We made it to Flagstaff just before dark and were so tired we just ordered pizza and went to bed. We choose to stay in Flagstaff since it is only an hour south of the Grand Canyon and had cheaper lodging than some of the other towns closer to the GC.
Our plan was to get up early and spend most of the day at there. We figured there is lots to see since it's so big and stuff. Before bed we checked the weather and it didn't look good. 45 degrees and SNOW. Snow? In Arizona?! Can you see where this is going? We decide we'll make a go of it anyway. It can't be cold the WHOLE time.
Speaking of weather, it's been completely screwy the whole trip. Several people I've talked to blame it on El Nino. I don't care whose fault it is. When it's colder in Arizona than it is in Delaware something's not right. So we wake up to sleet and freezing wind. We gamely slap on our hiking shoes and multiple layers of clothing. The drive up was really pretty and it turns out we drive through the largest Ponderosa Pine Forest in the United States. There is rain. Lots of it. And sleet. The road has terrible drainage and there is at least 3 inches of water on it. We get to one point in the road and three cars had slid off the road and were stranded in ditches. As we're driving along and deciding whether to turn back or not, a pickup truck going the other direction slides off the road, into the median, and very nearly flips over.
We get off at the next exit and make a beeline for Vegas.
We get off at the next exit and make a beeline for Vegas.
I look at the weather and it's supposed to be gorgeous at the end of the week in the Canyon so we'll hit it on the way back. I've wanted to see the Grand Canyon my entire life. There is no way that I'm driving all the way out here and not see it. Katie feels the same way.
We figure we'll hit Vegas around dinner time and bonus- we'll 
drive over the Hoover Dam! One more Wonder of the World I can check off my list. This day isn't going to be so bad after all.
drive over the Hoover Dam! One more Wonder of the World I can check off my list. This day isn't going to be so bad after all. After bypassing much of Route 66 in New Mexico we're eager to get back on it, and lucky for us, one of the most preserved and scenic routes on the entire road is from Seligman, AZ to Topock, AZ. We'll have to get off before Topock, in Kingman, AZ in order to head north toward Vegas but we'll still travel on a good sized hunk of the original stretch.
We stop in Seligman by pure chance. We are still trying to find a new guide book because our dude is kinda bringin' us down, man. There are quite a few Route 66 gift shops to choose from. We pick this one because of the sweet truck out front. Turns out it was a good choice.
Are you confused by the the large BARBER sign? Don't worry I was too. It was the beginning of a full scale assault on our senses. It was a good thing. Promise.
We walk in and I immediately smell coffee and my eyelids open another quarter of an inch. We got up early, remember? The second stimuli my sleepy brain registers is a very excited, happy guy saying, "Hello!" and "Welcome to the Angel and Vilma Delgadillo Route 66 Gift Shop and Visitor's Center!" He comes out from behind the counter and asks us where we're from and without taking a breath starts to tell us all about this Route 66 extravaganza that we have stumbled upon.
Who knew that tiny Seligman, Arizona is ground zero for the Route 66 preservation movement? Before the construction of "That Great Concrete Monstrosity" otherwise known as the I-40, Seligman was like any other town situated along 66, bustling and prosperous in large part because of tourist dollars from the motoring public who drove through the town for decades. Once I-40 was completed in that part of the country Seligman's revenue dried up almost at once. Angel Delgadillo, the town barber was determined to change that. See? It's all coming together now, isn't it? It now makes total sense there would be a barber sign out front.
Together he and his brother Juan who also owned a buisness in Seligman recognized many people were developing a sense of nostalgia about the old route and set out to preserve 66 and started the Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona. Because of their efforts, other states followed their lead formed preservation organizations and Voila! The Route 66 preservation movement was born.
The clerk at the gift shop said that usually they get bus loads of tourist coming through, mostly from different countries but they were slow that week because international airline travel had ground to a crawl because of that 312 syllable Icelandic volcano.
Mr. Excitable, whose name I've forgotten, is Angel's son-in-law. It's obvious he share
s Angel's love and enthusiasm for 66. It was actually really nice to be welcomed so warmly into a business we chose to patronize. They have photographs and memorabilia crammed into every open space and hanging all over the walls. Angel's original barber shop is still there, with the mirror and barber chair still intact. I had to look twice to see it was a mirror because it was covered with pictures and notes from visitors. Before heading in the back to take care of some business, Angel's son-in-law showed us the over 50 years of scrapbooks they have kept. Any visitor who sends them a note, a picture, anything, they put it in the scrapbook and save it for posterity. I thought it was an incredibly sweet and thoughtful thing to do.
Clearly this place means a lot to many, many people. We chat a
little more, find the book we need, sign the guest book and go on our merry way. On they way out the door, Guy Smiley tells us not to miss the Snow Cap, Juan Delgadillo's greasy spoon next door.
We walk into the Snow Cap and this is what we see. A small, tunnel of a room with photographs, cards and other paraphernalia attached to the walls and ceiling. Some with many years of dust lingering on the surfaces. This too, looks to be a much loved place. Although Juan has passed away, his family continues to operate the Snow Cap, and based upon the number of regulars we ran into while waiting for our food, quite successfully. We read in our guide book later that Juan was known for his quirky humor and his practical jokes.
We experience this tradition at the merciless hands of one of his sons as we try to order. We ask for a taco, a cheeseburger, fries and shakes and he says no. We say "please" and he responds by saying he'll think about it. He asks if we want mustard and squirts a bottle at us and out pops yellow string. When asked if we want straws, he hands us a bundle of straw (you know, like hay?). It goes on and on... While waiting for our order several more customers wander in and when John goes to squirt the mustard bottle at one particular stylish woman in expensive white pants she jumps back and screams. Loudly. It was hilarious. When our food is ready he yells, "oh, sisters..." in a falsetto sing song voice. We didn't really get asked if we were sisters until we got to the southwest. Either people are more nosy out here or more friendly or a combination of both. I didn't mind. We do look freakishly alike these days.
Oh! While waiting for our food we had nothing to do but look at all the stuff taped to the walls and tucked away almost out of sight, I find this little gem. Holla, Blue Hens! I also found a business card from North East, MD. There were patches from many Police Departments, including Maryland. Way to represent, East Coast!
John was a cool guy and was very well liked by all the regulars. He knew each of their names and asked about their families. I was beginning to like him more and more with each passing minute. I also love him for attaching this sign on the side of the building
John and "the women" (that's what he calls the ladies who help in the kitc
hen) had packed our food to go since it was too cold to eat outside and we really wanted to get on the road. When Katie gets her burger out of the bag, there are holes punched into the Styrofoam container in the shape of a smiley face. When she opens it up, she spies a smiley face tot tucked in amongst her fries. I could tell she had grown a little tired of some of John's antics while we were waiting for our food, but the tot put a smile back on her face.
I don't know how the burger was, but man the taco was fantastic. One of the best parts of being in the southwest for me was the food. If you ever get to the Snow Cap, just know the red chili sauce is HOT. Yum.
Before we leave I mosey on over to the back yard of the Snow Cap which is filled with all manner of vintage automobiles. Most of them had eyes, so they looked like they belong in Cars. I have it on good authority that the producers of Cars interviewed Angel and it's featured on the DVD.
It's easy to see why Seligman and other small towns inspired the fictional town of Radiator Springs. The ghost towns were very sad. It's like their abandoned buildings and automobiles are waiting for the glory days to come again. Speaking of cars, we've seen more vintage automobiles on this trip than in our whole lives. Ramone, Flo, Doc, Sheriff, Fillmore, Red and of course, Mater have all been hanging around one part of 66 or another as we pass on through.
That building above was either in Oklahoma or Texas (I'll have to check on that and get back to you). It used to be a garage and motel and now has been fully restored and I believe is used a local government building. Just about every town and landmark claims to have inspired Cars, but this one I can really believe. Doesn't it look like Luigi and Guido are going to come roaring out of the garage to sell you some tires??
Sorry for all the Cars tangents. I love me some Lightening McQueen.
Okay, so this post is getting epic. I'll save the Hoover Dam and Vegas for next time!
Thanks for reading!
Are you confused by the the large BARBER sign? Don't worry I was too. It was the beginning of a full scale assault on our senses. It was a good thing. Promise.
We walk in and I immediately smell coffee and my eyelids open another quarter of an inch. We got up early, remember? The second stimuli my sleepy brain registers is a very excited, happy guy saying, "Hello!" and "Welcome to the Angel and Vilma Delgadillo Route 66 Gift Shop and Visitor's Center!" He comes out from behind the counter and asks us where we're from and without taking a breath starts to tell us all about this Route 66 extravaganza that we have stumbled upon.
Who knew that tiny Seligman, Arizona is ground zero for the Route 66 preservation movement? Before the construction of "That Great Concrete Monstrosity" otherwise known as the I-40, Seligman was like any other town situated along 66, bustling and prosperous in large part because of tourist dollars from the motoring public who drove through the town for decades. Once I-40 was completed in that part of the country Seligman's revenue dried up almost at once. Angel Delgadillo, the town barber was determined to change that. See? It's all coming together now, isn't it? It now makes total sense there would be a barber sign out front.
Together he and his brother Juan who also owned a buisness in Seligman recognized many people were developing a sense of nostalgia about the old route and set out to preserve 66 and started the Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona. Because of their efforts, other states followed their lead formed preservation organizations and Voila! The Route 66 preservation movement was born.
The clerk at the gift shop said that usually they get bus loads of tourist coming through, mostly from different countries but they were slow that week because international airline travel had ground to a crawl because of that 312 syllable Icelandic volcano.
Mr. Excitable, whose name I've forgotten, is Angel's son-in-law. It's obvious he share
s Angel's love and enthusiasm for 66. It was actually really nice to be welcomed so warmly into a business we chose to patronize. They have photographs and memorabilia crammed into every open space and hanging all over the walls. Angel's original barber shop is still there, with the mirror and barber chair still intact. I had to look twice to see it was a mirror because it was covered with pictures and notes from visitors. Before heading in the back to take care of some business, Angel's son-in-law showed us the over 50 years of scrapbooks they have kept. Any visitor who sends them a note, a picture, anything, they put it in the scrapbook and save it for posterity. I thought it was an incredibly sweet and thoughtful thing to do.Clearly this place means a lot to many, many people. We chat a
little more, find the book we need, sign the guest book and go on our merry way. On they way out the door, Guy Smiley tells us not to miss the Snow Cap, Juan Delgadillo's greasy spoon next door.We walk into the Snow Cap and this is what we see. A small, tunnel of a room with photographs, cards and other paraphernalia attached to the walls and ceiling. Some with many years of dust lingering on the surfaces. This too, looks to be a much loved place. Although Juan has passed away, his family continues to operate the Snow Cap, and based upon the number of regulars we ran into while waiting for our food, quite successfully. We read in our guide book later that Juan was known for his quirky humor and his practical jokes.
We experience this tradition at the merciless hands of one of his sons as we try to order. We ask for a taco, a cheeseburger, fries and shakes and he says no. We say "please" and he responds by saying he'll think about it. He asks if we want mustard and squirts a bottle at us and out pops yellow string. When asked if we want straws, he hands us a bundle of straw (you know, like hay?). It goes on and on... While waiting for our order several more customers wander in and when John goes to squirt the mustard bottle at one particular stylish woman in expensive white pants she jumps back and screams. Loudly. It was hilarious. When our food is ready he yells, "oh, sisters..." in a falsetto sing song voice. We didn't really get asked if we were sisters until we got to the southwest. Either people are more nosy out here or more friendly or a combination of both. I didn't mind. We do look freakishly alike these days.
Oh! While waiting for our food we had nothing to do but look at all the stuff taped to the walls and tucked away almost out of sight, I find this little gem. Holla, Blue Hens! I also found a business card from North East, MD. There were patches from many Police Departments, including Maryland. Way to represent, East Coast!
John was a cool guy and was very well liked by all the regulars. He knew each of their names and asked about their families. I was beginning to like him more and more with each passing minute. I also love him for attaching this sign on the side of the buildingJohn and "the women" (that's what he calls the ladies who help in the kitc
hen) had packed our food to go since it was too cold to eat outside and we really wanted to get on the road. When Katie gets her burger out of the bag, there are holes punched into the Styrofoam container in the shape of a smiley face. When she opens it up, she spies a smiley face tot tucked in amongst her fries. I could tell she had grown a little tired of some of John's antics while we were waiting for our food, but the tot put a smile back on her face.I don't know how the burger was, but man the taco was fantastic. One of the best parts of being in the southwest for me was the food. If you ever get to the Snow Cap, just know the red chili sauce is HOT. Yum.
Before we leave I mosey on over to the back yard of the Snow Cap which is filled with all manner of vintage automobiles. Most of them had eyes, so they looked like they belong in Cars. I have it on good authority that the producers of Cars interviewed Angel and it's featured on the DVD.
It's easy to see why Seligman and other small towns inspired the fictional town of Radiator Springs. The ghost towns were very sad. It's like their abandoned buildings and automobiles are waiting for the glory days to come again. Speaking of cars, we've seen more vintage automobiles on this trip than in our whole lives. Ramone, Flo, Doc, Sheriff, Fillmore, Red and of course, Mater have all been hanging around one part of 66 or another as we pass on through.
Cars from the Snow Cap
That building above was either in Oklahoma or Texas (I'll have to check on that and get back to you). It used to be a garage and motel and now has been fully restored and I believe is used a local government building. Just about every town and landmark claims to have inspired Cars, but this one I can really believe. Doesn't it look like Luigi and Guido are going to come roaring out of the garage to sell you some tires??
Sorry for all the Cars tangents. I love me some Lightening McQueen.
Okay, so this post is getting epic. I'll save the Hoover Dam and Vegas for next time!
Thanks for reading!
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