I took this photograph from the passenger seat of a car while on a cross-country drive to California. The wind picked up on a stretch of Route 40 near Flagstaff, Arizona and this was the result: tumbleweeds flying around mid-air.
The initial entry into Arizona on that route is mainly desert. Once you get closer to Flagstaff, the trees begin to pop up and the landscape changes dramatically.
Click on the image to see tumbleweeds in flight.
I shot these two photographs in Texas during a cross country drive on my way back to California. We had stopped for gas and I just wanted to stretch my legs so I started walking around what was a former RV park . These two huge, red tires caught my eyes because that part of Texas had a great deal of green grass and the occassional tree but I didn't notice many other colors other than various shades of green so I was happy to spot the tires. I have no idea why they were there but when I took the picture, something interesting happened to the image. Click on the above picture to see what I'm talking about because I did not alter the color, it just happened somehow. Maybe it was the blazing Texas sun. If you do click on the image, you'll also be able to see the old RV park sign on the right side of the frame.
Click on the image below as well to see the detail of the tire. The effects of the sun are very visible.
The aging sign of the now-defunct RV park also intrigued me as the fading red looked so alive and so vibrant against the spectacular blue sky that day.
Click on the images to see more details.
If you're driving cross-country, you can take Interstate 40. Along the way, you'll see many crosses and other homages to Christianity and Jesus in particular.
The old Route 66 guided Americans west to California during the Great Depression, from Chicago to Los Angeles. The route became a symbol of freedom and was well-traveled from 1926 to 1985. It has been since decomissioned as a federal highway and Interstate 40 has swallowed much of Route 66 while reconfiguring parts of it to be more time efficient. All these factors caused many of the popular roadside motels along Route 66 to go out of business, including several in Albuquerque's Nob Hill neighborhood. Some of their signature neon signs that have been celebrated in American pop culture are falling apart.
Recently, The World Monuments Fund put Route 66 on its 2008 list of most endangered sites. Thankfully, there are efforts under way to restore and revitalize roadside motels along Route 66.
