Barbara & I are driving over historic Rt 66 from just northeast of Tulsa & continuing through Amarillo on our trip. I would like some tips on RR bridges & other stuff to see especially between Tulsa & OK city. We are interested in Will Rogers museums too.
Rt 66 (I40) is fairly boring like all interstates. If you have time try something refreshing and unique. Take the Cimmaron Turnpike to Enid from Tulsa. Then the 412 to Woodward, some county roads to Shattuck, and 60 to Canadian, Pampa and Amarillo. This is by far one of the most beautiful, and rewarding drives in Oklahoma and panhandle of Texas. And there are plenty of closeup views of the BNSF (xATSF) from Woodward west !! You have the road to yourself here.
Tom
Bob,
I experienced a little bit of 66 when I went to the Grand Canyon last year. Alas, I only managed to turn my camera towards the transcon line once and that was early morning in Gallup, NM:
Technically, its a pretty junky shot, but it’s the only one I managed to get of the line so I went ahead and post-processed it.
I will say that if I have time again in the future, I’d love to spend a lot more time investigating 66 and the ATSF transcon. I think it would be a really fun trip.
By the bye, I’ll pass along some information that Carl passed on to me:
“When you get to Gallup, be sure and visit the Plaza for breakfast. It’s on the side of 66 opposite the tracks, some distance west of downtown. It looks like a couple of house-trailers cobbled together, but Pat and I both promise that you won’t be disappointed by the food or the interior decor. The french toast is the dish to order, if you’re up to it–a half-order will do ya!”
I completely concur with Carl on the recommendation, so if you find yourself in Gallup looking for a really good breakfast, be sure to find the Plaza!
[#oops] Just noticed that you were only making it as far west as Amarillo, Bob. Sorry for the [#offtopic] info…
Chris, when you go off topic, you certainly do it in a visually pleasing way!
Bob, do you have the April 2001 Trains available? It has a nice article, with a good map, of the TSU and Sand Springs Railways.
Your shot is far from junky, it has some nice lighting and effects with the rails.
Thanks for all the replies. We are going on to the Grand Canyon this year and repeat our triips on the Durango & Silverton and the Verde Valley. We are doing the C&TSRR & the Grand Canyon RR, staying the night at Bright Angel Lodge. I don’t know much about the Rio Grande Scenic out of Alamosa. Is it worth riding?
Chris: When we are in Gallup we will eat breakfast at the Plaza I will try to best your JUNKY pic. LOL
Dale: I don’t have that issue of Trains. Yes we are going to railfan the TSU for sure. I’ll be real lucky to see Sand Springs action. I see NOW that the line between Sapulpa & OK city is the Stillwater Central. More railfanning opportunities than I originally thought.
Tom: Thanks for the tip. I remember going up through Pampa when US 60 was still a gravel road in places. We have a map that shows where portions of 66 are still intact. We travel the interstates very little on our trips. Just love those Mom & Pop cafes.
Barbara has a denim skirt & white blouse with saddle shoes & I’m gonna wear a white T-shirt with a pack of Lucky Strikes tucked up the sleeve. I have a book by Drew Knowles about 66. It’s a fair book, but he has too many pictures of stuff that is not there anymore.
Edit: Pic of SLWC GP7
http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=27769
From the map, it looks like TSU does most of their business in Sapulpa, and the Sand Springs in Sand Springs.
Been wondering the same thing about the Rio Grande Scenic myself was tossing around the idea of flying to Alamosa and riding both the RGS and the C&TS down to Chama spend a couple nights there then ride both back up to Alamosa to fly back home. Sucks the tracks connecting Chama to Durango are gone [V]
All I really know is they have 2 steam engines now and meet the C&TSRR trains out of Antonito in the morning and afternoon and from Alamosa they also go to Monte Vista and La Veta
…On out west farther on route 66, just west of Kingman, Az., is {was}, a very interesting part of the route. We actually did vehicle {trucks}, testing on it many years ago.
Can’t say if the “old” route is still continous or not from Kingman up over the pass and down to near the Colorado River and on down to Topock if one cared to go that way. Can’t remember if that was Union or Sitgreaves Pass. Got them mixed up…One or the other was over on route 68 on the route from Kingman up and over and then down to Bullhead City. {Just looked it up, the last one is Union Pass}.
There are some rough sharp curves with shear “dropoffs” along one side up on the high parts of it. The famous town of Oatman and the location of Goldroad are up along there. Most of the pavement was deteriated by then so much of it was hard dirt surface.
I believe the town of Oatman would still be active…Watch out for the donkeys roaming freely…on the road too…
I mentioned this in another thread, “Route 66” magazine is a great resource. It is a quarterly which I have found at all the major book stores. If the current issue does not have anything of interest for the planned trip, all the back issues are available with a phone call.
Jay
When I think of the places I went when I wasn’t an active railfan…[:(!]
I think I’ve driven Route 66 (or its Interstate highway replacement) almost its full length - and in the 70’s, when portions of the route were still on the Mother Road.
Swerving only slightly off-topic - which television doctor wrote the song “Route 66”? Bonus points if you can name his wife (double points if you can name the television role she played).
Larry: I actually know parts one and two of your trivia. I drove 66 back in 1958 with 3 of my sailor buddies, starting our trip near Springfield IL and all the way to Amboy CA. It was mostly 2 lane back in those days, except near cities. My dad had helped me buy a 1950 flathead Lincoln. Back in those days the people that had travel trailers pulled them with Buicks, Olds & Cadilacs mostly. Of course now it’s mostly pickups. Duh. I shoulda bought Nat King Coles CD for the trip.
Bob,
I’ve ridden the SL&RG twice over La Veta Pass (once behind diesel power and once behind their SP Mogul). They’ve acquired a couple more steamers this year – a pair of LS&I consolidations. One is running this year, and think the other will be running next year. While it’s not quite up to the scenic level of the D&S or C&TS, I still think it’s a very pretty ride.
Running out of Alamosa is kind of flat, but the Sangre de Cristo mountains (including Blanca Peak, the highest of the Sangre’s, IIRC) provide a really nice backdrop. As a bonus, you pass within sight of the old Southern San Luis Valley. If you keep an eye out, you can even see the critter that they built and used (though it’s kind of far from the tracks).
Once you start climbing up La Veta Pass, the route is really scenic. Once you get to Occidental or so, you’ll be able to see the Spanish Peaks. They’re beautiful mountains that dominate the skyline. I’ve hiked West Spanish Peak before, but need to get East Spanish Peak this summer if I get a chance.
Here’s a little flavor of the railroad from my two trips:
(Those are the Spanish Peaks in the Background)
(That’s the SSLV Critter up close)
(This is actually taken at a forgotten crossing of the SSLV, but this shot shows the Sangre de Cristo Range that lies north of the SL&RG route.)
(The SP Mogul takes us around a curve as we climb towards La Veta Pass).
(Either this is a case
Oh, I forgot to add: Thank you everyone for the very kind words about my Gallup shot! I’ve never liked it much because I don’t have enough depth of field to make it work very well. I was shooting in the early morning light with a 300mm f2.8 lens and forgot my tripod back in the camper. Alas, to keep my shutter speed up, I had to shoot wide open. Hence, there’s some softness to the shot.
Still, it’s nice to know that you all liked it! Thanks again!
Chris: Thanks for the info on SL&RG and your pics. I’m going to fit that ride into our schedule. That makes five rides with 4 of them being steam. Not bad for one vacation. Re: Gallup picture, few of us could even make that pic happen in that light. Bravo.
Larry and Bob, I know this one!! The doctor was Bobby Troupe, as Dr. Early, and his wife was Julie London, a.k.a Nurse Dixie McCall, and the show was “Emergency”. My whole family watched that program every week.
Chris - That one is a keeper, for sure. Methinks you could do well with it in the head-to-head photo contests.
In the “post processing” arena, I think I’d be tempted to “PhotoShop” the power transmission towers, but aside from that, I’d be more than happy to hang that on my wall.
Larry, thanks for the kind words. If I ever did print this one, I would probably do a little “photo-chopping” of power lines and towers. Unfortunately, I think it’s a little too soft to make a good picture beyond 5x7. I might have to take a long weekend down towards Gallup this summer some time and try this shot again!
Thanks again!
I’ve got a program that came bundled with something (a cheap camera, maybe?) that includes in its special effects both an “oil paint” and a “water color” effect. Given the softness of the picture, adding such an effect might have an interesting result.