The Mother Road: Get Your Kicks on Route 66
By: Joe Volz Source: AARP.org Date Posted: 2004-11-11 19:32:00-05:00
Once, it was the only major road to the west, a dusty ribbon threading its way 2,500 miles from Chicago to Los Angeles.
Then, it became an obsolete has-been, bypassed by faster superhighways.
Now, Route 66 has become a popular tourist attraction.
The highway has been immortalized in John Steinbeck's famous novel, The Grapes of Wrath, in song by Bobby Troup and in a TV series starring Marty Milner. Officially named Route 66 in 1926, it was rebuilt during the New Deal years, becoming, in 1938, the first completely paved cross-country highway.
Highway of Hope
In the 30s, it was the highway of hope for Oklahoma tenant farmers escaping from the dust bowl to seek a new life in California. And in the 40s and 50s it was the vacation route for millions of Americans.
But the highway's success led to its decline. The road became clogged and dangerous. A major highway rebuilding program after World War II replaced it with new interstates bypassing the towns Route 66 had served. Whole villages shriveled up and died.
Somehow Route 66 survived and now it is making a comeback.
Take the Highway That's the Best
Bobby Troup put it this way in his song, Route 66: "If you ever plan to motor west/travel my way/take the highway that's the best/get your kicks on Route 66."
I decided to take Troup's advice so I swerved off the superhighway, Interstate 40, at a tiny Arizona mountain hamlet, Williams, 65 miles from the Grand Canyon, and turned onto Route 66. It is actually two one-way streets, a block apart, as it traverses the few blocks of downtown Williams. One street is lined with cafes, antique shops, bars, a 1950s soda shop featuring chocolate malts as thick as axle grease and, yes, still-open tourist cabins from the 30s. The other road features gas stations, a supermarket and the offices of the company that publishes Route 66 Magazine.
Heading west out of town, I was soon speeding along the well-paved road on the way to Kingman. Here and there, a town flashed by so quickly that it was almost like a mirage. I fully intended to stop in Valentine, a cluster of four houses and a store, but by the time I slowed down, I was well through it. I headed to the Frontier Café in the next town, only to discover that it had been closed, an occasional annoyance to tourists.
Driving Into History
But for me, the road, old enough to be a septuagenarian, was a lure to the pleasant past. There are still neighborhood stores, small cafés and even barbershops where visitors stop to get updated on the latest "news." An added joy: Those behemoth tractor-trailers, which can be a huge nuisance, have opted for the superhighway.
So many motorists have been lured to the ancient road these days that an international "Roadie Gathering" starring Milner, the hero of the 60s TV Series named, you guessed it, "Route 66," is held each year.
Going Your Way
Bob Moore, editor of Route 66 Magazine, has spent eight years on the road logging every mile and his Illustrated Guidebook to the Mother Road suggests some stops along the way:
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Pontiac, Illinois. The Old Log Cabin Inn used to face the original Route 66 but, when the highway was realigned, the inn had to be turned around to face the new road.
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Villa Ridge, Missouri. The world's largest roadside restaurant, Diamonds, resides here.
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Baxter Springs, Kansas. This 13-mile stretch was the first to be paved in 1929. Murphey's Restaurant used to be a bank. One of the bank's visitors in 1876 was Jesse James, who took $2,900 with him as he left town.
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Hydro, Oklahoma. Lucille Hamon has been running Lucille's Gas Station and Store for 50 years, and does she have some stories to tell!
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Amboy, California. See the dormant volcano crater in the middle of forgotten Amboy.
Tips for Driving Route 66
The editors of Route 66 Magazine offer these hints:
Small towns provide the best and most inexpensive accommodations.
Hyperbole is a common sight on Route 66. Beware of signs bragging about the "best hamburger in the world." The burgers across the street are probably just as good.
Many bars, which at first glance appear closed, are often attractive watering holes. Check in the parking lot to see how many local cars are there.
Watch the speed limit, particularly in smaller towns where out-of-state plates can lure overzealous ticket writers.
Highway Warning
There is an imposter in the East posing as Route 66. It's a superhighway, starting in Arlington, Virginia. This interstate was built in later years and has no connection to historic Route 66.
Links
National Historic Route 66 Federation
Books
Find these books online at Barnes and Noble.com.
Route 66:The Mother Road
Michael Wallis, St. Martin's Press, June 2001
Route 66:Traveler's Guide and Roadside Companion
Tom Snyder, Foreword by Bobby Troup, St. Martin's Press, March 2000
Route 66
Nick Freeth and Paul Taylor, Motorbooks, September 2001
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