Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
ROUTE 66: GET YOUR KICKS IN TEXAS
The Mother Road arrows across Texas for a mere 178 miles. The entire route has been replaced by I-40, but
through frontage and access roads plus detours through towns such as Amarillo, you can re-create most of the old
route.
Given the featureless landscape, one can only imagine the road ennui suffered by scores of travelers as they
motored past the brown expanses. As always, there were plenty of entrepreneurs ready to offer diversions for a
buck or two. Going east to west, here's some Route 66 highlights in Texas.
Follow old Route 66 which runs immediately south of I-40 from the Oklahoma border through barely changed
towns such as
Shamrock
, with its restored 1930s buildings.
About 33 miles from the border, cross I-40 to the north side and the battered town of
McClean
. There, the
Devil's Rope Museum
(
www.barbwiremuseum.com
; 100 Kingsley St;
9am-5pm Mon-Fri, 10am-4pm Sat
Apr-Nov) has vast barbed-wire displays (where hipsters look for new tattoo patterns) and a small but
homey and idiosyncratic room devoted to Route 66. The detailed map of the road in Texas is a must. Also worth a
look are the moving portraits of Dust Bowl damage and the refugees from human-made environmental disaster.
You'll have to join I-40 at exit 132, but just west of here on both sides of the freeway are Route 66-themed rest
stops.
The next sights will appear on the horizon long before the hamlet of
Groom
and Exit 113 appear in your wind-
shield: the famous
Leaning Water Tower
and (one of) the
World's Tallest Cross
. The former was an eye-catch-
ing gimmick by a long-gone gas station; the latter tops out at 190 ft.
At exit 78 leave I-40, which runs just south of Amarillo, and follow SE 3rd Ave and SW 6th Ave through town.
Here you'll find a plethora of Route 66 sites: the Big Texan Steak Ranch (
Click here
), the historic livestock auc-
tion and the San Jacinto District, which still has original Route 66 businesses such as the Golden Light Cafe
(
Click here
)
.
Just west of Amarillo after exit 62, look for the Cadillac Ranch (
Click here
), where 10 road veterans have met a
colorful end.
Use the old highway north of I-40 or exit 36 to reach
Vega
, an old road town that seems little changed in dec-
ades, but which still has some decent cafes. Some 14 miles west,
Adrian
clings to fame as the purported historic
Route 66 midpoint, with LA and Chicago each 1139 miles distant.
Just at the New Mexico border, tiny
Glenrio
makes the moniker 'ghost town' seem lively.
TOP OF CHAPTER
Around Amarillo
The best sights near Amarillo are Palo Duro Canyon and the little towns along Route 66.
But you can also find some natural escapes to the north.
Sights & Activities
Lake Meredith National Recreation Area
PARK
