After spending a restless night in Tucumcari, NM (why must hotel A/Cs be so loud 🤔), I was up bright and early and on the road by 8:30. Took a quick spin around the town, as it is on Historic Route 66…but it is definitely past its prime. Not even a cafe! Nothing but dilapidated and abandoned roadside hotels and disintegrating billboards 🙁 So after a McGriddle and OJ, I hit the highway. The real highway.

Running parallel to Interstate 40, but to the south, is Highway 60. It’s actually a very nice route! Two lane, but with a lot of long passing lanes, nice blacktop and zero traffic! I mean, (proper use of) literally no other vehicles for 30 or 40 minutes at a time! It’s 65mph, too, although every little town drops down to 35 😑. But all the neat things are down there! The V.L.A (Very Large Array) of Radio dishes. You can read about it here.

And Pie Town! A town that literally consists of two pie restaurants and a campground! 😍 It was a small kitchen and three family dining tables. The owners, a couple, were extremely friendly and conversed with all of us as we ate. One couple was hiking a well-known trail, having started at the Mexican border 8 days before. Another couple made a Dorothy joke, but I let it slide because he said he was actually from Ozawkie, a town near Topeka! But he had become a snowbird, fleeing to Arizona, forty years earlier 😂 They serve food as well, and I had a homemade chicken pot pie, before my amazing Pear-Ginger dessert! 🍐🍰 Read all about Pie Town here.

After a few more fuel stops, I made it to far east Phoenix about 6:30pm (they’re on Pacific time right now). The sun was setting and I couldn’t see where I was going, so I just exited and found the first decent hotel I could. 😂 Paul will fly in tomorrow night, and we’ll have Friday to explore Phoenix, then a friend’s wedding on Saturday!