GETTIN' OUR KICKS ON ROUTE 66

“We cannot change the direction of the wind, but we sure can change the direction of our sails.”  Michelle Lorusso

Carol writes:  After spending three long months in San Antonio, we were eager to get back on the road again.  Our summer had been nearly rainless, so it seemed somewhat strange to be leaving on a socked-in rainy day.  As it turned out, we got out of San Antonio  just in time and, thankfully, escaped widespread flooding that occurred over the next several days throughout the state of Texas. 

Driving west against the trade winds, we spent our first night in Abilene,  then on to Clovis, New Mexico, for a last minute check-in with our daughter.  When we got back on the road, we headed toward Albuquerque and hooked up with historic Route 66.  Commissioned in 1926 as a major highway between Chicago and Los Angeles, historic Route 66 quickly became one of the most revered, beloved and sought out roads in America. 

Baby boomers will certainly remember the 1960s popular TV show “Route 66,” with Martin Milner and his Chevy Corvette convertible…  

SKY CITY

Our first stop for the night on Route 66 was at a casino campground at Sky City.  For a well-balanced life, we always like to mix in some vices with the bountiful dose of Nature that we enjoy in our full-time lifestyle.  Typically, I have found that Native American casinos  have “friendly” penny slots…and so it was at Sky City! 

Let’s just say that for two low-stakes penny slot players our evening at Sky City was a very memorable one…

GALLUP, NEW MEXICO

We had covered lot of miles since leaving San Antonio, and now we looked forward to slowing down for a few days in Gallup, New Mexico.

In the Gallup vicinity, we wanted to check out another of our nation’s National Monuments—El Morro.  We had one of those perfect fall days for a hike to the top of 200-ft high El Morro.  

We didn’t do a whole lot of research ahead of time on what there was to see at El Morro, so it came as a pleasant surprise to find that part of El Morro’s historic claim to fame included the archeological remains of an ancient pueblo on top which dated back to 1275.
 

El Morro is also the site of a well-known fresh-water pool

that for centuries was a welcome water source for the pueblo inhabitants and later for Spanish colonizers and American Army explorers who camped for the night and left carvings of their signatures with dated messages along the smooth sandstone walls at the base of the cliff. 

Surprisingly, the precise identity is known of many individuals whose signatures and messages are preserved at El Morro.  The most famous is Don Juan Oñate, founder of the first permanent colony in New Mexico.

The penmanship of some of the signatures and messages carved in stone was extraordinary.

The hike along the hard white rock layer at the top was a lot of fun!

……A picture-perfect day for hiking, remnants of the homes of Ancient Puebloans, historic rock carvings and messages—all made for an interesting discovery at El Morro.

WINDOW ROCK, CAPITAL OF THE NAVAJO NATION

I confess to being an unapologetic fan of Tony Hillerman novels.  His books, which are set in the Four Corners area of Arizona and New Mexico, have a heavy dose of Navajo culture and traditions through the eyes of an endearing set of characters that work for the police department of the Navajo Nation.  Since our campground in Gallup was only a short ride from Window Rock, capital of the Navajo Nation which is featured prominently as the locale in many of Hillerman’s novels, we decided to check it out.  Our first stop was the Window Rock Navajo Tribal Park, where the famous rock window was front and center…

and the role of the Navajo Code Talkers during WW II was proudly memorialized.

Working with WW II military intelligence, the Navajo Code Talkers developed encryption methods and code based on the somewhat obscure Navajo language.  Their code was never broken during the entire war, and they were instrumental in victories throughout the Pacific Theater.

The artwork and historical displays in the nearby Navajo Museum were wonderfully presented.  I learned about the story of Hweeldi’ and it left me deeply saddened.  This tragic historical event recounts the incredibly cruel relocation and enslavement of Navajo people at Fort Sumner, also known as Bosque Redondo.  The 300-mile forced walk and subsequent inhuman enslavement over the next four years resulted in a devastating loss of life for the Navajo.  On a positive note, it was interesting to read of the role of Chief Manuelito in securing the eventual return of the Navajo ancestral lands back to his people.  Now I know why Tony Hillerman used the name ‘Manuelito’ as the last name of his main character Navajo policewoman—he certainly knew his Navajo history.

While in Window Rock, we drove by many of the Navajo Nation administrative offices, including  the police station.  It’s nice to  have a more accurate visual of where Tony Hillerman’s  Jim Chee and Joe Leaphorn work!  Hillerman fans will understand…

HOLBROOK, ARIZONA

It felt good to enter Arizona, our winter home for the next several weeks.  Our first stop was in Holbrook for three days, with the intention of taking a look around our first national park since we left Colorado.  We had visited Petrified Forest National Park many years ago when we were traveling full-time in 1989 with our children.  We both remembered that back then we had only a few hours to look around the park, and then we spent the rest of the day celebrating our son Jason’s 10^th birthday.  We had a family dinner with birthday cake and presents in the trailer, with the incredibly beautiful Painted Desert as our backdrop.  A fond memory… 

 

This time we thought we would take a little more time to look around…

The Petrified Forest is a treasure trove of prehistoric Triassic Period forests which have fossilized into petrified wood over 225 million years.  The National Park itself is a small part of the incredible  Painted Desert which stretches in a huge swath from the Utah border into northern Arizona.

There were lots of stops where visitors could view the Painted Desert, and each pullout was more spectacular than the last.  With the setting sun to our backs, the colors were at their best.

A rusty ’32 Studebaker sat on a section of old Route 66 where it used to pass through the park.  

Neat picture opportunities for sure...








The 26-mile road through the southern part of the park had great opportunities for viewing and hiking through spectacular examples of petrified logs strewn across the landscape.

Agate House trail led to a 7-room pueblo reconstructed of petrified wood.

The Crystal Forest trail had the best examples of crystalized logs.

Puerco Pueblo had ruins of Ancestral Puebloan homes that were occupied in the 13^th century, in addition to an interesting display of ancient petroglyphs.

We were quite pleased with the opportunity to spend a day and a half in Petrified Forest National Park.  It felt good to stretch our legs and do some great hiking through such an incredible landscape.

We sure enjoyed our stops along historic Route 66, but now that the calendar has flipped over to November it is time to head south to lower elevations in the Sedona area for a couple of weeks.  What will it be like to have a winter with no snow?

“Winter is coming.”  George R.R. Martin, A Game of Thrones

GOODBYE, SAN ANTONIO

“What counts is not necessarily the size of the dog in the fight—it’s the size of the fight in the dog.”  Dwight D. Eisenhower

Carol writes:    We are coming up on the end of a 3-month stay in San Antonio.  Several times we have been told by residents here that San Antonio weather is really perfect 9 months of the year.  As fate would have it, our 3-month stay in San Antonio wasn’t included in any part of the delightful 9.  The intense heat with temps over 100 for days on end, accompanied by high humidity, presented a challenge for us former dry-air mountain folk…but the purpose of our visit wasn’t a vacation…

The sole reason for our long stay in San Antonio was to help our daughter get through the initial recovery stages after cartilage transplant surgery on her knee. 

                                                                           







For the first 5 weeks after surgery, we were quite the “cozy” threesome in the RV.  Our “responsible adult” days were filled with the typical chores of a caretaker—meal preparation, laundry, shopping, cleaning, TV entertainment, and transportation.  Megan’s much more difficult day included 8-10 hours each day with her knee in a passive motion machine, mixed in with challenging twice a day rehab at the state-of-the-art “Center for the Intrepid” where she underwent a recovery protocol that was NOT designed for the faint of heart!

This impressive 3-story facility was originally built as an extremity rehabilitation center for the many thousands of wounded warriors that flowed into Fort Sam Houston at the height of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.  The Fort Sam doctors and physical therapists became experts at limb salvage, in addition to the design, training and use of prosthetic limbs.  Even from our nonexpert point of view, it was obvious that the technology of the prosthetics that we saw was quite advanced.  However, what was even more impressive was the bravery and determination exhibited by the many amputees we encountered on a daily basis.

By the end of the 5^th postoperative week, all three of us were ready for more private space…and freedom from the group routine!  Megan had reached the point in her recovery that she was able to function in a room of her own in a hotel across the street from rehab.  With a little smile on my face, I will always remember one of our first steps at normalcy the day after Megan moved to the hotel—a family visit to a Starbucks OUTSIDE the gate.  At that point, small things sure meant a lot!

During one of Megan’s rehab sessions, I was able to take an hour-long  genealogy class in the support center for wounded soldiers and their families, where I got started for the first time on a genealogy history of both sides of my family, mostly through the use of ancestry.com.  I can think of few better ways to get to really know yourself than to take a peak way back into ancestral history.  Later, I will have more to say on that subject, but so far it’s been quite an interesting journey…

In the last few weeks, Megan has reached several important goals in her recovery, and with each achievement has come more opportunity to feel “normal” again.  

Once she was freed from the monotony of most waking hours with her knee in a passive motion machine, she was able to enjoy a night out at the movies with us.  

We saw “The Martian” at a movie/dinner theater.  Neat…they bring you a meal during the movie!  It was an exciting yarn and very thought provoking…

This week the three of us finally got to visit the Alamo--respected and hallowed ground in Texas history. 

And while we were in the neighborhood, we finished up the afternoon with lunch along the River Walk.

As we say goodbye to San Antonio and Fort Sam Houston, we realize that we have so much to be thankful for:

• The ability to come together as a family and find a way to get through a challenging time

• The talented surgeon (and his team of nurses) who performed complex orthopedic surgery on our daughter

• The devoted physical therapists who assisted in state-of-the-art rehab at the Center for the Intrepid

• The campground personnel who “worked” the schedule to accommodate our 3-month stay

• The Warrior & Family Support Center, where we were able to relax in a homey atmosphere, use the computer lab, plus enjoy several catered meals courtesy of local community businesses

• All the folks we encountered in many daily activities at Fort Sam Houston

• And lastly, all the selfless men and women who train in the medical field and serve in every branch of the military at Fort Sam.  The nightly bugle call as the flag was lowered at the end of the day at the hospital reminded us that the long tradition of military medical service to our country is alive and well at Fort Sam Houston.

“Other things may change us, but we start and end with the family.”  Anthony Brandt

HISTORICAL SAN ANTONIO

"If I do my full duty, the rest will take care of itself."  General George S. Patton

Carol writes:  As many Army posts do, Fort Sam Houston has a long and honorable history.  Built in 1876 as a Supply Depot, the walled 8-acre Quadrangle has served as one of the Army’s most important headquarters, making it the focal point of the post’s historic district.

Both General Pershing and General Eisenhower worked out of offices located in the Quadrangle.  Apache war chief Geronimo spent time imprisoned there while a dispute over his status as a prisoner of war was being decided.  On a more whimsical note, for over a century there has been a little menagerie of wild animals that have inhabited its grounds.  To this day, a variety of chickens, deer and peacocks greet Quadrangle visitors.

Best exemplified by the home of the commanding general, the housing for senior officers is some of the most impressive of the historic buildings on old Fort Sam Houston.  Built out of massive blocks of Texas limestone, the grand construction design has stood the test of time.  

The primary mission of present-day Fort Sam Houston is to provide training for the medical personnel of the Army, in addition to some personnel from other services.  Medical specialties of every sort—doctor, nurse, and  combat medic—acquire their education here at Fort Sam Houston.  It has been a common sight for us to see groups of students, large and small, chanting snappy cadence while marching to their daily activities.  As we drove around post doing errands, we often saw small groups gathered for battlefield medicine instruction under a standing of shade trees.

For almost a century, Brooke Army Medical Center (BAMC) on Fort Sam Houston has played a major role in highly advanced medical care for our wounded service men and women.  Present-day BAMC is a massive state-of-the-art teaching hospital and medical treatment facility that looms several stories high just outside the fence of our campground. 

This is where our daughter’s knee surgery took place last week.  Rehab is being done in the nearby “Center For the Intrepid.”  I will have more about that experience in a future blog.

One day while driving around the older part of Fort Sam, we spotted the imposing building that was Old BAMC (built in the 1930s), now home to the U.S. Army South.

To me, the most impressive and eye-pleasing of Fort Sam’s historic buildings was the old Long Barracks.

I had never seen a continuous barracks structure over a block long.  Restoration of this historic barracks from 1887 was quite well done.  You could almost imagine the echo of bootsteps from ages past as soldiers made their way along the outer corridors.

Now…let’s go back three centuries in time to the Spanish colonial days at the…

SAN ANTONIO MISSIONS

In the 1700s Spain established a chain of missions along the San Antonio River.  The secular purpose of the missions was to push the Spanish empire northward out of what is present-day Mexico.  As an arm of the Catholic Church, the religious goal of the missions was to convert the Indians to Christianity.  Under the leadership of Franciscan priests, the missions offered the American Indians an education, a secure place to live, and knowledge of skillful trades.

Surprisingly, although the San Antonio missions are located within the confines of the large city of San Antonio, each retains a tranquil rural setting, making it easy to forget the urban sprawl located just a few blocks away.  All four of the missions that we visited have continued to remain active Catholic parishes. 

MISSION SAN JOSÉ

Deservedly called “Queen of the Missions,” Mission San José is the largest of the missions.  Many daily activities of mission life took place within the protective walled enclosure.   Dominating one end of a very large quadrangle enclosure was a beautifully renovated church.

Lovely, yet simple gardens bloomed along the skeletal walls of the ancient convento residence.

MISSION CONCEPCIÓN

This mission has one of our country’s oldest original stone churches. 

The exterior of the church was once decorated in colorful frescos; recently a few have been uncovered in an interior room.

MISSION SAN JUAN

This mission truly reflects a serene rural setting.  The brilliant white limestone walls serve as a fabulous backdrop for creative photographs from a variety of spectacular angles.

If I was more up on photoshopping skills, I should have removed the speck of an airplane that flew at a most inopportune moment into Al’s photo below .

More than ‘just a simple chapel’ inside…

MISSION ESPADA

Mission descendants continue to worship here, and Franciscans work in the convent.

Elegance in the details…

Lastly, from my perspective…

Recently, the San Antonio Missions acquired “UNESCO World Heritage Site” status. This is indeed a well-deserved honor, acknowledging the fact that the missions themselves were a vital element in the creation of the unique blend of Spanish and Indian lifeways that we treasure today in the state once known as Tejas. 

The hospital on Fort Sam Houston has long served as one of the premier institutions dedicated to the treatment and recovery of the military men and women participating in the defense of the United States.  When our daughter needed a high-tech treatment option, plus extensive rehab, the role of Fort Sam became a very personal one for us.

In light of the role of Fort Sam Houston in modern-day military medicine, along with the role of the missions in forging a unique people and culture in San Antonio, we have given both institutions our designation:  “Best of San Antonio.”

“Never forget the bridge that brought you across.”  Rose Rozier