On Route 66 in the Texas Panhandle last month.
Amarillo. It is the big city along Route 66 thorough the Panhandle. Actually that’s it for cities on the entire almost 200 mile stretch. There are no others of any significance. That’s it for lodging, too. If one is driving Route 66 in Texas, Amarillo is the stopover.
Although I can’t say that Amarillo lands very high on my list of Route 66 cities, I will give it an honorable mention anyway because of three things which made it a very memorable stop: dinner at the famous Big Texan, gorgeous nearby Palo Duro Canyon State Park and (drum roll) must-see Cadillac Ranch.
First the iconic Cadillac Ranch. (Read more about it here.) What’s not to like about ten Caddies half-buried, nose-down in the ground, covered with layers and layers of spray paint? This is not just any roadside attraction; this is one standing on the pantheon of elite roadside attractions. Unusually, there was some water collecting on one side, and some of the Caddies were reflected in the water. I got there during the waning light of the day. Perfection.
Palo Duro Canyon is in a separate post here.
On to that venerable Amarillo eating establishment, the Big Texan. A classic and also not to be missed. Crazy busy with a cavernous room filled with people consuming steaks and waiters really hustling. Great music. Excellent service. (That’s my waiter in the last photo.) A damn good steak. Finally, at the table in front raised up from the other tables – just in front of the area where they do the cooking – was someone trying to eat the 72 oz steak meal in an hour and win the Big Texan 72 oz Steak Challenge. (Here are the rules.) This fellow missed it by 13 oz. They gave him a t-shirt (and his leftovers), and everyone gave him a round of applause. His daughter cam up to the table after the time was up, and I snapped this shot. A fine effort even if he didn’t manage those last 13 ounces.
The next day (after a morning at Palo Duro) I explored a bit in the city driving Route 66 through the city in the process (the day before coming in from the east I had bypassed Route 66 in the center city and stayed on the interstate to get to Cadillac Ranch on the western side of the city). The approach from the east on 66 is very dodgy; although there is not a lot of old signage left I did see some classic signs here and there. The downtown has seen better days. It did not make a good impression and seemed sketchy. It’s one of those historic downtowns with a lot of one way streets and parking lots and not too many people about. Driving west about two miles past the downtown on SW 6th – right on Route 66 – is an antiques, and restaurants/bars/cafes area, called Old San Jacinto. In one part of it there were lots of biker places – it seemed to be biker central around there. With more time I would have done some exploring around Old San Jacinto.
The very last picture is to the east of the city and near Cadillac Ranch as I headed west.
