving around LA hitting the sights.  Sunset Blvd, Mulholland Drive, Studio City, the Hollywood sign, etc.  

Sunday we headed down the coast to Del Mar.  We had reservations at a Best Western Premium hotel  that overlooked the ocean.   Originally just for one night but we decided we  really needed an extra day of just relaxing.  So we spent  Monday here too doing absolutely nothing.  We've pretty much been going non stop for 4 weeks. Very different from when we were doing the Great Loop where we weren't on a fixed schedule and periodically were forced into a "down day" due to weather.  Only downside to this great location was that the weather wasn't as ideal as we had hoped here.  It's cool right along the coast. Low 60's in the AM and only got into upper 60's during the day.  They have a term for the weather - May gray and June gloom.   There is just a constant cloud cover all morning.  On a good day it burns off for a few hours mid day but then the overcast returns in the afternoon.  So despite a great westerly view of the ocean we never saw a sunset. Bummer.   

Headed down the coast to Del Mar

Point Vincente Lighthouse - built 1926

As close as we got to a sunset view

Tuesday it was finally time to start some serious driving.   So we ran the balance of the Pacific Coast Hiway down to San Diego.  Stopped for a quick look around at Old Towne and the waterfront Maritime Museum before jumping on I-8 and heading east.  

Star of India - Iron sailing ship built 1863

Once outside of town the geography and temperatures change dramatically.   You're suddenly back in pretty inhospitable mountains and desert and driving right along the Mexican border  - on occasion close enough that you can see the border walls.  

The dark line is the border wall.  Hostile environment.

We made one unexpected stop .  Driving along we see a sign for Painted Rock Petroglyph State Park. Having seen some petroglyphs at the Grand Canyon we think this might be cool and we're ready for a pit stop anyway so we pull off the exit - see the next sign that it's 11 miles away and decide to go have a look.  15 minutes later we're getting out of the car into the 107 degree sun and heat walking around this big pile of black stones which have been a stopping point for Native Americans since forever.   There's 2 generations of symbols.   The earliest going back well over 1500 years.  The newer ones roughly 500-1000 years old. There are over 800 characters carved into the stones so an impressive collection.  But the heat and sun made us retreat back to the A/C in the car in short order. 

Petroglyths at Red Rock.  Geometric designs are the oldest

 We joined I-10 and made it to Tuscon for the night.  Did I mention that since Martha no longer is relegated to navigator duties that she took a turn at the wheel.  And we also finally saw some of those classic desert cactus.  We  wondered where they were as we never saw any  on Route 66  in AZ or NM.  Apparently just not hot and dry enough in the northern parts of the state. They can get pretty big.

New driver!!

Happy to see a REAL cactus.

 

The story takes an interesting turn here.  The guy who bought my Porsche 993 C2S lives in Tuscon and we've kept in touch.  He was off work on Wednesday and said "Come on over to the house, we'll do a drive so you see how the mods I've done feel to you".   So we spend most of the day doing a great run  climbing up 7000 feet on some amazing twisty roads to the top of  Lemmon Mountain for a nice lunch before heading back down.  Martha and I are in the 993 while Anthony leads the way in his other Porsche  - a gorgeous midnight blue GT3.  He's taking great care of the 993.  Installed a new suspension and exhaust which make the car sound as good as it handled. We could not ask for a better next owner of the car. 

Following Anthony up the twisty bits.

Couple of beautiful cars.

Old and new owners - I couldn't have sold it to better person.

Wonderful scenery atop Lemmon Mountain

We think we've finally put a plan together for the rest of the trip home.  Pecos TX tomorrow, then Shreveport, LA, then Birmingham, AL and then home.    That's the plan anyway - we'll see if it works!