Month: October 2018

LAST BLOG For This Trip. 100418 – 100818

100418: So here we are in St Louis. “Meet me in St Louie…”. We are right at the arch. We walk to dinner under a highway into an area that looks like it had a renaissance but then…? I figure out that the Rams left the city and are back in LA. The stadium is right here and the area is a ghost town.  We look up.

What the hell is that?

Dinner nearby at the Four Seasons in the same area. Fancy building.

Changes colors

The entire other side lights up and changes color constantly.

A casino is attached and it is the only sign of real activity. The hotel is quiet. The restaurant is new and very good. It is still overcast and we step out to the 8th floor deck (huge – bar, fire pit, seating area and a two piece band. Nice. And the Arch.

100518: We leave St Louis over a brand new incomplete bridge.

Run…run toward home. I pick Richmond Indiana as our overnight stop.

Along the way, we come upon the coolest catch phrase for an industrial fastener business.

So you think the USA has an evangelist sector?  Lots of small town have a lot of churches, but this…

Look at the rock I found.

Richmond:  Humidity is back and it is hot. SG walks to town. I drive in and find a cool building – of course, the courthouse.

The town is reviving an historical district. Really a small area, but a Ford Model T museum, a large furniture store chock full of antiques and artifacts (the largest and most complete beer can collection I’ve ever seen), Little Sheba and Zina’a restaurants (not bad) and a first class coffee shop. The floors in these establishments all sloped toward the street. We learn that the building was all industrial factories and the floors were sloped to roll the products out the door and to the nearby train tracks.

Richmond was the epicenter of the black jazz recording industry, recording and selling this music when no one else would (Gennett Records).  It was also a huge piano manufacturing town Starr Piano (and later refrigerators).

100618:  Pressing toward home, we skip the Model T Museum (sad) and shop briefly. You’ll see our purchase at the entrance to our condo (no, not the rocks).

Is that the St Louis Arch again?? Wrong turn?? Disaster….

It rains a little but most of the day we seem to be chasing the bad weather.

We stop in Clearfield, Pa. This town is hopping. It seems to be the dirt bike – ATV capital of the world.  Pickup trucks with ATVS from all over the US – as far as Utah (where’s that?).  The town is in reasonably good shape with only a few vacant storefronts. We pick a brewery for dinner – not a lot of choices. The Race Street Brew Works is buried in an industrial park and hard to find. Great beer and they completely change the limited menu every week. Works for them – four years old and going strong.

100718. Next day – Breakfast at Spanky’s Courthouse Cafe. Excellent breakfast.

Onward to Mount Kisko for a special person’s special day. We spend the night with Ashley and Jason H.

100818: We start the day with a walk along an unpaved road bordering a private zoo and secluded homes (Bruce Willis’s neighborhood). Breakfast at the Reading Room in Katonah. Excellent! Then Home.

“Home Again Home Again, Never To Roam Again”…. Not. Both of us want to drive right by and stay on the road. Home is great and great to be here.  I really missed all my friend and the two (maybe one) people who’ve read all this tripe.

Roughly 63 days.  Just short of 11,000 miles.  19 states (I demand a recount!).  This adventure just gave us a taste of how vast and wonderful the USA is. We can’t wait to continue. And we will do so.

Thanks for reading and viewing the pix.  And the kind words.  We love each and every one or two of you that stuck with us.

KAC & SG

Blog Dates 092418 through 100418:

Not a lot to say. Watched the Ford-Kavanaugh wars. What an embarrassment for our nation!! “Trow da Bums Out” – all the senators and congressmen. Get $$$ out of politics. Unfortunately, I read a book entitled “A Short History of The United States.” We don’t act any better politically, socially or civically than we ever did. Oh Boy…

Ginnie and Dan hiked us hard in Torrey Canyon, right along the Pacific.

Steps To The Beach

Here’s the Boss

We took full advantage of Ginnie and Dan. They left Thursday and we stayed until Saturday. Grateful guests. The secret is to never let me in, in the first place…

Carlsbad is a really cool town. All the shopping conveniences the world now expects. Nice funky shopping villages with local merchants, eclectic stuff. Encinitas, Cardiff-By-The-Sea. And the Pacific Ocean at your doorstep (not literally). Even the oceanfront properties are 80+ steps to the water. (Who forgot the lemonade?).

So Cali sand varies from black to caramel to white and is soft. They also have more rocks than are presently in my car, but SG is working on changing that. They are all worn round with so many colors and varieties. I collected two – all SG would let me have. “Pay for the gas and shut up.”

The surf was up when we were there. Long gradual inclines from the sea to the beach made long waves and plenty of surfers. Fun to watch. Shoulda tried it. Naaa…

Ginnie showed us a former parking lot that the owner turned into a rock garden.  He invited the public to paint beach rocks and place them in his new garden.

Restaurants are plentiful and excellent. We had dinner with my nephew and Godson Chris C. He is a law student in downtown San Diego and a dedicated surfer. We went to Fish 101 in Encinitas, his favorite place. Great to see you Chris.

So on Saturday 0929, SG and I made the inevitable decision: Take A Left and start home. We seriously considered parking the car at an airport and flying home, and then back out to continue the trip.

092918.

Knucklehead Smith is with us again. I left my sunglasses in Ginnie’s car. They went to Scottsdale Az. Fortunately a good (can’t say old) college friend invited us to Tucson, not really far out of the way. I-8 is the only way to go. Another great ride for the first 150 miles through mountains. Very different. It looks like the brown mountains were smashed into large boulders and scattered all over the place.

Then the road goes pretty flat. Actually sandy desert for a while then back to sagebrush. How does that stuff survive? Temperature gets to 105. Fry an egg on my skillet head. Fast. We stop at Gila Bend Az and wash the car – very important – and get food at my favorite Irish restaurant Tac O’Bell. We fly through Phoenix (guess who’s driving), reach Scottsdale and turn south for Tucson. All pretty flat, but plenty of speed – 85-90 and you don’t catch anyone. Nice. Lotsa miles today.

We reach Yvette and Joe’s home just as the sun is setting. What a spot!! Mountains to the north and the City of Tucson laid out in panoramic view to the south.

They are very gracious hosts; we enjoy a home cooked dinner and retire for the evening.

093018: Clem Cadidalhopper (phon) is doing the navigation and takes one exit too soon on the way to Truth or Consequences, New Mexico. Kills an extra 3 hours, but the ride through the Arizona and New Mexico mountains…. Like they say in Maine: “You can’t get there from here.” Well, if you have the time, take State 191 to 78 and fasten your seatbelt for the hairpin turns, gorges, valleys, sheer cliffs and forests devastated by the pine borer. Then take the route I thought I had chosen and continue the ride. State 152 east. 1-1/2 hours to go 27 miles. Many turns at 10 MPH. No guardrails. Makes the Pacific Coast Highway look like an interstate. Great day I picked to take a severe detour. SG not feeling well and she rides the Tilt.A.Whirl with Dennis the Menace at the wheel. (Mario Andretti got off – he couldn’t handle it.)

We get to Truth or Consequences. I chose it for a good stopping place distance-wise. I thought it was an old cowboy town. No. It changed its name in 1950 to celebrate a radio quiz show’s 10th anniversary. Really. The festival continues every year. Fortunately, we missed it.

Food was very good at Arcos Steak and Sea Food (what sea?). Had Halibut simply grilled with lemon juice and spices and perfect vegetables. SG passed up a good cheap dinner. The former name of T or C was Hot Springs – still a big draw with several funky looking spas by the day, hour, week or month. Hmmmm….Happy Endings?? We didn’t hang around to find out.

100118: North on I-25. Home is the goal and the interstates will rule our routes for a while. North through Albuquerque to Santa Fe. Throwing out the anchor for the rest of the day.

Sante Fe (for those politically impaired) is the capital of New Mexico. It has a central plaza surrounded by mostly local stores (Hagan Daas an exception). To me, it looks tired, stained streets, littered and seedy.

The shops are really nice and $$$$. One named Cowboys and Indians is full of hand built specialty furniture. Many tables are inlaid with crushed turquoise in the natural cracks and fissures in the wood. Others have molten copper poured in. The effects are interesting, unique and beautiful. They also carve large decorative lamps out of onyx. Lots cooler than the light bulb I used to put inside a road cone (60’s psychedelic Coles style). Phil O and Louis Q used to laugh at me (why I’ll never understand).

So, does the period go before the parentheses or after?

Lunch is pizza at Rooftop Pizzeria on the plaza. Whoa! Really good, lots of veggies on thin crust. Then we shop and hit an art museum. Later, dinner at La Boca. No TripAdvisor this time. I just looked for the locals (casually well dressed older people going for early dinner). Home Run. Authentic Spanish tapas in a small delightful place. We spent the night in a Quality Inn that was far from it. Clean, but beat bad and left for dead. Smelly. Carpet stained and torn. Lots of deferred maintenance. Actually a little scary. No A/C, refrigerator, ironing board or iron. Going to complain, as is my nature.

100218: Aiming at Kansas City – won’t get there today. North out of Santa Fe on I-25, SG at the wheel and a steady 90 mph and 30 mpg. Then we continued on US 56. We knick the Oklahoma Panhandle:

Then we found Kansas:

Two lane undivided highway. The road inundates, but is mostly straight through farms and cattle ranches. We stop for food and to switch drivers at the Gladstone Mercantile. Gladstone KS. Sign inside states: Population 5.” The lady running the mercantile says that is inaccurate – her granny died at 95 snd they are down to 4. SG helped the local economy considerably by purchasing beautiful Indian-made shawls.

Lots of small towns. You MUST slow down or meet the local fuzz. I followed this big SUV for lots of miles – flying low – as we entered a small town, the sheriff pulls out behind me and flashes lights and siren. I pull over, like a good citizen and he nabs the guy ahead. Whew!

All these little towns are centered on massive grain silos. That’s all there is on the horizon.

So we hit Dodge City KS. A real old cowboy town.

The two best things are the “Welcome” sign stone wall with metal images of cowboys (no girls) and the dinner at Prime On The Nine – a restaurant on a public course. The grilled tuna (me – love Tuna…) and salmon (SG) were surprisingly good. The bartender Kaylee was from Oklahoma City and could not say whether her home town or Dodge was better…. Dodge lacked a restaurant district in its “old town” or any restaurant area at all. We were steered to Applebees (avoided so far) Mickey D’s and other epicurean delights. TripAdvisor saved the bacon (no – the fish). We met two guys who buy and sell oil pumps/. A few good stories.

And Dodge? Here is the big deal in Dodge:

There is good coffee at Red Beard Coffee Shop. Otherwise, skip the tourist stuff in Dodge – empty storefronts after the re-created cowboy town. We didn’t pay the admission.
One other thing to see: Go to the Boot Hill Casino parking lot and look out. All you see is prairie. HUGE. Another note: The flies are awful because of all the cattle

100318: So we get the Duck Out of Fodge banging up Billy Joel on Sirius heading toward Kansas City – Kansas City Here we Come!!! (couldn’t help myself).  An I-70 Kansas warning sign:

We got there kind of late and definitely beat – driving too much really and seeing little. KCMO is a cool town with a lot to do and see and we skipped it all except for dinner (and a Yankee Wild Card Win!!) at the Chop House. Excellent lamb chops. There is a lot of places for music and bars. Lots of fountains.  I’d been before to the Negro Baseball Hall Of Fame (informative and sobering) and the jazz museum. We plan to return for an extended weekend.  SG found knitting on steroids:

100418: Breakfast at The Farmhouse – farm to table stuff, really fresh and good. KCMO trolley right outside the door.

Dorothy is long gone from Kansas:

Back on I-70 to St Louis. Rain closing in – another car wash – I think there are still a few bugs left in the west, but I got most of them.

Hampton Inn in St Louis at the Arch (which looks cool; the outside temp is 56! What??? Yes, 56. And cloudy. So we may just soldier on. Lots of miles to cover to get Home Again!!