I was traveling south along Nevada route 95 when I wandered into Las Vegas to visit family and to check out Red Rock Canyon Conservation Area.
When I told my uncle of my, intentions, he thought Red Rock Casino where after a great buffet dinner, I toured the casino and discovered a sports bar with eighteen television projectors directed at a wall, combining three giant-screens, with 25 large-screen, and 15 traditional big-screen television monitors.
Yes, I was in awe with the wall bank of televisions which is touted as the largest in the state of Nevada for viewing sports. It also has 213 individual monitors as well, providing me, the ability to watch the games of my choice anywhere on the planet.
Now, I’m not a betting man, but my restraint withered allowing me to place one bet and, of course, the house won.
In the morning I toured the Red Rock Canyon Conservation Area, took the scenic drive, completed a beautifully quiet one-mile hike, and I spent the next two days satisfying my blissful indulgence of sports watching.
When I left sin city, my nomadic winds blew me towards Arizona, while passing up the opportunity to view the Hoover Dam with the sun shining without a cloud in the sky.
Before my current nomadic travels, I enjoyed motorcycle rides across the US to the iconic National Parks and motorcycle rallies.
However, route, 66 never peaked my interest or was on my must-see or to do list. I have known of its existence for years, and a year ago, I saw the route 66 display in the Archway museum in Kearny Nebraska representing the migration of westward travelers.
So, what is Route 66?
It is a 2451 mile two-lane asphalt roadway, constructed in 1926, passing through small towns in eight states from Chicago Illinois to Los Angelos CA.
When the construction of interstates during the 1950’s and 60’s bypassed the small towns like Seligman Arizona which I happened upon, the iconic roadway has endured with bus tours and the people who ride whats left of the iconic road.
Over the years many people have traveled the route, via foot, bicycle, motorcycle, car, and recreational vehicles to recreate a flavor from America’s past.
When I entered the town, I was surprised at the six tour buses along with a couple of dozen Harley Motorcycles ridden by a tour group from Brazil who was riding the Southwest portions of route 66 to capture and recreate their sense of American nostalgia.
The bus tours were French and Dutch citizens and they all took hundreds of photos and bought route-66 logoed t-shirts, magnets, and porcelain trinkets.
As I pulled out of town, with the crowd noise behind me I thought how I sandwiched endless hours of a noisy sports bar with city traffic congestion in between a quiet one-mile hike in the Red Rock Conservation Area and an enjoyable journey to the town of Seligman AZ on the historical route-66.
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