Thursday, August 19, 2010

TGGN: Part V: Random Oddities

When Great Grannie got in the car she had no idea that I had spent several hours the night before with internet access. Internet access and Google. She's probably never even heard of Google to know just how afraid she should have been. :) It was just one day and one night afterall... But thanks to the internet, and Google you can find all kinds of random obscure things to visit. And believe me when I say I had a whole list. :)


Because seeing caddies in the ground just wasn't enough. Not even close.


Because there were tractors in a field along the side of the road near Palo Duro Canyon. Though "near" may have been a relative term.


When we stopped to see the tractors there was a suburban pulled off in the grass near them. As we got out to take pictures and have a good laugh we noticed that the passenger was semi-surreptiously doing something near the fence. In surprise we thought that it might have been a cache. Not too long after they left my mom rooted around to see if she could find it. And she did.


It turns out that it wasn't a cache, but a letterbox. And not just any letterbox - one with the letterbox equivalent of a travel bug. Not knowing much about letterboxing it was interesting looking through the logs.


Unlike a cache where you just sign your name and track everything online the letterbox had a booklet where each person who had found the box had stamped their own stamp onto a page and and written a little something about their find. There was also a stamp (this one being a tractor) included in the box for you to stamp your own passport like book to have a record of your find. I actually really like the passport concept and having your own stamp, too. What a neat idea!

Here's information on the actual letterbox we found:
http://www.atlasquest.com/boxes/clue/index.html?gBoxId=109447

From there we made our way back to I-40 heading towards Great Grannie's one request on the trip to see the "big crosses" on the highway near Amarillo. Though before long we were taking another exit off the highway leaving Great Grannie wondering what we were up to. I don't think she actually believed us when I said that we were going to see a Slug Bug farm.


But sure enough, right where google had said they would be we found the row of old Volkswagens buried in the ground and covered with grafitti.



Next to the parking lot where we stopped to see the Volkswagons was a single old car that had also been covered in grafitti.


Having run out of random vehicles buried in the ground we made our way down part of the old historic Route 66 towards Groom, Texas.


As we pulled off the Interstate again we jokingly told Great Grannie that we were going to see the Trans Ams. :) Before long though she saw the giant cross she had mentioned passing on a previous visit.


And indeed it would be hard to miss. Along with the giant cross, in a large circle surrounding it's base there are a number of statue vignettes. As Grannie and Great Grannie perused them the boys ran around in circles around the base of the cross. That is until I realized that there was something covering the ground and blowing in the breeze. As I got closer to get a look I at first thought they were bees, but then realized that they were actually giant flying ants which Connor was running through and merrily stirring up.

Not long after I dragged the children away a woman came out from the store and sprayed the ants. She said that they came out typically just once a year for a few days after a big rain and then would be gone again almost as quickly as they had appeared.

We stopped by the store for a quick look before heading off to find dinner. Connor thoroughly enjoyed getting to hitch a ride on Great Grannies walker again.

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