(Reversing direction*) Adrian TX to Amarillo: 46.0 miles
*The overnight forecast in El Reno, our Day 3 stopping point, was for stormy, rainy weather for at least the next several days, perhaps 5 of them, as a major front was rolling in from New Mexico heading due east across the Texas panhandle and all of Oklahoma. The next morning, as we were facing continuing west from El Reno, we had (actually Corky had) a brilliant idea: let’s drive our bikes to our Leg 4 end point, Adrian TX (about 20 miles from New Mexico), in the stormy rain, and get on the other side of the major front. Then we can complete the entire Leg 4 by biking east behind all the fronts, ending (again) at El Reno, so that we made the Leg complete. And so we did. So for the remaining five days we were heading east. There were strong winds for all the days but it was either on our right shoulder, coming from the south, or somewhat forward of our shoulder, meaning a partial headwind. (Our Day 3 riding did have some nice tailwinds–but those moments ended then).
So we mounted up our bikes and ‘rode:’
Below is the view of our 280 mile drive from El Reno OK west to Adrian TX. It was continuous messy, windy rain that would have pummeled us into abject misery for 4 or 5 days (but brilliantly avoided by the drive with, ahem, heated seats and hot coffee).
Adrian TX is Route 66 famous because it claims to be the halfway point between Chicago’s Buckingham Fountain and Santa Monica’s Pier. For us, it is well over halfway because of diversion onto the KATY Trail through Missouri, and other adventures. So we start our Day 4 going back from the official halfway mark.
Looking south across R66, there is a little ‘midway’ memorial, with windmills in the background, both real and symbolic. (More on the windmills of West Texas below):
Across R66, like a starting / finishing line, is the “MidPoint” line. All this was done by the very friendly, supportive owner of the R66 Midway cafe / shop just on the south side of the road.
As one heads east from Adrian, one is surrounded on all sides, as far as the eye can see, power windmills. There is a rich irony here as the commercial transformation of Oklahoma and Texas in the 19th and especially the 20th Centuries, was because of the oil below the ground. Now as the world is awash with fossil fuels, partially fed by natural gas from fracking, there is an economic interest in wind power, perhaps solely because of certain tax incentives. We shall see what’s for real. You have to look closely at all these pictures to see the endless sea of windmills.
The below picture is a “panorama” mode on an iPhone, taken to show the horizon-to-horizon sweep of windmills (see in the distance):
Old R66 parallels I-40 (effectively new R66) through essentially all of TX and western OK. It is a little noisy, but interesting, and almost totally traffic free enabling side-by-side riding.
It was very windy riding from Adrian to Amarillo, perhaps 20 mph on average, from the south. And because it was a little cold, it created a burning feeling in my ear, hence the improvised use of a breakfast napkin. (That thing that appears to be coming out of the top of my helmet like a beanie of some kind is the flag at the rear of the bike).
Another important Texas ‘crop,’ going back to the 19th Century and before, is cattle raising. On the, ahem, windward side of our ride was various feedlots with thousands upon thousands of cattle. It’s an earthy rural sensation to have that air waft over you at 20 mph.
Just west of Amarillo is a famous local landmark, the Cadillac Ranch. This ‘crop’ is old Caddies half buried in the Texas clay, seen here in the distance.
Visitors are invited, it appears, to decorate / re-decorate them according to their best Muppets Movie imagination using spray paint cans, including many left littered on the ground. The paint may be the only thing hold some parts of these old cars together.
Just east of the Cadillac ranch is a similarly themed RV park, but not for painting self-expression.
Day 5 here: