The final leg of the trip involved four states - Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California.
Left El Paso bright and early and headed out. Almost immediately we got into some very strong cross winds that stayed with us until Arizona. It was so strong that a mobile home that was being towed got overturned in the ditch. At one point we hit a tumbleweed or possibly another piece of dried out vegetation head on. Here was what we found when we pulled in for fuel. No damage fortunately despite the size of the stem.
We crossed the continental divide at 4585 ft and continued west. At one point we had the amazing experience of driving through a dust storm at the same time rain was falling on the windshield.
The flat, monotonous expanse of New Mexico became immediately scenic and interesting as we crossed into Arizona.
One of the features of the vast west is little shops that advertise for hundreds of miles, often with interesting and provocative teasers. We didn't stop to see the Thing this time, but we did last time we went by. It's definitely worth the price of admission ($1) and once you've seen the Thing, you can count yourself among a small and exclusive group that share the secret. Don't ask...we'll never tell, but you can find out for yourself along I-10 in Arizona not too far outside of Tucson.
One of the rest stops along Arizona had this impressive backdrop just begging for a nice shot with the car.
