Day Seven - Gallup to Flagstaff, Arizona

Leaving Gallup on the old Route 66 we found we had to turn back after about 8 miles due to road closure. I think it's a temporary closure not permanent but it required a short back track. Hopped back on the interstate and a few miles later (and into Arizona) we took an exit to see a 1923 bridge that carried Route 66 over the Rio Puerco. We had to hike through some brush to get a close look. The wooden plank bridge was used for the Route until 1931. The road past it is gravel for 12 miles so we back tracked to the interstate again.

A section of abandoned Route 66 runs through the Painted Desert of the Petrified Forest National Park. We took the loop and we were able to get some awesome pictures. It's really pretty here.

In Holbrook we stopped at the Rainbow Rock Shop. The owner was an odd guy and has made numerous dinosaur sculptures outside his store. He said lots of people ask him why he has them and he says they make people stop and shop. It worked for us. Mom got some bookends made from huge geodes and I bought a fossilized shell that I will make into a necklace.

Couldn't pass through Winslow without "standin' on the corner". I would have asked a passerby to get a photo of the two of us but I was too embarrassed after running up on the curb trying to park. Decided to go around the corner and park but went the wrong way on a one way street and had to wait for the traffic to clear so I could turn around. All of this right on the "corner" and in full view of shop owners out painting and chatting.

The scenery is getting even more spectacular here the farther west we go. I wanted to take pictures constantly but needed to keep my eye on the road.

We stopped in Flagstaff for the night and went to Salsa Brava for an early dinner. This is a restaurant that was featured on Guy Fieri's Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. Guy suggested getting the stuffed sopapilla and said it was the size of a football. It really is so we shared one and washed it down with a great margarita.

After dinner we drove to Sedona (not on the Route) to check it out. The road is really curvy but a stunningly gorgeous drive. The prettiest thing we've seen so far. We parked at one end of town and shopped up and down both sides. Mostly jewelry shops. We stopped at a restaurant and had a drink on the balcony that had a great view as the sun was setting.

See the moon?