Getting Our Kicks on Route 66: Highlights from a Cross-Continent Road Trip

As someone who fancies all things vintage, I’d long wanted to drive Route 66, the so-called “Main Street of America.” So when Shawn and I criss-crossed North America (from Saint Louis to Québec City, then on to Nevada, via Santa Fe, and the Grand Canyon), we declared it essential to hop on what remained of this legendary East-West roadway.

In past decades, Interstate 40 has devoured many sections of Route 66. As a result, we were not always certain how to find the “Mother Road,” especially since we didn’t have a historic map in hand.

When our cruising was abruptly interrupted by “Road Ends” signs, we decided to “consult” Nat King Cole in his 1946 tune, “Route 66.” Nat’s smooth jazz vocals informed us that we could pick up well-restored sections of Route 66 outside of Flagstaff, well into Western Arizona.

And so we enjoyed empty backroads seemingly inhabited only by prairie dogs and the occasional roadster or motorcyclist. We happened upon hotels resembling teepees, mom-and-pop diners offering greasy burgers and refreshing root beer floats, and classic gas stations like the Hackberry General Store in Kingman, Arizona. We also spotted lovingly-restored Model Ts and Corvettes, as well as their long-forgotten counterparts. Equally sad as they were picturesque, the vehicles sat rusting along random stretches of the route, reminding us what happens when Mother Nature has been left to her own devices.

It’s fun to imagine what Route 66 was like in its heyday, when these ghost towns—many now replete with dilapidated motels and diners—were bustling places filled with road-trippers chasing dreams out West.

Established in the 1920s, Route 66 was removed from the U.S. Highway System in 1985. A recent feature in the Cars films has contributed to an infusion of youthful energy for this classic roadway.

Here’s hoping it won’t change too much, though.

The Wigwam Hotel, in Holbrook, Arizona.

A wagon wheel and piece of petrified rock (left), and a pawn shop sign (right).

Mr. Maestas Mexican-American restaurant, Holbrook, Arizona.

Beatles insignia, harnesses, and lamps hang on the walls of the Mr. Maestas Mexican-American restaurant, Holbrook, Arizona

Old American license plates hang on the wall of Mr. Maestas, along with vintage candy tins.

Winners Circle, a bar in Holbrook, Arizona.

A Route 66-era gas station turned hair salon in Ash Fork, Arizona.

The Aztec Motel in Seligman, Arizona.

Vintage and contemporary marketing in Seligman, Arizona.

The Rusty Bolt, a gift shop in Seligman, Arizona.

Delgadillos Snow Cap drive-in, Seligman, Arizona.

Vintage gas pumps, signs, and a Corvette convertible adorn the exterior of the Hackberry General Store, in Kingman, Arizona.

Shawn peeks through the windshield of a vintage Corvette convertible parked at the Hackberry General Store.

If you ever plan to motor west,
Travel my way, take the highway that is best.
Get your kicks on route sixty-six.
It winds from Chicago to L.A.,
More than two thousand miles all the way.
Get your kicks on route sixty-six…
– Route 66 Lyrics

An old-fashioned gas pump’s meter.

A Native-American mannequin (left) and a weathered outhouse (right) at the Hackberry General Store.

The Hackberry General Store.

A cherry-red gas pump at the Hackberry General Store.

Where in the World?

Planning Pointers:

Are you planning on motoring along Route 66? Check out the National Park Service’s site for maps, itineraries and fun spots to explore along the roadway. Don’t forget to have your favorite version of Route 66 at your fingertips too!
Also, explore the National Historic Route 66 Federation.

About the author

Hi! My name is Tricia Mitchell. I delight in telling stories about my slow travels through more than 65 countries. Some of my highlights have included sharing meals with locals in Armenia, Cambodia, and Tunisia; sipping sparkling wine with French cousins in Alsace; milking goats in a sleepy Bulgarian village; and training with a Japanese mine-clearance team in Laos. My husband, Shawn, and I are based in France’s Loire Valley.

42 responses to “Getting Our Kicks on Route 66: Highlights from a Cross-Continent Road Trip”

travelerlynne

July 17, 2012

Great nostalgic photos and taking us down one of America’s best….Route 66. Loved it.

1. Tricia A. Mitchell
  
  July 17, 2012
  
  Glad you enjoyed some armchair motoring, Lynne, and thanks for your nice comment. :-) Have you gotten your kicks there yet? So much fun!
  
Rachael

July 17, 2012

Fab post! This has been on our to-do list for a while and we hope to include the Flagstaff stretch on our next visit to the SouthWest. I will remember this post and return to it when the time comes.

1. Tricia A. Mitchell
  
  July 17, 2012
  
  Rachael, I’ll be posting more images from Route 66 in the coming days, to give you more reasons to visit. We were really lucky to have serendipitously stumbled upon some fun spots in New Mexico and Arizona, even meeting some travelers who’d driven 66 all the way from Illinois! It seems that there are passports available in which motorists can collect stamps from various stopping points too – something that I think would be especially fun for kids.
  
Stephen G. Hipperson

July 17, 2012

Great series. I particularly like the sense of continuity you’re achieved in your presentation.

1. Tricia A. Mitchell
  
  July 17, 2012
  
  What a great compliment – thanks, Stephen! This was just one of many stops on Route 66, so I have much more to share. Hope your week is going well!
  
2 Rivers Photos

July 17, 2012

Its like time stopped… great photos :)

1. Tricia A. Mitchell
  
  July 17, 2012
  
  In many respects, it has! :) It’s fun to imagine what it was like in its heyday, though. We met a woman whose parents have long owned a diner along a section of Route 66 in Arizona. She said that as a child, it was quite frightening to be near the road because the traffic was seemingly never-ending. How times have changed!
  
Madhu

July 17, 2012

Seems like a vintage movie set! Will HAVE to do this whenever i get to the US :-) Thanks Tricia

1. Tricia A. Mitchell
  
  July 17, 2012
  
  It is, Madhu! I’d forgotten how wide and open the spaces are in the western United States. Add to that canvas rusted-out classic cars and trucks, ghost towns and motel marquees long ago retired. It’s quite fun indeed so I hope you’ll get the chance to explore it soon.
  
belocchio

July 17, 2012

I got my kicks on Route 66. I just smiled all the way this swing back in time post. Virginia

1. Tricia A. Mitchell
  
  July 17, 2012
  
  Your comment made me smile too, Virginia. If you and your husband have not yet made a part of this drive, I highly recommend it! We stopped at a few fun eateries along the way, one of which I hope to profile later. Think: root beer floats, burgers, fries, and mischievous owners who made the experience all the more fun!
  
alessandro ciapanna

July 18, 2012

classic americana, as good as it gets.

lovely set :)

1. Tricia A. Mitchell
  
  July 29, 2012
  
  Many thanks, Alessandro. Since I’ve lived in Europe for more than a decade, it’s been great fun to reconnect with such classic Americana!
  
marinachetner

July 20, 2012

so many fab photos in here Tricia!

1. Tricia A. Mitchell
  
  July 20, 2012
  
  Glad you enjoyed the post, Marina! I highly recommend taking a spin on Route 66 if you’re ever in the area. So much to photograph and enjoy!
  
the eternal traveller

July 21, 2012

We just finished watching Billy Connelly’s journey on Route 66 so I enjoyed seeing your photos very much. I think it would be a great trip.

1. Tricia A. Mitchell
  
  July 22, 2012
  
  Eternal Traveler, I hadn’t yet heard of Billy Connolly (I’ve been living in Germany for 10 years, so a bit out of touch with American pop culture) but we’ll have to see if we can check the Route 66 episode out while we’re in the States!
  
  Thanks for your kind comment – I hope you’ll be able to make the trip someday! Even though we only did short stretches, it was quite fun!
  
  1. the eternal traveller
    
    July 22, 2012
    
    Tricia, Billy Connelly is a Scottish comedian – very funny and quite irreverent at times. You should google him. The Route 66 show was a series of a few episodes. Carol.
  2. Tricia A. Mitchell
    
    July 23, 2012
    
    I just did; thanks again for sharing! When my husband and I read up on Route 66, we learned that there was even a sitcom in past decades. Such a legendary drive!
rigmover

July 23, 2012

Another great post, thanks Tricia, it’s got to be on my wish list.

1. Tricia A. Mitchell
  
  July 29, 2012
  
  My, what a globe-trotter you are, Mark!
  
rocket2722

July 29, 2012

Fantastic images! Travelling Route 66 is on my ‘To Do List’ and this post has moved it up near the top.

1. Tricia A. Mitchell
  
  July 29, 2012
  
  Highly recommended! My husband was initially skeptical about the drive, but quickly became interested once we unravelled more of the route’s history and unique character. Here’s hoping you’ll make it to America’s ‘Main Street’ sometime soon!
  
adaisygarden

August 10, 2012

Great photos!!

Fergiemoto

August 19, 2012

Great nostalgic feeling with your photos! Fantastic.

1. Tricia A. Mitchell
  
  August 19, 2012
  
  What a nice compliment, Fergiemoto. Yes, it definitely seemed fitting to give these images an antique filtered look. Have you had the chance to travel Route 66 at all?
  
Red Dog Saloon – Route 66

September 7, 2012

[…] Getting Our Kicks… On Route 66 Other "more-real-than-life" HDR photos you'll like:Stunning Morro Bay Sunset and Morro RockCourtyard of the Maharaja's PalaceSaint Francis De Asis Church, Taos New Mexico Filed Under California, HDR photo, Portfolio Photos Tagged With california, needles, red dog saloon, route 66 […]

Mona

January 26, 2013

What a fantastic adventure through our country. Excellent photography and writing. (You and your husband look like great friends. You are blessed.) I live in Arizona & my family is in Indiana; I’ve long considered taking this trip alone (with my Cocker Spaniel). Your pictures inspire me that I can do it.

1. Tricia A. Mitchell
  
  January 27, 2013
  
  Hi Mona – welcome, and thank you for your kind words. Indeed, we’ve been very fortunate to have shared many wonderful adventures during our whirlwind first few years together.
  
  As a former solo traveler, (Greece and Spain were my first solo trips, before I started exploring places like Tunisia, Morocco and India alone) I highly encourage you to make the trip! Granted, you’ll need to make some tweaks to your driving schedule, since your canine companion won’t be able to share driving duties with you :), but I think it’s a great part of the U.S. to explore. My husband and I started out in IL, actually going as far east as Québec City, then drove out to NV. We only had time to explore a small leg of Route 66, but it was one of the most memorable legs of our trip!
  
gallivance.net

July 8, 2014

Wonderful post Tricia. We’ve driven parts of Route 66, but never set out to follow it deliberately. I see a road trip in our future. :) I love all the cool memorabilia at the Hackberry General Store. My uncle ran a country store and it really reminds me of it. He was quite the practical joker, so when a man entered the store was told (with a straight face), “Your wife just called and said to bring home a loaf of bread” – which they dutifully did! His bread sales soared. :) ~Terri

1. Tricia A. Mitchell
  
  July 9, 2014
  
  Terri, the anecdote about your uncle’s mischief brought a smile to my face on this Wednesday morning in Bulgaria. :) I wonder if your uncle’s customers eventually caught on?
  
  Re: Route 66, Shawn and I didn’t get a chance to follow much of it, but detoured on it whenever possible as we were taking my car on her farewell journey in the summer of 2012. She’d just sailed over the ocean from Germany and was ready to begin a new life with a new owner in the Southwestern United States.
  
  We couldn’t resist playing Nat King Cole’s jingle a few times, of course :) and we were happy to hear that residents are trying to revive parts of the ‘Mother Road’. The legendary stories that road could tell!
  
Into the West: 10 Links You’ll Love | GALLIVANCE

July 12, 2014

[…] Route 66 Nearly everyone’s heard of Route 66, but have you actually driven it? Well Tricia has. Enjoy her fabulous photos as she heads west on this historic highway. […]

Mandy

July 12, 2014

These photos are absolutely stunning Tricia! What a trip! I’d love to take a road trip in the States one day – we’re kind of planning one from Seattle to San Francisco and San Diego.

1. Tricia A. Mitchell
  
  July 12, 2014
  
  Thanks, Mandy! Seattle, San Francisco, and San Diego = sounds fun! Shawn and I did the first two cities back in 2012, during this wild North American road-trip that had us as far east as Québec City, and as far west as Seattle and San Francisco. The road-trip was born out of the necessity to get my car to its new owner, after it sailed across the Atlantic, and I’m glad we made some fun stops along the way.
  
  When do you think you might be able to do the road-trip?
  
  1. Mandy
    
    July 17, 2014
    
    It’s still very much in the wishlist stage. We were thinking of our plans for next year and as my husband hasn’t been to the States, we thought we’d finally do that.
  2. Tricia A. Mitchell
    
    July 20, 2014
    
    Here’s hoping it’ll come to fruition in 2015 then! There are many more spots I’d like to explore in the United States as well. At the top of that mental list are some more of our national parks. :)
gallivance.net

July 12, 2014

Hi Tricia,
We just love this post and wanted to let you know that we featured a link to it today as part of our “Slice of Americana Series” that we’re running this July. You can check it out at the link below. Thanks for writing so beautifully! All the best, Terri & James

Into the West: 10 Links You’ll Love

1. Tricia A. Mitchell
  
  July 12, 2014
  
  Terri & James, funny I just discovered that earlier this morning. Flattered to have been included in your Slice of Americana Series, and glad to give the delightful Hackberry General Store in AZ a bit more well-deserved traffic. Thanks to you both!
  
freebutfun

July 12, 2014

Found you through Terri and James, and awww… whenever I’ll make it to the U.S., that is the roadtrip I want to make too! Awesome pictures, filled with nostalgia!

1. Tricia A. Mitchell
  
  July 14, 2014
  
  Freebutfun, Terri and James are an inspiration, and I’m glad you’re here as a result of their Americana round-up! I’d lived in Europe for 10 years before we did the North American / Route 66 road-trip. It was a fun way to get reacquainted with my own country.
  
  I’ve been wanting to get up to Finland for several years. Helsinki and the Finnish countryside look beautiful!
  
  1. freebutfun
    
    July 14, 2014
    
    Welcome :) There are some beautiful places here, as there are in all around the world!