Total distance: 613.08 km (380.9 mi)
Total time: 9:54:08
Moving time: 7:28:37
Average speed: 61.91 km/h (38.5 mi/h)
Average moving speed: 81.99 km/h (50.9 mi/h)
Max speed: 134.34 km/h (83.5 mi/h)
Average pace: 0.97 min/km (1.6 min/mi)
Average moving pace: 0.73 min/km (1.2 min/mi)
Fastest pace: 0.45 min/km (0.7 min/mi)
Max elevation: 1731 m (5678 ft)
Min elevation: 105 m (345 ft)
Elevation gain: 3681 m (12076 ft)
After escaping from the Stagecoach Motel we checked out a bit of “downtown” Seligman and discovered some interesting souvenir shops and even some proper espresso at Historic Seligman Sundries. Also historic, across the street we discovered an Alfa Spider up on blocks at the Romney Motel. We discovered it’s been there for several years. The town of Kingman claims to be the heart of the Mother Road – Route 66. Not sure if this is anything more than just a slogan.
With the heat already starting to rise and Route 66 traversing nothing but desert we decided to skip the rest of Route 66 today in leu of high speeds on the interstate and the cooler weather that awaited us closer to the Pacific ocean.
Temperatures were climbing fast in this seemingly post-apocalyptic wasteland. For as far as we could see there was only sand, dead vegetation and the strip of highway. Surely NASA’s fake moon landing was filmed out here. From Needles California to Barstow was the longest stretch of time without seeing anything along the road aside from a coyote chasing a prairie dog that crossed inches in front of us. The air was so hot we felt better with the windows of the car closed than to feel the blast of blazing hot air. Fortunately, even with the extreme temps the well designed Alfa kept it’s cool – as long as we were in motion.
Checking into the Saga Motel on Route 66 in Pasadena we were elated to discover a beautiful pool and dove in without unpacking. The Saga is a fantastic old time motor court that has been updated and fully restored. Pasadena is a lively town with much nightlife, great bars and food. A welcome change from most of middle America and the endless desert.
Even with the route 66 portion of the trip over there still is more then a week left of the Alfa adventure including the Alfa Romeo Association Convention in Sonoma, California. In the next few days we are going to drive Giulia north via the Pacific Coast Highway and have many attractions mapped out.
