Nomadic - Bucket List

Growing up, I was fortunate enough to have parents that not only moved us around to a few different places, but understood the benefit of and appreciated traveling. I cannot say how thankful I am for that, today. From NASA Space Centers, to Hemingway's house, we had some really awesome experiences. My brother Adam and I were the youngest of 8 kids, and got to go on quite a few trips where it was just the two of us with our parents (sorry other 6 siblings). One thing I loved is that if the city we were in had a Ripley's Believe It or Not, we went! I think we'd been to at least four or so. I remember when we went to Key West, Florida and all I wanted to do was go on one of the ghost tours. I remember thinking Key West was amazing, and unlike any other place I'd been at that time. I also remember going to several different restaurants- my mom on a mission to find the perfect piece of key lime pie. We stayed on beautiful Marco Island and I remember marveling at the white sand and perfectly blue waters. We took that trip when I was in third grade, I believe. I came back with a shirt that had a smiley face with dreadlocks, and it said "Smile, Mon". :)

Anyway...

This year while recounting all the states I've been to, and with the thought of how cool it'd be to see all fifty states by the time I'm fifty, I realized that if I started now (at 28) and go to one state a year that I haven't been to, I CAN SEE ALL FIFTY BY THE TIME I'M FIFTY! It works perfectly! So, I have about three months to see a new state because I'll be 29 in June but you better bet it's going to happen!

Ladies and Gentlemen, Start Your Engines!

We stumbled upon these bodies, half submerged in dirt, and my first thought was, "What a way to decorate the fence line." We parked the truck, stepped out into the December air, and jumped the ditch to get closer to these modes of transportation that have seen better days. The click, click of my camera made me think of the thump, thump of heartbeats that may have belonged to two people sharing their first kiss in the front seat- the thump, thump of a driver's excitement, while leaving burnout marks on the street. It could have been someone's first car, last car; it could have been someone's give it all their blood, sweat, and tears car. 

The possibilities seem endless, when there's no one left to tell the tale. 

Mysteries exist on old dirt roads, some that don't even have a name anymore. When we travel them they are kept alive, though the dust covers any sign of our footsteps.

I love finding unexpected treasures as we drive the dirt roads surrounding our town, as we drift between Kansas and Oklahoma. The picture below was taken in Ashton, Kansas.

New Mexico Part Two - Ghost Towns

After visiting the cliff dwellings, we began our long drive home. The already long drive was made even longer by all the stops we made, but who's complaining?  Most of the time I was the only one getting out of the car and I would end up jogging at times to get the shots I wanted. Josh and the girls would trail me in the car. 

The first stop on our trip home was Clines Corner. What has been deemed New Mexico's largest gift shop really is something to see! It's huge! We all picked out some mementos, which was no easy task, and grabbed some snacks. Then on the road again! Next stop, Cuervo.

Cuervo, New Mexico was established in 1901. With the railroad, and later cattle business, the town did well until the interstate literally cut it in half. The roads were rough here, so I went on foot and I might have felt like tomb raider a little bit as I was looking for snakes among the brush.

I adore this little, yellow house.

Catholic Church in Cuervo. 

Interesting decorations in Cuervo.

A house in Cuervo.

Tucumcari - What an awesome place to drive through. One of my favorite things about the Route 66 trip is how these towns have embraced this part of their history. Well, the towns that are still actually "towns". Rolling through Tucumcari was heaven to me- I love the roadside motels and all the brightly colored signs. I wish we could have spent a whole day there but when you're doing it in a weekend, and live about half a days drive away, you don't have too many choices. ;) We may just have to plan a trip back. Someday I hope to be able to do the Route 66 trip, in it's entirety. Tucumcari was also formed in 1901, though it didn't get the name Tucumcari until 1908. I read that the name Tucumcari came from a nearby mountain, with the same name. The story behind how the mountain got it's name is not entirely clear.

My favorite image captured in Tucumcari.

In Glenrio, we met a German couple, who had been traveling the ENTIRE Route 66 road trip. It was the husband's second time. It was awesome visiting with them for a little bit and they gave us some ideas of places to stop and eat sometime. Glenrio is on the border of New Mexico and Texas and was founded a few years after the railroad was established in the area.

Of course we couldn't make this trip without stopping at the Cadillac Ranch, just outside of Amarillo. Let me tell you- these cars have so many layers of spray paint on them, they seem like they are solid rubber. We didn't have any spray paint, but some people handed us their can as they were leaving and we were arriving. We left our mark, which probably lasted MAYBE an hour before they were undoubtedly covered up. They were quite a few people there when we stopped, and it was a BRIGHT and HOT day.

My terrible attempt at a paisley design. I am not talented with the medium of spray paint....

Conway, Texas- Our next stop after we left Amarillo was Conway. The treasures we found there were totally unexpected. There was a Cadillac Ranch type display with VW BUGS! I loved it. I later found out that it's been dubbed Slug Bug Ranch.

Texola, Oklahoma- Also formed in the early 1900's. On the border of Texas and Oklahoma.

This was one of my FAVORITE trips, recently, and I can't wait to go back. I'm sure we will at some point, but there is A LOT out there to see.