Flagstaff to Winslow, AZ 04-19-2026 Day 9

The early morning in Flagstaff was below 30 degrees. By the time we made it through another continental breakfast, repacked everything, lubed the chains, we were out on the road at 8 AM and it had warmed to the mid forties. We doubled back on the bike trail that ran along side Route 66. It was easy pedaling since it was smooth and we were rested. As we were getting ready to leave town, there was a special section of the trail that included the original pavement.

In the route I had planned and researched months ago, we were to go north to avoid some extra climbing , but add more miles than simply hopping on I-40 to Winslow. We got to the the edge of town and reviewed our options. My original route had us merging with I-40 about 9 miles down the road at the town of Winona. We decided to just hop on I-40 early and take it straight to Winona and continue on I-40 the rest of the way to Winslow as originally planned. Since we were mostly going to be going down hill, saving mileage beat saving any climbing. By the time we got to Winona, the mental jukebox had already been channeling Ray and Dave Davies with the Kinks.

We were still feeling pretty good, so we didn’t get off to see what Winona had to offer. We targeted a rest stop 25 miles down I-40 for our next official rest. This is a sample of what it is like riding the shoulder. I tried to give commentary, but I still had the Go Pro in a completely waterproof case, so it wasn’t picking up my voice very well. This stretch was especially nice as I went from 18-22 mph when pedaling in a higher gear.

The day started with a headwind of 3-5 mph. It would get stronger as the day went on, so we tried our best to minimize stops. Even when we were going downhill, the wind tried to slow us down. Luckily, most of the downhills were stronger than the winds today. We and our butts were more than ready for the rest stop. We bypassed the meteor exhibit and went the extra mile for simple simple toilets and fresh water.

We felt better afterwards. Ron must have been feeling better than me because he got out at a fast clip and was way ahead of me before we made our own stop along the interstate. I led the way into Winslow and we saw our hotel not far from the first exit. We had made great time. So much that we were too early to officially check in. The staff person at the desk was kind enough to let us leave our panniers with them for safe keeping. We each fished out our regular shoes and a couple of essentials that we could put into a string bag strapped to our racks. Then we headed for the heart of old Winslow for lunch.

We did not eat at Bojo’s, though it was highly recommended.

Right next door to Bojo’s was a brewpub called the Relic Road. We each had a beer and a little more.

After lunch, we walked to the end of the block and I emptied the tune that had been playing in my head for over 550 miles.

When were done with our lunch and fun downtown, we rode north to a Safeway to get whatever we might have for our dinner. It would inevitably include a pint of ice cream. For me, I added a couple of hard boiled eggs and a banana, beyond a salad and a beer. I knew neither would be at our continental breakfast tomorrow. We loaded our goodies into our string bags and rode back to the hotel so we could officially check in. Many of the hotel clerks seem to be on autopilot when they check us in. We walk in the door wearing biking jerseys, shorts, a helmet and make clacking noises from our specially cleated shoes. And here in particular we had left our panniers earlier. Granted, this was a different clerk than the one we had met a few hours ago. But still, after we tell them that we do not have any pets and we came in on bikes, they still need a Vehicle Model, etc. I described Hidalgo as best I could.

For once Ron and I were not getting into the hotel after 5 or even 6:30 in the evening. This was definitely our fastest day so far. Though we were going downhill a lot, we still had to pedal to fight the wind. It was another good day in a landmark along Route 66 that was memorialized by an Eagles tune. Ride stats are here. The 3D video is here.

The Not So Lone Rider