Winslow
Winslow owes much to The Eagles, who immortalized the town in the 70's classic "Take It Easy." It's obligatory to visit the "Standin' on a Corner" er... monument when in town. It's a great photo op as you can see in the pictures. At the corner I met a couple of retirement-age British gents who were also traveling the road. It turns out that we had briefly crossed paths the day before at the Continental Divide. They were traveling the road in a rental car they picked up in Chicago and were going to meet up with their wives who were flying in later to meet up with them in Las Vegas. They were clearly enjoying the trip together and I asked them what was their favorite thing so far. They replied without hesitation, "The people we've met." Their travel plan was to find the oldest, seediest-looking bar in the towns where they were staying overnight along the road. In those places, they've heard the stories of the people of Route 66 in a way I envy, but I can't help but think that it's something that becomes a bit safer when one has a traveling companion. After a couple of camera exchanges, I hit the road and headed toward the big hole in the desert.Meteor Crater
The Meteor Crater (famously included in 80's movie "Starman") is just a few miles outside of Winslow and it is HUGE: One mile across, 2.2 miles in circumference, 500 feet deep. It's a bit expensive to get in (something like $14/person), but it's well worth the money with observation decks above, at, and below the rim. You can't go exploring on your own, but there are some tours that will walk you along the rim. For reference, the flag in the photo is 3' by 5', check out the two photos of people on the rim for a sense of scale.Flagstaff and Grand Canyon
Most of Arizona up to this point has been spent on the Interstate - there's just not much of old 66 left in these parts. Thankfully, that starts to change once one gets further West. The drive from Winona to Flag feels like a breath of fresh air. Trees! Shade! Quiet! Flagstaff has the feel of a resort town. It's well-kept and relaxed. The drive to the Grand Canyon is about an hour off the interstate. Route 66 goes south through Williams here. After grabbing some supplies, I got up to the canyon to check into my room at Grand Canyon Village. Once again, internet was advertised, but was in the lodge only - at least a half mile walk from my room. I trekked out on foot to the canyon rim with my camera equipment. As I arrived (a couple hours before sundown), I got two troublesome text messages in rapid succession. The first was "You have exceeded $50 in international roaming charges." The second was "You have exceeded $100 in international roaming charges." I knew I shouldn't be charged for data by my provider (T-Mobile) and that I hadn't left the country. My battery was almost dead and I had just the faintest of signals. I started to panic a bit, but this wasn't going to be resolved until tomorrow, so I hiked for what seemed like a LONG time and found a spot to shoot photos of the sunset.Right after the sun went down, I was trying to find the best way back to my room, when I saw a couple approach the spot where my gear was set up. The guy was looking around a bit nervously, and I thought something was up, so I tried to make myself inconspicuous as possible. Sure enough, he went down on one knee and proposed. I was lucky enough to catch a couple of shots of the event (tough in the low light). After the moment had passed, I asked them if she said "yes." The smiles said it all. I congratulated them and told them that I had a couple photos of their engagement I'd be willing to send them if they gave me an email address. Turns out that they're an English couple from Birmingham. That night was the full "Supermoon" and unfortunately it was a bit foggy, so the shots weren't as clear as I hoped, but I managed to squeeze off a couple of good ones.
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