Day 32 (October 2, 2019) - More Magnolia

Waco to Hope, Arkansas

My itinerary for today included staying in Waco through lunch because, well, it is the Mecca of home design and who could possibly do that in just a couple of hours yesterday.  I'm really glad we did it, though, despite temperatures of 97 degrees in the afternoon.

Our first stop of the day was the third piece of the Gaines' empire - Magnolia Table.  This is a breakfast and lunch restaurant close to Baylor University.  It is known for its wait times due to popular demand.  We arrived at the perfect time and waited less than five minutes before being seated.  As with their store, the business was impeccably run and focused on the customer.  It was a large restaurant with several rooms and some big community tables.  The Gaines bought a historic (closed, I think) restaurant and completely transformed it.  I didn't want to be obnoxious and take pictures of the interior but did get some of the exterior.

Day 31 (October 1, 2019) - The Mecca of Home Design

Amarillo to Waco

I can't think of a more miserable day of driving than the one I had today.  I've had bad experiences - snow storms, rain, etc. for short periods.  But today was almost the whole day.  The wind I talked about yesterday howled all night and was still blowing this morning.  And it had stormed overnight with residual drizzle holding on.  Adding to the stress was Susan's demands to vacate the hotel by 8 AM due to an impending fire alarm test.  I got the look at 7:59 along with a "You have 1 minute."

The wind along the way was relentless.  Looking at the map above, I was mostly moving east.  Based on the wind farms I saw, the wind was coming from the south or southwest.  I had to deal with cross-winds almost the entire trip.  That meant that every time I passed an obstacle on my right, I was impacted.  As I first entered the obstacle's "zone", it shielded the wind and my normal rightward steering (into the wind) pulled me toward the obstacle.  So I straightened my wheels to adjust.  But then when I left the gravitational pull of the obstacle, the wind hit me full force and pushed me left.  This happened for every obstacle, including concrete barriers (especially on bridges) and big rigs.  It was particularly challenging to pass them with a 75 MPH speed limit.  Even I had to throttle back.  I set the cruise control at 73.

We also passed several more wind farms.  They were not as big as the 36-mile one we saw yesterday, but there were a couple about 10 miles in length.  I took one long-distance photo from a rest area.

It is becoming obvious that this trip home will be about getting there without delay.  There is no time nor patience to randomly stop for photos.  I saw some good opportunities but kept on truckin'.

As I said, the wind never quit.  Part of that is the flatness and lack of trees.  It may make for easy farming but it also makes it ideal for wind farms.  It was flat as far as one's eyes could see.  Except for the rare occasion when a large mound would show up.  It was kind of weird.

But it was grueling to drive through the wind.  By the time I got to Fort Worth, I was worn out.  Finally, there were buildings and other structures to break the wind.  Plus it was coming in a different direction relative to where I was heading as I had turned more to the south.  But traffic was heavy ... and fast.  Have I mentioned how Susan dislikes urban interstate speeds?  She wasn't happy.  But we made it to Waco in one piece, if not mentally weakened.

Arriving in Waco didn't end the driving fiasco.  I-35 runs through the center of town and the GPS believed that I-35 must be traveled no matter where I wanted to go.  That would ordinarily be OK except that I-35 was in complete disarray due to construction.  Some exit and entrance ramps were completely closed and others were moved.  If I hear "Route Recalculation" one more time, I might tear the car apart looking for the voice behind the announcement.

One may wonder why we were so far south of our most efficient route to home.  Travel efficiency holds no candle to the lure of Magnolia Farms and their empire.  That's why.  For those who don't know, Magnolia Farms is the enterprise owned by Joanna and Chip Gaines of "Fixer Upper" fame on HGTV.  It is likely Susan's all-time favorite TV show.  The Gaines now have 3 public businesses in Waco.  The main one is a retail store selling decorating stuff and is located at Magnolia Market - The Silos.  After checking in at our Hampton north of the city, we plowed ahead to the store.

Day 30 (September 30, 2019) - Winds

Santa Fe to Amarillo

The day started great, with typical fantastic weather and some time to explore stores in Santa Fe that were closed yesterday (a Sunday).

La Fonda

Day 29 (September 29, 2019) Santa Fe

Santa Fe

We had a really short drive today.  We had to go all of 15 miles.  We wanted to stay in La Fonda, a historic hotel located on the famous plaza and in the middle of the historic district.  Its price for Saturday was ridiculous so we stayed at resort just north of town.  Sunday's rate was much more reasonable.  We wanted to stay there because it was the hotel in which we stayed in Santa Fe many years ago.  It is also a first-class place.  I know that contradicts my previous statement that "historic" means "rustic".  La Fonda is upscale in every aspect.

The drive to our hotel yesterday and the drive into town today showed us how much Santa Fe had changed since we were last here.  Controlled-access 8 lane roads had replaced open-access 4 lane roads.  Casino after casino flourished whereas previously there were only a couple.  Supporting businesses were still building up the suburban area.

With that in mind, we didn't know what to expect when we got downtown.  We were amazed at the lack of change.  Nearly all of the same retail stores were there and in the same places.  The hotels were all in place, although one was under renovation.  It was like stepping back in time 20 years.  But I guess that is what historic districts are all about.  The one thing that didn't stay the same was prices.  Silver and turquoise jewelry was expensive and every shop on or near the plaza was outrageously expensive.  Susan concluded early on that she wouldn't find anything in that area.

The Plaza

Another thing that didn't change was the Indian Market.  Native Americans line one side of the plaza selling their jewelry displayed on the sidewalk.  It is very nice stuff and a good opportunity to interact with the artisans.

Indian Market

We spent the day walking around Santa Fe, visiting some old places and trying some new ones.  We had lunch at a French Bakery in La Fonda where Susan had a raspberry crepe she had been dreaming about for months.  The restaurant was exactly as it was 20 years ago.  The middle of the afternoon found us visiting a cidery on a balcony just off the plaza.  That was new.  We went to dinner at another favorite, the Pink Adobe, for another of Susan's anticipated meals.  On the way back to the hotel, I snapped a few pictures of chiles and some art at our favorite gallery.

After a long day of walking, we retired to our hotel for a well-deserved sleep.

Susan’s quote of the day:  “It's a great place to visit, but I'm glad we don't live here."  Santa Fe was one of the areas we considered for retirement.  I completely agree with her assessment.

The highlights - Santa Fe and the French Bakery.
The regrets - None.

Today's total miles - 25
Today's direct miles from hotel to hotel - 14
Today's miles on side trips - 11
Today's miles driven by Paul - 25
Today's miles driven by Susan - 0
Today's hours in car - 0.5
Total Miles Hiked - 3.0

Cumulative total miles - 7,480
Cumulative direct miles from hotel to hotel - 4,058
Cumulative miles on side trips - 3,422
Cumulative miles driven by Paul - 6,498
Cumulative miles driven by Susan - 587
Cumulative hours in car - 156
Cumulative Miles Hiked - 51.8

Day 28 (September 28, 2019) - Susan Under Attack

Moab to Santa Fe via Mesa Verde

Thunder roared through the Moab valley last night.  It took 2 thunderclaps before I recognized it.  Then it was gone. It did leave a little rain.  We should have taken that as an omen for today. 

It was time to start home.  Susan was ready.  It is too bad she had to experience her worst day of the trip today.  However, the day began with a brilliant sunrise after the air was cleansed from the rain.

We wanted to make a few stops on the way home.  The first was Santa Fe.  It has been one of our favorite places to visit over the years.  But we hadn't been there for 15-20 years so we were looking forward to it.  One potential route to Santa Fe took us past Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado.  It also took us through a couple of different climates  We started in the high desert of Utah with the typical scrub grass and sage bushes.  Then we gradually climbed to a higher plateau in Colorado - nearly 3,000 feet higher.  There was water, plenty of green, and farms.  What a welcome sight!

It was relatively flat until we reached the Mesa Verde area.  Mesa Verde has a plethora of ancient cliff-dwellings scattered throughout a canyon high in the mountains.  We had visited a much smaller version of similar cliff dwellings near Santa Fe in the past.  So we had no intent to actually tour them in Mesa Verde.  That was a good thing because all the tours were sold out.  My plan was to drive through the park, stop at opportune photo ops, and get out of the park in an hour.  No possible chance that was happening though.

As I said, the dwellings are high in the mountains.  The drive from the entrance gate was over 20 miles long to the dwellings.  Let me emphasize "high in the mountains"?  You know what that means - switchbacks and looking over sheer drops with only guardrails or less to stop an errant driver.  Susan was terrified.  I think she was even more terrified than on the Road to the Sun just because there was little relief for so long a drive.  So the attacks on her fears started early and they were (unintentionally) directed by me.

But she loves history and we both enjoyed looking at the dwellings from afar.

Cliff Palace

Day 27 (September 27, 2019) - The Penultimate Day

Nits and Nats

Tomorrow is the day we head toward home.  We have some planned stops along the way so it isn't a direct trip, but we are started eastward.  That means today was the last chance to ensure we saw everything we wanted to see.  Within reason.  Obviously, we couldn't get to Glacier to see a fog-less Road to the Sun.  Besides, they are getting blasted with snow.  So today was about seeing the last nits and nats ... and celebrating Susan's birthday.

The morning started great with John cooking up a breakfast from eggs and leftovers.  Then Susan and I headed off for our adventures, John and Marcia went to hike to Corona Arch and Lonnie chilled until his big event in the afternoon.

Susan and I went to the Matheson Wetlands Preserve to look for birds.  We saw one bird and one unknown mammal.  It is apparently the wrong season for birding in Moab.  But it was a nice walk in a park-like setting.

We then left for Dead Horse Point State Park.  Our only prior visit was the sunset and star party.  We wanted to see it in full daylight.  It was worth the trip.  The lighting in the canyon was outstanding.

Dead Horse Point

I also caught a good view of the LaSal Mountains that make up Moab's eastern flank.

LaSal Mountains

Day 26 (September 26, 2019) Trail Riding

RZRing

My expectations for this trip included a lot of driving, a modicum of hiking, maybe falling down a mountain, etc.  One thing I did not expect was to have my innards shaken up like a mixmaster just for the fun of it.  But that was what we voluntarily chose to do today.  We rented a RZR - an ATV with the seeming capability to climb a cliff and not fall off.  It was a theory we tested anyhow.  Here is our RZR with Susan missing because she is the photographer.

We first challenged the slickrock trails of Sand Flats Recreation Area.  The rocks were sometimes smooth and other times straight up (or down).  They were often broken into large pieces that made for severe bumping or leans.  There was no way to capture the tough areas on camera as I was doing everything to save my extremities from being slammed into hard parts of the RZR's structure.  We did stop a couple of times and got a couple of photos.