Henge Crazy - p1

Son Fenton is receiving a commission in the Air Force. He has invited Bev and I to attend the ceremony in Montgomery, Alabama.

Of course we are going to attend. Bev is going to fly. 

Seeing Fenton and being there for the ceremony is the main reason for the trip but my mind immediately wonders how I can turn this into a bike trip?

I brain storm....

And finally come up with a solution.....fuel the bike, get on the bike, ride the bike to Alabama...... 

Whew, I'm glad I was able to figure that out!

I'm fascinated by the Stonehenge in England.  Apparently there are many others in the U.S.  who are equally and more fascinated as there are numerous Stonehenge "replicas" across our country.

I say "replicas" because they are made of various materials and in various shapes, but the inspiration is from the original Stonehenge.

I do a google search and playing with google maps tells me, with a few extra miles I can visit some of those replicas on this trip.

So, I leave on a Saturday, the ceremony is on the next Friday, 1670 miles away.  My route and the cities I stayed overnight in are marked on the map at the end of this page.

I ride through Cuba........New Mexico.

And on Route 66 for a while.

Rat rods.

Then to Amarillo, Texas for my first henge - Car Henge .... aka Cadillac Ranch, has been on my list for a long time and I'm  finally able to make it.
Since 1974 these ten caddies have been planted in this field that is bordered by old Route 66. The cars from the 1949 to 1963 models (all with tailfins) are buried at the same angle as the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt.

A heavily ignored sign....

Nothing says "true love" more than spray painting it on the ground at Car Henge...

....and the cars. Cadillacs all, but it's hard to tell they have so much paint on them. Sightseers are encouraged to bring some paint and express themselves.

Even the sorghum gets painted...

Down the road a few miles is the Cadillac museum.

About 30 miles after that is henge #2,  Bug Henge... aka Slug Bug Ranch

I take a break from Henges and stop at this cross which the very nice lady at the Texas visitors center told me is the largest in the world.

She also told me about the "U drop inn" which was in the Cars movie.

Back on the road again I cross the Mississippi River.

Sleepy little Hollandale, Mississippi.

And into Alabama.

We spend most of the next day on Maxwell Air Force Base.

Bev and Fenton at the ceremony.

Taking the oath.

Part of the ceremony is being "pinned" with the new rank.  Fenton asked his wife, Laurie, and brother-in-law, Michael, to do the honors.

More travels in part 2