Road Trip: The Panhandle

We just got back from an epic road trip to Colorado, where we visited a few National Parks and saw some spectacular scenery. And it was a nice break from the heat and humidity of Arkansas in the summer!

We headed West, into Oklahoma and then into Texas. We drove through the flat lands of the Texas panhandle, past hundreds of massive windmills. We were in a hurry to get to Colorado, but I made a few quick stops at some interesting old buildings. This was an abandoned gas station in the small town of Texline, Texas.



The faded paint on the front says "Panhandle Service Station."



Also in Texline was this old house, the boards weathered after years of being exposed to the elements.





We crossed the border and went into New Mexico, and soon drove through the small town of Des Moines. We stopped at a small gas station, and I ran across the street to get pictures of this old hotel. It was built in the 1920s as the Seaton Hotel. In the 1990s the building was used as a private school (hence the "Freedom School" on the front), and also as a shelter for battered women and children.



Down the road was the small village of Folsom, New Mexico (which is not the Folsom from the Johnny Cash song). It's an old ranching town established in the 1870s.



Also in Folsom is this old and seemingly abandoned hotel. It was built in 1888 originally as a general mercantile store, but was converted into a hotel in 1910.