May 29, 2018

THE HISTORIC RIO PUERCO BRIDGE ON ROUTE 66 IN New Mexico

Take a backroads trip on one section of the “Mother Road”- Old Route 66 and see the historic Rio Puerco Bridge in New Mexico.   The Federal Government funded the Historic Rio Puerco Bridge on Route 66 in New Mexico in 1933 as part of President Roosevelt’s effort to use emergency monies for highway construction. Completed within a year, the bridge opened the Laguna Cutoff to transcontinental traffic. In 1937, the alignment officially became U.S. Route 66.   The Kansas City Structural Steel Company conceived the structure, and F.D. Shufflebarger was in charge of constructing the bridge. The Rio Puerco Bridge has a 250 foot long span and is one…

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written by Stuart - Posted in 2018, Blog, New Mexico, Road Trips, Travel, Trip Planning

May 28, 2018

TAKE A BACKROADS TRIP: SAN AUGUSTINE, TEXAS

San Augustine, Texas along backroads   San Augustine, Texas is in the Deep East Texas Pineywoods. There, we ate at the Heart of Texas Grill, located in an historic bank building at 102 East Columbia Street with mosiac tile floors and great American food.  

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written by Stuart - Posted in 2018, Blog, Texas, Travel, Video

May 28, 2018

HOW TO USE THE TROLLEY SYSTEM in New Orleans

Clang, clang, clang! How to use the trolleys in New Orleans is simple! Getting around New Orleans is a breeze! We recommend parking your car at your hotel and taking the trolley or public bus everywhere. There are six trolley lines: St. Charles, Canal Street and the Riverfront are the main lines-each of which begins downtown but goes to different parts of the city.     Fares are $1.25 but for $3.00 you can purchase an all-day pass for any trolley or public bus. What a great deal!! Purchase the pass as you board your first trolley. Seniors can buy tickets for individual trolley rides for 40 cents each. Note that…

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written by Stuart - Posted in 2018, Blog, Louisiana, Travel

May 28, 2018

THE OLD WEST: FORT SCOTT, KANSAS NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE

Park Rangers are so cool! Meet one of our favorite Rangers and take a backroads trip to the Fort Scott, Kansas National Historic Site. You will learn about frontier fort life. Named for General Winfield Scott, who never even stepped foot in the state, Fort Scott is located on the border of what was a pro-slavery state and a free state as well as settled America and what was known as “Indian territory.” Mention of dragoons can set imaginations on fire. So, naturally, we had to visit!   The site preserves 20 historic structures, eleven of which are original buildings. Fort Scott is furnished to the 1840s era but the history here…

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written by Stuart - Posted in 2018, Blog, Kansas, Travel, Video

May 28, 2018

WHERE TO STAY AT THE GRAND CANYON & IN PAGE, AZ

As oldies, we were looking for warm hiking and photography weather when visiting the Grand Canyon and Page, Arizona.  It was important to us to arrive before summer vacation crowds so we planned our trip for April and early May. But, where to stay?   Our best advice is to start planning early!   OUR LODGING PRIORITIES   Our first priority was finding a place to stay while at the Grand Canyon. Since we want to follow whatever roads interest us, we only made hotel reservations in three high traffic locations for our cross-country road trip-Grand Canyon; Page, Arizona; and New Orleans.   Trip Advisor and Expedia are  our go-to resources for…

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written by Stuart - Posted in 2018, Arizona, Blog, Trip Planning