Visit the world-famous Cadillac Ranch this weekend

Cadillac Ranch, of course.

Just west of Amarillo, this one-of-a-kind attraction was created in 1974 by a group of hippie artists from San Francisco as a work of modern art and a tribute to the evolution of the Cadillac tailfin designs of the 1950s and ‘60s. Ten Cadillac automobiles were driven into a field, half-buried, nose-down, in the dirt, facing west in a line and all inclined at an angle similar to the pyramids at Giza in Egypt.

Curious passers-by began to stop along the highway not only to gawk, but also to stroll out in the field to take a closer look; and over the years, it has become a tradition of sorts for visitors to paint graffiti on the cars and snap keepsake photos.

For more information, go to www.facebook.com/1974cadillacranch.

Not only is Amarillo home to Cadillac Ranch, the city of 200,000 in the Texas Panhandle is also a stopping place for travelers along historic Route 66, which passes through town on its way through New Mexico, Arizona and California out to the west coast and Pacific Ocean. In the city’s Route 66 Historic District, visitors will find over a mile of art galleries, antique shops, restaurants and bars housed in historic buildings.

Drive a few more miles west of town along Route 66 (also known as I-40) to the tiny town of Adrian and stop for a bite to eat and some photos at the Midpoint Café and Gift Shop, regarded as the geographical halfway point between Chicago and Los Angeles on the famed Mother Road, which began in the late 1920s and was fully paved in the 1930s as a way to connect hundreds of small towns and create a route for trucking through the Southwest.

History lovers and nostalgia seekers from all over the world travel all or parts of Route 66 today, with more than 250 buildings, bridges and other sites along the 2,448-mile highway listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The Midpoint was built in 1928, and is billed as the oldest continually operating Route 66 café between Amarillo and Tucumcari, N.M. Another Amarillo legend is the Big Texan Steak Ranch, home of the 72-ounce steak eating challenge. If a customer can finish this entire four-and-half-pound steak dinner — which also includes shrimp cocktail, baked potato, salad, dinner roll and butter — in one hour or less, the meal is free of charge.

Here’s how it works:

Before the time starts, the contestant is allowed to cut into the steak and take one bite. If it tastes good and is cooked to order, the timer begins.

Once the timer starts, the diner is not allowed to stand up, leave the table, or have anyone else touch the meal. Anyone assisting in cutting, preparing, or eating the meal will result in disqualification.Eating fat from the steak is not required.

If a contestant gets sick, the contest is over and the restaurant wins.

Entering the contest requires payment of $72 up front. Winners will receive a full refund. Losers forfeit the same amount. Taking leftovers home is allowed. For more on the Big Texan and the contest, go to /www.bigtexan.com/72-oz-steak.

Along with Route 66, the Cadillac Ranch, the Panhandle Plains Historical Museum and the Big Texan, Amarillo also offers Palo Duro Canyon State Park, which features spectacular scenery and more than 30 miles of well-marked hiking, biking and equestrian trails, and is an easy day trip from the city. The park is home to the rugged Palo Duro Canyon, the second-largest canyon in the U.S., also known as the Grand Canyon of Texas.

The park includes campsites with water and electricity, tent sites, backpack camping areas, cabins and new “glamping” facilities that offer luxury campsites furnished with air conditioning, rustic furnishings, refrigerators, microwaves, coffee makers, games, bicycles, gas grills and fire pits, covered porches with rockers, porch swings and more.

For details, go to the park’s website at tpwd.texas.gov.