Essex, Cal - Route 66

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Essex, Cal - Route 66

Essex dates back to 1883, like most of the almost forgotten traveler's rests and small communities that dot the Mojave desert along Route 66. Lewis Kingman, a locating engineer for the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad, named the water stops along the railroad route. He must have been a fan of alphabetically things, or maybe was directed to name the water stops in such a manner. So we have Amboy, Bristol, Cadiz, Danby, Essex, Fenner, Goffs, Homer, Ibis, Java, Khartoum and so on. During the early years of the small railroad stop, the primary purpose was to supply the steam engines with water.

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Cadiz Summit, Cal - Route 66

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Cadiz Summit, Cal - Route 66

Cadiz Summit dates back to 1883; it was named by Lewis Kingman, who was a locating engineer for the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad. It was one of a series of railroad stations built across the Mojave Desert (Amboy, Bristol, Cadiz, Danby, Esses, Fenner, Goffs, Homer, Ibis, Java, khartoum and so on). Back during those early years, Cadiz existed to supply water to the trains. And years later, when Route 66 was constructed, Cadiz served a similar purpose.

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Rt 66 - Siberia, Cal

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Rt 66 - Siberia, Cal

You don't need a visa to go to Siberia. At least, the one in California. You will need to use some mapping skills and your imagination though, to get there.

Siberia was originally founded as a water stop and rail siding for the Sante Fe Railroad, which later also became a motorist stop for travelers along Route 66. It was located between Bagdad and Ludlow and must have had some years of minor prosperity. Cafes and tourist camps operated here during the 1930s and 1940s, but things never quite took off.

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Yermo, Cal

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Yermo, Cal

The name "Yermo" is derived from the Spanish word for "Wilderness." Which seems appropriate. Out in the Mojave Desert, with the Calico Mountains to the north, the area must have seemed quite desolate when it was first settled. The town was once known as "Otis," after Gen. Harrison Gray Otis, a wealthy land and mine owner in the area. The Postal Service changed the name to Yermo in 1905, possibly due to a rift between Otis and the local miners union, legend claims.

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Rt 66 - Tucumcari, NM

/ Tucumcari, NM/
Rt 66 - Tucumcari, NM

As soon as I drove into Tucumcari, it was plain to see that this town must have been one of the premier towns of old Route 66. There are traces of those glory days on each side of 66, all through town. From neon signs to old cafes and motels, it's definitely a photographer's dream. But I'm going to start this post with a spot I stopped at a little west of town, south of I-40 at Exit 321.

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Rt 66 - McCartys, NM

/ McCartys, NM/
Rt 66 - McCartys, NM

I spun off I-40 at exit 96 to see if I could find the old Whiting Bros. Gas Station. I’d seen some pictures of it and knew it wasn’t too far out of the way. Exit 96 is also the exit to use to get to McCartys, a small town that originated from a farming and trading community on the Acoma Indian reservation. It was later named McCarty after a railroad contractor who had his camp in the area during the 1880s.

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Rt 66 - Continental Divide, NM

/ Continental Divide, NM/
Rt 66 - Continental Divide, NM

I turned off I-40 at Exit 47 in order to stand my ground on the Continental Divide. I’m not sure exactly where it was, as there were several signs and monuments amongst the tourist stop shops in the area. I do know that I was at an elevation of over 7200 feet and that many claim this spot to be the highest point on Route 66 (although that’s open to debate).

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Rt 66 - Fort Courage, AZ

/ Fort Courage, AZ/
Rt 66 - Fort Courage, AZ

Fort Courage, Arizona. A tourist trading already faded into the past. I pulled into the parking lot to find the gas station, restaurant and trading post all closed. And for what appeared to be quite some time. But that was okay with me, no crowds to worry about and I could walk freely about the area.

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Rt 66 - Holbrook, AZ

/ Holbrook, AZ/
Rt 66 - Holbrook, AZ

One of the coolest things about my epic "Adios, I’m going to Texas” roadtrip was that I never knew what I was going to find when I turned off the interstate and explored the small towns along old Route 66. Holbrook was no exception. Born during the early 1880s as a railroad town and named after the first engineer of the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad, Holbrook was a true wild west town for many years (Pleasant Valley War). It was also a busy place during the heyday of Route 66 and I saw a lot of history from that time period when I visited: Teepees/Wigwams, vintage cars, dinosaurs, petrified wood, old and quirky with new and modern, abandoned buildings/restored buildings and always interesting people. Had time permitted, I could have probably spent an entire day, rather than only an hour or two, in most of the places I visited along the way.

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Rt 66 - Jackrabbit Trading Post, AZ

/ Jackrabbit Trading Post/
Rt 66 - Jackrabbit Trading Post, AZ

Everyone loves jackrabbits, it’s a proven fact. So how could I drive through Joseph City and not stop at the Jackrabbit Trading Post? I couldn’t. So I took Exit 269 and got off I-40 to go hunt jackrabbits. And maybe some rabbit stew.....

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Rt 66 - Meteor City, AZ

/ Meteor City, AZ/
Rt 66 - Meteor City, AZ

I was driving fast on I-40, just out of Two Guns, when I spotted the huge geodesic dome of the Meteor City Trading Post. At a quick glance, it looked like the place was still in business so I turned off Exit 239 to see if I could buy some souvenirs. I needed some Christmas presents. Unfortunately, when I got closer I could see that the Trading Post was no longer trading.

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Rt 66 - Meteor Crater, AZ

/ Meteor Crater, AZ/
Rt 66 - Meteor Crater, AZ

This was another spot along Route 66 that I had researched during the planning stages for my “Goodbye God, I’m going to Texas” road trip. The crater is the result of a collision between an asteroid and the planet Earth some 50,000 years ago. I didn’t know what to expect for the $18 admission price, but when something is advertised as “the World’s best-preserved meteorite impact site on Earth,” I just had to see for myself. Afterall, anything traveling 26,000 miles-per-hour is going to leave a mark when it hits.

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Rt 66 - Grand Canyon Caverns, AZ

/ Grand Canyon Caverns, AZ/
Rt 66 - Grand Canyon Caverns, AZ

You never know what you might find when you’re on your way to a poker game. Walter Peck was heading over to play some cards with friends when he stumbled and nearly fell into a large hole in the ground. Returning to the spot the next day, he and some friends began exploring the hole. Thinking he had found gold while down in the large cavern, Peck later purchased the property and began making preparations to strike it rich. Unfortunately, the assay reports on his find revealed the shiny stuff was nothing more than iron oxide. But Peck was not discouraged, he came up with an idea to bring travelers to the site and tour the caverns, for the small fee of 25 cents. Thus began what would later become the Grand Canyon Caverns.

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Rt 66 - Valentine, AZ

/ Valentine, AZ/
Rt 66 - Valentine, AZ

The town of Valentine dates back to 1898 and it’s probably most famous for the heart-shaped postmark the small contract post office would stamp on outgoing mail every Valentine’s Day. Unfortunately, that came to an end in 1990, when the post office was robbed and the lady working there was shot and killed. Shortly afterwards, her husband bulldozed the building and left the area.

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Rt 66 - Hackberry, AZ

/ Hackberry General Store/
Rt 66 - Hackberry, AZ

The loop of Route 66 between Kingman and Seligman is approximately 87 miles long, one of the longest remaining stretches of old Route 66. I was looking forward to this section of the old road, as my research had shown there were quite a few interesting places to stop at along the way. And by the time I got to Seligman, I was not disappointed.

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