Part Three: And we walked off to look for America
Fourteen states in Fifteen days, in the middle (is it even the middle? Is still the begining? Or are we near the end? How long will this freaking thing last???) of the Great Pandemic of 2020. Were we brave, crazy, irresponsible or just explorers? Who knows? We weren't sure, but we were absolutely sure it was time to see what was out there.
Interstate highway 40 - our home for the next four days
We set off, unaware of what would lie ahead, pandemic pioneers fueled by fear, excitement, Twizzlers and Diet Coke. There are many routes that traverse the continental United States, but interstate highway 40 was the most direct route from point A (Southern California) to point B (The Great Smoky Mountains in Townsend, TN). We planned a trip that would divide the driving into four days of between 8-12 hours per day. Not ideal when you are traveling with kids, but we wanted to spend as little time stopping as possible to reduce our risk of exposure to Covid.
We booked hotel rooms in Flagstaff Arizona, Elk City Oklahoma, and Franklin Tennessee (just outside Nashville), with our ultimate destination of The Dancing Bear Lodge in Townsend. We'd spend three nights at Dancing Bear in a cabin, resting up and playing in the mountains after our arduous journey, then head to Knoxville to get down to the business of seeing if we could make a move there. At this point, we had no return date in mind and no accommodations booked for our trip home.
Day 1: Thousand Oaks, CA to Flagstaff, AZ (500 miles)
We should have left earlier. This was the mantra of our entire trip. No matter how prepared we thought we were the night before we started the journey, it took us hours to pack the car, drop the pets at boarding, get our last few supplies, eat something, gas up and get out. It was about 2 pm when we finally got on the freeway. Not a great start. It would be about 9 hours to get to Flagstaff, when you add in gas, food and rest stops, so we knew we'd be pulling in well past dark. And we were traveling against the time zones, so we'd be arriving an hour later than planned at every stop.
The drive across Southern California was much as expected. Rolling hills and green trees turned into stony mountains and then a desert dotted with Joshua trees. Car dealerships and shopping centers became truck stops and roadside stands. The temperature climbed 20 degrees as we rolled through Barstow then pulled into Needles, CA for a gas stop, even though the sun was already low in the sky. We stopped in Kingman, AZ for a drive-through dinner (Panda Express, at least they have vegetables!) and ate it in our car in the parking lot. The restaurant was across the street from a medical center, and the frequent sound of ambulance sirens pierced the otherwise quiet evening air. We had a few experiences like this that were a reminder that we were not on a normal road trip. Not even close. It was sobering.
We found a great hotel in Flagstaff, The Little America. You might wonder how to choose or even find a hotel right now. We did a ton of research online and found that most hotels, if even open, are implementing enhanced cleaning and safety protocols and operating at reduced capacity. We also learned that some hotels are hosting first responders, and those are noted with a heart emoji on Google. While I sincerely applaud their hospitality to the essential frontline healthcare workers, and am so grateful that these brave souls have a safe place to rest, we chose to avoid those properties as to limit our exposure to the virus in the lobby, elevators, etc.
The beautiful lobby at Little America - photo courtesy of Little America
So back to The Little America. This hotel was recently renovated and it shows in every detail. The rooms were spacious and incredibly clean. The decor was upscale southwest and everything was lovely and comfortable. The best part was that there were several separate buildings there with stair access to the second floor, so we were able to avoid elevators entirely. We arrived around midnight and slept soundly until the morning.
When we left the hotel in the morning, we hopped on route 66 for a bit and saw the towns that served as inspiration for the Cars movies. We drove past a corner in Winslow, AZ (no girls in flatbed Fords to speak of), and headed back on HWY 40 into the Arizona desert.
Our plan was to travel to Elk City, Oklahoma for the night. Unfortunately, the day didn't go as planned and we spent the next 15 hours in the car. On the bright side, we now know it is possible to drive from Flagstaff to Oklahoma City in just one day if you really try. Not that I'd recommend it, but it can be done. Just bring plenty of Twizzlers and Diet Coke.
Coming in part four - Albuquerque, Amarillo and Oklahoma City!
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