Radiator Springs

June 10th

There is a big benefit of maxing our speed at 56mph.  The interstate holds no advantage with us!  We are frequently pulling over to follow Radiator Springs.  This is Ivy’s collective name for all of  historic Route 66.   It has been fun letting the kids see, first-hand, the inspiration behind the Disney movie, Cars.  We stopped for a few pictures, bought some snow cones  from a roadside stand in McClean, TX .  Here, in McClean, we met a local resident’s pet squirrel that delighted in doing back flips in a cage any time we came near!  We took  a chance visiting a roadside Zombie Garage, but they only accepted Brains for payment so we decided to move on.  

As we were driving down the road, we found a field full of windmills and watched as a crop duster “pooted” on the fields.  We had to pull over for that one.

 

 

We also found a small town  auto salvage joint and decided to see if they had a part for our camper sink.  Well…that was our story anyway.  Truly, we just wanted to get some pictures with some really awesome 1930s cars that were sitting out there!  Apparently…junk in New Mexico doesn’t rot like it does in Tennessee.  Something about how dry it is.  

 

 

 

As the sun went down, we made our way to our first paid campsite.  Lake Conchas State Park is a really beautiful and quiet place off the beaten path outside Tucumcari, NM.  The lakeside sites were only $10 and provided a beautiful sunset over the mesas.  Today was mostly a long day of driving, but I think we managed to make it an adventure for all of us. 

Survey Says:

What was your favorite part of today:

Tom:  Getting to see a 1930s Cigar truck.

Sara:  Watching a curious pet squirrel do back flips.

Ivy:  The crop duster

Olive: The squirrel in Texas and the frog she caught at our campsite.

Dizzy:  Watching the sun.

 

Our Trip Summed Up: 

Miles Driven:  1,299

Currently in:                        Lake Conchas State Park, NM

Total Spending so far:        Gas:       $403.52 out $1,500 goal

                                                Sleep:  $10 out of a $500 goal

                                                Eat:        $93.60 out of a $600 goal

                                                Other:  $17 out of a $400 goal

                                                Grand Total:  $524.12 out of a $3,000 goal

 Long story short….Looking forward to parking instead of driving…and we have to reign those food bills in!!!