Route 66 - Photos and fun

The last Route 66 town to be bypassed by I-40, Williams (pop. 2,842; elev. 6,780 feet) held out until the bitter end, waging court battle after court battle before finally surrendering on October 13, 1984. Despite the town’s long opposition, in the end Williams gave in gracefully, going so far as to hold a celebration-c#m-wake for the old road, highlighted by a performance atop a new freeway overpass by none other than Mr. Route 66 himself, Bobby “Get Your Kicks” Troup.

From 1857 to 1860 Lieutenant Edward Beale, a crew of 100 men, and 22 camels built the first federal highway in the southwest. Beale’s road roughly followed Lieutenant Amiel Whipple’s trail west across Arizona through the Flagstaff area and then a little north through Peach Springs and Truxton Wash, which was named for Beale’s son, before making its way through the Kingman area and on to the Colorado River.

Although the camels were very effective at packing heavy loads across the dry, rocky landscape, they did not meet with positive acceptance from the muleskinners who saw the animals as “foul-smelling, evil tempered, and ugly.” They also scared the horses and mules. Despite the protests, these beasts trudged across northern Arizona as Beale and his crew cleared a 10-foot wide track and pushed the rocks to the side to allow wagons to travel on the track.

When Beale’s job was complete, he wrote of the road:

“It is the shortest route from our western frontier by 300 miles, being nearly directly west. It is the most level, our wagons only double-teaming once in the entire distance, and that at a short hill, and over a surface heretofore unbroken by wheels or trail of any kind. It is well-watered! Our greatest distance without water at any time being twenty miles … It crosses the great desert (which must be crossed by any road to California) at its narrowest point.”

and each animal was packed with one thousand pounds of provisions and military stores. With this load they made from 30 to 40 miles per day, finding their own subsistence in even the most barren country and going without water from six to ten days at a time.”

I can recognize 3, but who are the other 2?

Nice set up Tom Patterson. Enjoy the ride and post up often on your journey!