Took the Fiat on a road trip from Austin to Denver a few weeks ago. These photos are all from my phone and I've finally finished editing most of them. Those of you who follow me on Instagram probably saw some of these.
All packed up
Awesome unpretentious little BBQ place, two hours west of Austin, with some of the best brisket I've ever had. Too bad it was closed
About the only good thing to do in Amarillo is to stop at
The Big Texan, one of the kitschiest and therefore greatest places on Earth. The steak is actually not that impressive, but their homebrewed beers are excellent.
Met this slightly chavvish British guy who was trekking across America with his buddy, and got talked into doing the 72 oz. Steak Challenge. I don't think he made it
It didn't fit.
Cadillac Ranch
LAND OF ENCHANTMENT
We stayed at the Broadmoor Hotel, one of the most opulent and historic hotels in Colorado. Built in 1918 by a Pennsylvanian coal magnate, and an absolutely incredible place.
Our welcoming party
Right before Prohibition, the Broadmoor's founder Spencer Penrose brought in literal trainloads of booze to ride out the scourge of the Eighteenth Amendment. In the ground floor by the lobby is a wall lined with cases of empty booze bottles (leading into the restrooms, which seems apt).
Hiked
Seven Falls. 154 steps up! This part sucked
View from the top
View from the bottom. Lower left is a fancy restaurant. My phone died right after I took this
Denver
Drove to
The Stanley Hotel in Estes Park. This is the main building. GF had stayed in the cabins some years ago with her family, and this time we stayed in said main building.
It was quite a letdown: our room was probably the size of a broom closet, with nothing but a bed and TV in it, and it was brown and drab throughout. They really pushed the Shining references and ghost aspects of the whole thing, including shutting down every historic room so you had to pay for a $25 tour of the place. (Stephen King didn't even write the book here!) Compared to the Broadmoor it was a huge disappointment,
and more expensive.
Two weird Europeans
The front desk
An actual Stanley Steamer (yes, the hotel was built by
those Stanleys)
Estes Park
This crappy gift shop was built into the rock face, kinda cool
Leaving Colorado, somewhere south of Boulder
Weird machinery
Cool train museum
Santa Fe, El Rey Inn. 1930s motel on an old stretch of Route 66 that was beautifully renovated with gardens and courtyards.
Historic diner (since 1948) right next door
Entering the tiny mountain town of Ruidoso, New Mexico, which had been sacrificed to the Fire Gods
Ruidoso
The Apple House.
It has its own painting!
Making friends in Carlsbad
Carlsbad Caverns
We waited two hours to leave the caverns, behind this smelly old guy who had no concept of personal space
HELL YEAH BABY,
HIGHWAY 707
Odessa Donut: opened up by Cambodian refugees, and serves incredible pho, both of which are the last things you'd expect in Odessa, Texas.
And then we went home and picked up a Christmas tree.
Nine days, 2500 miles, barely $200 in gas, and an average MPG?across mountain passes, flat stretches of highway, and 75mph speed limits?of 31.4 miles per gallon. Good little snot-car.