K. D. Lunneborg - The Travel Times – VI; Texas Part Three: Amarillo, Cadillac Ranch, and the Big Texan

January 10, 2026

My sixth installment in the remastered Travel Times, the third and final covering my adventures in Texas.

Welcome back! Our big adventures in Texas are not over yet! Last, and very far from least, we have Amarillo, Texas, on the old Route 66. This town is home to such things as Cadillac Ranch, the Big Texan, and a lot else. Let’s jump in!

Before we could even get to our campground in the heart of Amarillo, let alone get into the town itself, we stopped on the side of the highway to go look at old Cadillacs with graffiti on them, buried in a field. Literally. No, Cadillac Ranch is not a warehouse, nor a factory, not even someone’s grand personal collection, but Cadillacs buried in the dirt in a field, with graffiti on them. And there are not one, or two, or even four or five, but ten Cadillacs, each one a different model, ranging from 1948 to 1963. These were driven front-first into their own holes in the ground, with their awesome tail fins being exhibited in the air. And as if this tale could not be more insane, graffiti is not only allowed, but encouraged. And on top of that? All of this is true. Unless I’ve gone insane, but I don’t think that’s happened yet. The good news, though, is that I should be getting over my sanity soon. Anyway… Yes, the Cadillac Ranch which I have just explained is indeed an actual place just outside of Amarillo, Texas. It is the work of Stanley Marsh 3. And no, I didn’t forget to put Roman Numerals, nor did dumb autocorrect ruin my sentence, but this particular Stanley Marsh (the third one, that is) made sure that his place in the family was going to be marked with Arabic Numerals. And yes, he was indeed an artsy-fartsy lunatic. So we stopped and did the deal, and spray painted the cars. Indeed, we not only spray painted them, we spread the word of God to the pagan vandals, as illustrated in this photo of my dad.

Once that was done, we entered Amarillo proper, and parked the camper at the Big Texan Campground. That same night we had a Lincoln pull up in front of our camper. And not just any Lincoln, a limo. A stretch limo. With bull horns on the hood. And a cowboy in the front seat. Anyone who stays at the Big Texan Campground gets a free limo ride to the Big Texan. On the way there, our driver (not drover, haha) told us some of the history of Amarillo, including about the Big Texan, Cadillac Ranch, the odd street signs in Amarillo (an inside joke I can’t remember), and Stanley Marsh 3, which was very enjoyable. The Big Texan itself is known for its free seventy-two ounce steak dinner – provided that you eat it all. The dinner consists of the seventy-two ounce steak, a salad, a roll, a shrimp cocktail, and a baked potato – a true Texan dinner. The rules for the contest are that only one person can eat the dinner, and they must finish it in the span of one hour. If either of these rules are broken, or if you just want to eat it without an impending count-down of doom hanging over you (besides the restaurant go-ers and people all over the world watching the live stream), you can buy the meal for seventy-some dollars. Of course, you could also just skip both and get a delicious country fried steak at their restaurant, like I did. Or, you know, go for anything else they offer. Another interesting thing about their restaurant is that they serve your drinks in plastic cups with Big Texan history on the side. And instead of replacing, or refilling your cup, they just bring you a new one when you want more. And another. And another, if need be. We ended up getting seven. How, you might ask, do you still remember that number, four years later? Well, I didn’t. I just walked into the kitchen to count them out. Because, guess what, you’re actually allowed to keep these plastic cups. So we did! The Big Texan also has a gift shop, ‘shooting gallery,’ horse hotel, human hotel, and Texas-shaped pool. I highly recommend going, and you can’t miss driving past it, as there is a literal Big Texan out front.

Now, we must finally conclude our adventures in Texas. It is a sad day, that we move on from the Lone Star State, but we shall survive. I myself greatly enjoyed my time in Texas, but also had much fun in the rest of the states. We now have covered 2,131 travel miles, spanning from Sebring, Florida, to Amarillo, Texas. Next time, we will be visiting Bandolier National Monument, in New Mexico. This was my favourite stop out of all the Indian cliff dwellings, as you will learn next time. I hoped you enjoyed this article!

P.S. I thought I might as well mention the fact that the original article for Amarillo was 422 words, and split into two newspapers. So you’re not missing out on anything. This article is 859 words, and you get it all at once. I hope you enjoyed it!