The charming vistas of the Texas Panhandle.
Sunshine. That’s the good news. We awoke Wednesday a.m. to the blue skies of New Mexico. We’d almost forgotten what sunshine looks like.
Yesterday was miles and miles of miles and miles. For years one has listened to Texans explain the wonders of their state. Yet driving through the panhandle of Texas one could only think of Peggy Lee’s “Is That All There Is?”
Finally, after 8 hours and hundreds of miles of fog we hit the New Mexico border and sunshine. Hooray for the Mountain Time Zone.
The number one tourist attraction in the Texas Panhandle.
The number two tourist attraction in the Texas Panhandle.
The highlight of the trip was stopping at the KFC in Childress, Texas. Nothing says “Yum-yum” like the guy taking your order weighing over 400 pounds with a dip in his lower lip.
While rolling through the un-ending terrain thoughts went to “If I were to ride the Trace again, what would I do differently.”
Top 10 Do-Overs On the Natchez Trace
10. Write the Missouri Dept. of Transportation and find out their good road (Law of Averages says there has to be one
9. Avoid the monsoon season
8. Visit Oprah’s childhood home in Kosciusko, Mississippi.
7. Learn how to pronounce Kosciusko
6. Put “No Stinging Insects Allowed” sign on my bicycle helmet.
5. Spend more time at the Collingwood, Tennessee Welcome Center. You have no idea how tasty a lemon cheesecake cookie can be in the middle of a 50 mile pedal.
4. Ask motel desk clerks if the “Free Wi-Fi” is in the rooms. 3 times we were told, after we checked in, “Yall it’s free but you have to come to the lobby.”
3. Skip Missouri (Did I happen to mention their roads suck.)
2. Take a speed flat tire repair course (for fixing flats in the rain)
1. Learn the difference between North and South followed by an advanced course the difference between East and West.
We did have a great end of the day dining at the Lake City diner in Santa Rosa, New Mexico. It’s a restaurant in a refurbished bank. Wonderful atmosphere, good food and worth the stop if you are ever driving New Mexico on I-40.
We’re off to Santa Fe.
Maynard,
ReplyDeleteAfter looking at that photo of you with the bee sting swelling your already gracious proboscis to elephantine proportions I was struck by the thought: God, this guy better never pass, or the rest of us will never have anything to measure ourselves by! Was that a self portrait, or did you put your bride up to it. You are the ultimate piece of work! Love ya, David Hoffman