ROUTE 66 NEWS, VIEWS, AND TIPS

by | Jun 25, 2011 | Uncategorized

In all honesty, I expected the resurgent interest in legendary Route 66 to taper off or at least level off. My foolish assumption was that folks would have found a new fad that would lure them away from the magic carpet of asphalt that is old U.S. 66.
Okay, so I was wrong. My recent excursion to Amarillo made it quite clear the popularity of this iconic highway is here to stay. In fact, there is ample evidence to suggest the wave of interest is still building and this is fueling an amazing resurgence of the mom and pop enterprise that was swept away by the rise of chain motels and restaurants, mega shopping centers such as Walmart, and the ever increasing speed of American society that demands faster everything.
Only on Route 66 will you find an nearly empty McDonalds next to a busy little cafe or a Holiday Inn with a half full parking lot while the place across the street built in 1955 has a full house where guests talk and laugh away the evening. To experience Route 66 as it is today is a heady feeling that time has slowed to an absolute crawl, a dizzying sense of standing with one foot in the past and one in the present.
I spend a great deal of my time immersed in the history and culture of this old road. Still, when we travel it there is a sense of renewal and of excitement that is highly addictive.
Add the slightest of detours to your Route 66 excursions, such as Hualapai Mountain Park south of Kingman or Palo Duro Canyon south of Amarillo, and you have a life time of ever changing vacations with limitless possibilities on America’s longest attraction. Develop friendships along the way, something that is almost impossible not to do, and old Route 66 becomes, in the words of Michael Wallis, a linear community with a very extended international family.
Perhaps the most invigorating aspect of the resurgent interest in this old road, is to see time rolled back in dusty and forgotten towns, and life restored to places once thought dead. The now classic animated film Cars, portrays this transformation beautifully.
In Tucumcari, a town that presented the illusion of being on life support just a few years ago, a stunning transformation is underway. Empty buildings mere steps away from demolition are being transformed and given a new lease on life as colorful Whiting Brothers, and vintage Texaco, Sinclair, or Phillips 66 service stations.
The now iconic Blue Swallow Motel, dating to 1939, has new owners and is a lodging choice for thousands of enthusiasts traveling the old road. Likewise with the Motel Safari that dates to 1960.
In this, Tucumcari is not alone. At the Wigwam Motel in Holbrook, a place that seems suspended in time with its dirt parking lot and dated furnishings, it can be difficult to find a find room without advance planning. Likewise with its older cousin, the lovingly refurbished Wigwam Motel in Rialto, California that dates to 1949, the historic Munger Moss in Lebanon, Missouri, or the circa 1938 Wagon Wheel Motel, another beautifully refurbished property, in Cuba, Missouri.
In closing, I have a few quick Route 66 related news items to share. The exact date has not been set for the 2012 International Route 66 Festival but the host city of Rancho Cucamonga in California has been selected. For more information contact the Historic Route 66 Association of California.
I am not a big fan of reservations, especially when traveling Route 66, as they add deadlines to what is supposed to be a leisurely and relaxing adventure. Still, as crazy as this sounds, if you plan on attending, and want to stay at one of the classic Route 66 historic motels or hotels in the area, such as the Wigwam in Rialto, it might be a good idea to consider making reservations soon.
I spoke with the proprietor yesterday in regards to his order for signed copies of my new book for the gift shop and was informed he already has received open reservations. These customers simply told him that when the dates for the festival are announced to put their name down for that time. I must confess, we have also made reservations for that weekend as this our favorite stop when business takes us to the west end of the L.A. metropolis.
The final item of the day pertains to reccomendations for dining discovered, or rediscovered, on our last trip. In historic Las Vegas, New Mexico, a very slight detour off Route 66, splurge for a lunch (upper end of the medium price range) at the historic Plaza Hotel with its million dollar view of the historic plaza.
An old stand by that I never tire of reccommending, or eating at, is hte Midpoint Cafe in Adrian., Texas. The long and short of itis this, no Route 66 trip can be considered complete without least stopping for pie and coffee.
A new discovery was made in Amarillo. Dolly’s Diner on old Route 66 in hte historic San Jacinto district offers great food at very reasonable prices. As a teaser, even the potato chips are home made.

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THE GHOST TOWNS OF ROUTE 66

by | Jun 25, 2011 | Uncategorized

Well, it looks as though we have a successful launch, at least in regards to the addition of an option to purchase a signed copy of Ghost Towns of Route 66 directly from the blog. The hope is that in the next week we will also be able to offer Ghost Towns of the Southwest, now in a third printing, Backroads of Arizona, and Route 66 Backroads.
Meanwhile, lets talk ghost towns. Specifically the very unique ghost towns, some with origins stretching to before the time that there was a United States, that are found along Route 66 from Illinois to California.
Each has a very unique personality but they all have one thing in common, a main street that will forever be Route 66. Moreover, the demise of each is directly tied to the wave of progress that continuously transformed Route 66 from its inception with an almost never ending progression of realignment and that eventually swept the Main Street of America from center stage.
One of the goals in writing this book was to add depth and context to the Route 66 experience as well as tinge the restored glow of colorful neon with a hint of sepia. Additionally, I wanted to give forgotten places where the resurgent interest in this amazing highway came to late a well deserved moment in the spotlight, places like Goffs bypassed in 1932, and Spencer, Missouri, as well as Afton, Oklahoma, and Lawndale in Illinois. 
Few segments of Route 66 are as haunting or as delightful as the pre 1952 alignment from San Jon in New Mexico to Glenrio in Texas. All along this dusty track the second hand became the hour hand when Route 66 was moved to the north to accommodate the ever rising tide of traffic and it stopped completely when the destination became more important than the journey leaving Route 66 as an historic footnote.
San Jon withered on the vine. Bard vanished. Endee was left to the ghosts and will soon return to the soil from which it was carved. Glenrio was suspended in time and the winds whisper the stories for those who take the time to listen.
In Endee the era of the frontier succumbed slowly to the advent of a new era. In 1907 rustlers were rousted from their safe haven hear by a stalwart passe and in 1909, a few cowboys made their point on the subject of temperance by riding their horses through a meeting with guns blazing.
Glenrio just may be every Route 66 enthusiasts favorite ghost town. However, few who stop to give the imagination free reign at the old Longhorn Cafe and Motel, realize that long before there was a highway signed with two sixes, this was a prosperous community with a hotel, a newspaper, and a train depot.
For timelessness, my favorite drive is the pre 1937 alignment from Santa Fe to Romeroville in New Mexico. Here amongst the pines and ruins that were ancient when the conquistador “discovered” New Mexico, legendary Route 66 follows the Santa Fe Trail through towns founded, and almost unchanged, from the dawn of the American republic, and past the hallowed grounds of Glorieta Pass, the scene of a pitched battle during the Civil War fought to preserve that great republic.
For raw beauty of the jaw dropping, awe inspiring kind, there is no place like Sitgreaves Pass on the pre 1952 alignment of Route 66 in western Arizona. Here the ghosts of better times, Goldroad and Oatman, are of the modern era with origins dating to the dawn of the 20th century. 
Route 66 has always the road of dreams and shows little sign of relinquishing that role. The next time you motor west, or east, on the highway that is best, save some time for an empty place or two as the ghost of the lost highway have many stories to share.

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