June 18, 2015 – Leaving Albuquerque, we continued on I-40 West toward Arizona. We were impressed by the bridges of Albuquerque … in fact, we were impressed by everything in Albuquerque.
11:28 … Adobe buildings
11:30 … already leaving civilization, it seems
11:54 … Here there are choppy, rocky hills with stones strewn in all directions.
11:47 … Signs let us know that this section of I-40 (and Route 66) has been designated part of the Purple Heart Trail established in 1992 to cross all of the states, as well as Puerto Rico and Guam. It is a symbolic trail to honor all those who have been wounded or killed in combat while serving in the U.S. Armed Forces.
12:04 … We pass highlands or mesas … notice the bands of different color
12:18 …. Whose is that face peeking over the horizon? We see it for miles.
12:32 … What is that black stuff below? It’s lava!! We were passing El Malpais National Park where there are caves and lava tubes. Maybe next time.
1:24 pm Passing more mesas near Prewitt, NM
1:35 … A Native American Trading Post at a rest area. We would have stopped but could not figure out how to get there with our motorhome since it was off the main truck area.
1:36
1:51 pm … the outline of the mountains has a musical quality here, don’t you think?
2:00 … On the left is the mountain I am calling Red Rock and on the right the more famous Church Rock of Red Rock Park near Gallup, NM.
2:05 … Fire Rock Casino, in Red Rock Park. It is named for sulfur rocks that burn. It first opened in 2008 as one of the first casinos in the Navajo Nation.
2:07 pm … Notice how the hills are changing from red to black rock.
2:22
Crossing into Arizona. The elevation in this area is over 7,000 feet
2:30
2:33 Fort Courage. The Fort (or parts of it) is on both sides of the Arizona-New Mexico border.
2:36
Chaparral Trading Post
2:55 … A lone windmill
3:09 … Sand dunes? desolation as far as the eye can see
3:10
3:18 … What is this thing passing us? OMG … must be the motorcycle version of a motorhome
3:21 … Little House on the Prairie … or on the desert maybe
3:23 … It’s obvious we are approaching the Petrified Forest
3:28 … It seems we still have a way to go to reach civilization, however.
3:29
3:35 … Dinosaurs? What kind of Travel Plaza has dinosaurs? A time travel plaza perhaps?
Getting closer to our Holbrook KOA campground, we stopped at a Route 66 restaurant. Bicycles and old tools hanging from the ceiling; a covered wagon out front; old style street lights.
