November 26: Gillette, Wyoming to Amarillo, Texas . . .
Read MoreAnd so began my journey on Route 71 heading south. I was going to be on this secondary road for around 3 hours from Scottsbluff, Nebraska to Limon, Colorado. And while I had been on the southern third of this roadway last year, (from Brush to Limon in Colorado), the first two-thirds of today's adventure would be something new.
The Big Texan Steak Ranch opened in 1960 north of this location along historic Route 66 which passes through Amarillo. The restaurant's giant sign quickly became a well known landmark along "The Mother Road." When Interstate 40 replaced Route 66 as the main east-west thoroughfare, the Big Texan moved as well, giant sign and all.