Getting our Kicks on Route 66

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So here it is, the last day on the mother road. We had a lazy start to our last day, waking up later than usual. We then met up with some old friends, who are now locals to the LA scene, and caught up over an early lunch. Austin and Bethany showed us a great local food joint in the area, known as PINK'S hot dogs. As we pulled in to park, we knew it was going to be tasty since the customers where lined up down the block. The four of us enjoyed some chili dogs before heading to another hot spot, the PinkBerry, for some frozen yogurt (to help with digestion ; ) says Bethany - Dannon Sales Rep).
After parting ways, we continued on to Santa Monica. Here we came to the end of our journey to find the Pacific Ocean at our feet. We spent the remainder of the day walking the Santa Monica Pier and relaxing on the beach. We then headed back to pack up one more time. Our journey began at Navy Pier in Chicago, Illinois and ended at Santa Monica Pier in California. Two weeks, 2500 miles, and memories that will last a lifetime. Thank you to all those readers out there that have been following us along the way; and thank you to all those local 66 business owners who are keeping the spirit alive.

Yesterday we spent most of our day driving from Las Vegas, Nevada to Los Angeles, California. we stopped to have dinner at the Sycamore Inn in San Bernardino, California. Built in 1848, the Sycamore Inn was orignally a stage coach inn. We are staying in Los Angeles for three nights at the Custom. This morning we got up to an early start to make our way to another side trip. This time to Disneyland. I have been to the Disney World parks a few times in the past, but never to its origin at Disneyland. Disneyland of course, is much smaller than Disney World. The four large parks that make up Disney World, have a small representation in the one park of Disneyland. There is however a newer extension of the park known as California Adventure. While we enjoyed the atmosphere today at Disneyland, we couldn't say the same for California Adventure. Unlike the inside, organized, family style rides that Walt Disney is known for; California Adventure mimicked more of a boardwalk atmosphere of a smaller amusement park. And besides the couple of rides they duplicated from Disney World, they only had a couple of new attraction (which was a metal roller coaster, which was design to look like a wooden coaster and a ferris wheel). Overall, I would have rather spent more time at the original Disneyland park. A great day toward an end of a long trip.

Ride of the day: the Matterhorn Bobsleds

Today's journey breaks us away from route 66 (since the mother road cuts underneath Nevada) for a side trip to the North. We decided we couldn't pass up the opportunity to make our way into Las Vegas. Before making it to Vegas, we made a stop at the historic Hoover Dam.
Welcome to the Hoover Dam. "I'm your dam guide, Arnie. Now I.
am about to take you through a fully functional power plant, so
please, no one wander off the dam tour and please take all the
dam pictures you want. Now are there any dam questions?"
- Vegas Vacation
We did take the full tour inside the Hoover Dam, but unfortunately our guide barely referenced this joke due to a mixed age group. We learned the ins and outs of the dam process. We even got the chance to walk inside the service tunnels within the walls of the dam. After the tour and museum visit, we made our way down the road and into Las Vegas.
We stayed the night at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. Inside, the walls were lined with rock music memorabilia. After we checked in we spent a couple hours downstairs in the casino. After not having any luck with the slots, we made our way up to the room to get ready for the night. We had a nice dinner at Rare 120 before heading to Treasure Island casino to watch Cirque Du Soileil - Mystere. We had great seats for the show. Seats one and two just left of center in the front row to be exact. We had a wonderful evening to celebrate our 1 year wedding anniversary (a day late). After the show, we stayed at TI for a free show they put on nightly outside with their pirates and sirens on lifesize ships in the lagoon. We then took a taxi back to the Hard Rock where we spent the remainder of the evening.
Song of the day: "Viva Las Vegas" by Elvis Presley

Today was a fairly simple schedule. We left our hotel in Flagstaff and headed North to Grand Canyon National Park. After reading up on the current wildfires, we decided to go ahead and take our chances. The wildfire in Williams, just North of us from the previous day were reported to be under control. Although the risks rating was still high, they still allowed us into the park. We walked around the South rim trail, stopping at several lookouts for photo opportunities. We were amazed to find how close some of the animals came to the trail. We found a small group of three elk relaxing in the shade as tourists strolled by. The squirrels wer also entertaining, as one was sunbathing on the edge of a cliff overhang.
Afterwards we made our way down to our hiking trail. We chose to hike the "Bright Angel" trail since it was only a few miles long. It wasn't until after were started down the six mile round trail that we overheard other hikers say that it was a mile and a half just to the first stop. They also said that it took about and hour and a half to walk a mile and a half due to the rough incline and narrow trail. It would also take close to twice as long to trek back to the top. We decided since we already walked the entire South rim instead of taking the shuttle, that we would just hike to the half way point. I think we made the right choice since we ran out of water just after we turned back; and that even the more "fit" hikers were frequently stopping to rest in the shade. Once we left the park in the afternoon we stopped back in Williams, Az to have lunch at "Rod's Steakhouse." The steakhouse was built in 1946, and seen many route 66 travellers over the years. We then made our way into Kingman, Arizona for the night.

Song of the day: "Folsom Prison" by Johnny Cash