Shamrock, Texas
November 22, 2024
Long days of driving make it hard for me to update my blog each day. Hopefully I’ll catch up when I have some time in Atlanta. I’ve done my best to drive US 66. Sometimes it’s hard to figure out where it is as confirmed by folks I spoke with in Adrian, Texas yesterday (the midpoint of the highway). Texas does a pretty awful job of road signs for US 66 — New Mexico and Arizona do a better job and California is closer to good than Texas bad.
Not only am I driving more than four hours/200 miles per day, I am sometimes driving Interstate 40. In part it’s because I can’t find ROUTE 66. In some cases it is because I 40 is Route 66. Other times it’s to avoid driving through cities like Amarillo and Albuquerque. My other excuse is sometimes I just need to make time.
Last night I stayed in a Motel 6 for the first time in my life. Not bad, and the price was right at $61 including tax. Clerk could not figure out how to give me the old man discount so I paid the young person’s price.
Shamrock — a town with a lot of love but that time has passed by. It has the “luxury” of being the crossroads of I40, Route 66 and US 83 (a major north south route). That means there’s a new Holiday Inn Express and a new Sleep Inn as well as a lot of mom & pop old hotels from the 60s. As well as a lot of empty store fronts and signs that have weathered over the years.
On hotels, I’ve lost the drive to sleep in the truck. Arizona and New Mexico were too cold at night (below freezing). I hate saying “too cold” because I have spent a hundred nights in colder temperatures. I just don’t feel like doing that now. Pisses me off to waste money on a hotel room but I have slept ok and a long hot shower is nice.
Comments