Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Williams, AZ to Kingman, AZ Route 66

Tracks of the StoneBear 4 Corners ROF = Ring of Fire

April '08 
You never drink twice from the same stream.

Copyright MMXV ALL StoneBearTracks blog posts and photographs  ALL Rights reserved

Route 66 Williams, AZ or ?What's left of Route 66

One of the highlights of the early Tracks of the StoneBear journeys was to travel and see the real route 66... when it was still there. In the mid 60s the interstate road system was streamlining transportation / traffic to our modern road system... unfortunately.... the original backroads towns got passed by and many towns became ghost towns from lack of traffic. route 66 was one of these roads where the interstate choked off the traffic and most roadside business' died off. I hate that this happened.

Route 66 was the road from the Oklahoma dust bowl that the Okies drove toward California... to the promised land in search of.... a new life...of dreams of rebuilding a life.

Route 66 was Americas road. ... it was America at it's best. It was the place where mom and pop roadside business' flourished. If you had an idea.... you could work and make a go of it and share in the American dream; you could build a business and make it ! A gas station.... most were independents then... and you created / found your niche to increase your roadside traffic. Billboards for miles telling you of the 2 headed cow, or rattlesnake with 2 tails... you had to stop and see. And the huckster enviornment would try to bleed out any dollar possible on a stretch of dessert roadside. It was a show... a travelling through time road show.

Route 66 is gone. ... the original is gone. All the business' are gone. Only a few sparse miles with a few historic districts are all that's left. Williams , Arizona had a few people wise enough to capture a historic district and they do an ok job of preserving a part of the past. There are some mom and pop independent motels and business' that hang onto the flavor of Route 66, ... Thanks for a small view. I appreciate your work to preserve a great part of American history

After a few days of attempting to fathom the depths of the grand canyon we head south on hwy 64 to williams, AZ to rest up overnight. A day of seeing the preserved atmosphere of Route 66, we head out West on the real road... what is left of Route 66. Now mostly a vast lonely, empty road, we get to Seligman, AZ with a few roadside bars and shops of Route 66 trinkets. On west to Kingman, AZ a few more roadside resturaunts and shops. A last Burma Shave sign... there were dozens on the road in '65. Glad I got to see it when it was real.... original.

Thank you Bobby Troup -- ex Marine -- for writing the Route 66 song. ... that inspired the Route 66 tv show.

also see the ITW Route 66 through Oklahoma http://stonebeartracks.blogspot.com/2010/12/get-your-kicks-on-route-66.html

You never drink twice from the same stream.

Copyright MMXV ALL StoneBearTracks blog posts and photographs  ALL Rights reserved



















Route 66
Tracks of the StoneBear 4 Corners ROF = Ring of Fire

April '08
You never drink twice from the same stream.

Copyright MMXV ALL StoneBearTracks blog posts and photographs  ALL Rights reserved

Route 66 Williams, AZ or ?What's left of Route 66

One of the highlights of the early Tracks of the StoneBear journeys was to travel and see the real route 66... when it was still there. In the mid 60s the interstate road system was streamlining transportation / traffic to our modern road system... unfortunately.... the original backroads towns got passed by and many towns became ghost towns from lack of traffic. route 66 was one of these roads where the interstate choked off the traffic and most roadside business' died off. I hate that this happened.

Route 66 was the road from the Oklahoma dust bowl that the Okies drove toward California... to the promised land in search of.... a new life...of dreams of rebuilding a life.

Route 66 was Americas road. ... it was America at it's best. It was the place where mom and pop roadside business' flourished. If you had an idea.... you could work and make a go of it and share in the American dream; you could build a business and make it ! A gas station.... most were independents then... and you created / found your niche to increase your roadside traffic. Billboards for miles telling you of the 2 headed cow, or rattlesnake with 2 tails... you had to stop and see. And the huckster enviornment would try to bleed out any dollar possible on a stretch of dessert roadside. It was a show... a travelling through time road show.

Route 66 is gone. ... the original is gone. All the business' are gone. Only a few sparse miles with a few historic districts are all that's left. Williams , Arizona had a few people wise enough to capture a historic district and they do an ok job of preserving a part of the past. There are some mom and pop independent motels and business' that hang onto the flavor of Route 66, ... Thanks for a small view. I appreciate your work to preserve a great part of American history

After a few days of attempting to fathom the depths of the grand canyon we head south on hwy 64 to williams, AZ to rest up overnight. A day of seeing the preserved atmosphere of Route 66, we head out West on the real road... what is left of Route 66. Now mostly a vast lonely, empty road, we get to Seligman, AZ with a few roadside bars and shops of Route 66 trinkets. On west to Kingman, AZ a few more roadside resturaunts and shops. A last Burma Shave sign... there were dozens on the road in '65. Glad I got to see it when it was real.... original.

Thank you Bobby Troup -- ex Marine -- for writing the Route 66 song. ... that inspired the Route 66 tv show.

also see the ITW Route 66 through Oklahoma http://stonebeartracks.blogspot.com/2010/12/get-your-kicks-on-route-66.html

You never drink twice from the same stream.

Copyright MMXV ALL StoneBearTracks blog posts and photographs  ALL Rights reserved