Route 66 is alive and well at Towaoc Colorado October 22 2010

David’s city rhyme: This night should rock; as we spend it in Towaoc.

The Sleeping Ute RV Park was on the Indian reservation in Towaoc, Colorado. We were not aware that it was located behind the Ute Mountain Casino until we arrived. The park itself was pretty much empty of RV’s. David had his choice of sites. After getting settled, we decided to check out the casino to see if they still had the cheap food used to lure people into the place. We entered the building and it felt like a smoky neon version of hell to me. People, mainly Indians, looked like they had been glued to their seats for hours at the slots or the gaming tables hoping to win more than they lost. It was sad to see these good people wasting so much of their lives in that place. We found the food lure which was the only restaurant in the place. They were having a seafood buffet. The sign read $11.95 so I went in to check out the food. I saw some really large crab legs, breaded shrimp and other yummy seafood in the buffet. David and I were trying to figure out if it was worth the price, so we went back to check out the sign again to make sure we got the price right. We finally saw the real deal. The $11.95 was only for midweek: Fridays; the price was $22.95. Not exactly the food lure we thought it would be. Second looks is a must for people like us who don’t eat out very often. That fine print will get you every time. We decided David’s homemade tacos for about $2.00 would be great.

The scenery as we left Towaoc was incredible. Located in the Four Corners area we traveled through the Ute Mountain Tribal Park and the Navajo Indian Reservation. We saw quite a few really spectacular formations as we drove through.

Shiprock New Mexico

Near Gallup, New Mexico, Interstate 40 parallels historic Route 66. We noticed sign after sign for the Route 66 Casino Hotel. A rest stop sounded great so we stopped to check it out. David parked across four parking spaces in the back for convenience sake. We were only going to be there for a few minutes. But of course, a casino security guy pulled up and told us that we were parked wrong and that the casino parking lot would be full later in the day. We explained our short stay so he let us stay there. The Route 66 Casino is decorated like Route 66 theme park. The walkways between and around the slot machines are painted to resemble a road, the ceilings are high and there are at least four restaurants surrounding the main floor. The souvenir store has all kinds of memorabilia reflecting the 50’s and the 60’s. If you took out the slots and the gaming tables, this place might be a fun place to eat.