Flagstaff to Barstow on Historic Route 66 | Favorite Ride

Favorite Ride Flagstaff to Barstow on Historic Route 66

Oatman Highway between Kingman and Topock, Arizona, is one of the most challenging sections of this Route 66 motorcycle ride. (Photos by the author)

Testing the new Can-Am Canyon Redrock in Arizona presented me with an opportunity to ride part of Historic Route 66. I began in Flagstaff, a mountain town that combines a charming historic district with the energy of a college town (Go Lumberjacks!) and a gateway location near the Grand Canyon and several national monuments.

Interstate 40, which replaced or bypassed Route 66 in parts of New Mexico, Arizona, and California, runs east-west through Flagstaff. Historic Route 66 winds its way through the heart of town, where you can visit landmarks such as Miz Zip’s diner, the Lowell Observatory, and the Americana Motor Hotel (where Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper stayed while filming Easy Rider). The Flagstaff Visitor Center, located in the train depot downtown, offers maps, info, and a mobile passport that lists “66 Things to Do on Flagstaff’s Route 66.”

Scan the QR code above or click here to view the route on REVER

West of Flagstaff, Route 66 merges with I-40, and a sign that reads “Arizona Divide, Elevation 7,335” marks the highest point on Route 66. Next, I took the exit for Williams, the last town to be bypassed by I-40 (on October 13, 1984) and a launching point for Grand Canyon National Park, either by riding 60 miles north on State Route 64 or taking the Grand Canyon Railway.

Route 66 nostalgia is alive and well in Williams. Downtown is divided into eastbound and westbound one-way streets that are lined with motels, bars, restaurants, souvenir shops, murals, and attractions celebrating the Mother Road. After a cruise around downtown, I continued west on I-40.

The Flagstaff Visitor Center.

Sixteen miles later, I exited at Ash Fork and followed Route 66 through the former railroad town. The Route 66 museum was closed when I passed through, and most other sites are in disrepair.

After another 5 miles on I-40, I exited at Crookton Road and rode a quiet 18-mile stretch of old Route 66 to Seligman, passing several sets of restored Burma-Shave signs, including: He tried to cross / As fast train neared / Death didn’t draft him / He volunteered.

Williams, Arizona, was the last town bypassed by I-40, but Route 66 nostalgia lives on at many local businesses.

It was a hot day, so I stopped in Seligman for a milkshake at Delgadillo’s Snow Cap, a historic eatery founded in 1953 by Juan Delgadillo. Juan’s brother, Angel, once the local barber, founded the Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona. Seligman has several notable Route 66 establishments, including the Aztec Motel, the Roadkill Cafe/O.K. Saloon, and the Copper Cart (which has a small motorcycle museum).

From Seligman, I continued west on Historic Route 66, a quiet, desolate stretch through the high desert to Peach Springs, a town on the Hualapai Reservation that offers the Hualapai Lodge but no Route 66 nostalgia.

The staff at Delgadillo’s Snow Cap in Seligman, Arizona, serve up delicious milkshakes and good humor.

For the next 50 miles, Route 66 passes through a parched landscape dotted with a few communities – Truxton, Crozier, Valentine, Hackberry, Antares. Some have relics of the past, but mostly they provide evidence of how much was lost when I-40 passed them by.

Next up was Kingman, a thriving city that fully embraces its Route 66 heritage: throwback motels and eateries, signage and murals, and a large visitor center with a drive-thru Route 66 arch that’s perfect for commemorative photos.

On Historic Route 66 between Seligman and Kingman, you’ll see more Burma-Shave signs than cars.

Leaving Kingman, Historic Route 66 passes through a dramatic canyon, crosses over I-40, and becomes Oatman Highway. The road to Oatman is narrow, steeply graded, and full of switchbacks as it works its way up and over Sitgreaves Pass (3,586 feet). What was the most feared section of Route 66 for migrants and travelers in the early days is the most exciting for motorcyclists.

Oatman, a former mining town with weathered storefronts, wooden boardwalks, and wandering burros, is a popular stop. From Oatman, Route 66 descends more than 2,000 feet through the desert on its way to the state line.

When I reached Topock, a 160-mile uninterrupted stretch of old Route 66 came to an end as I got back on the interstate to cross into California. Riding over the Colorado River, I admired the white Old Trails Bridge, which once carried Route 66 traffic, and the blue, inviting water.

The Route 66 arch in Kingman is a popular photo stop.

The first town in California is Needles, where Route 66 separates from I-40 as it goes through town and then is swallowed up again as it climbs into the rugged mountains of the Mojave Desert.

Soon I entered the Mojave Trails National Monument, which spans 1.6 million acres between Needles and Barstow and contains one of the longest undeveloped stretches of Historic Route 66. I had been on the road for nearly 10 hours, and the 100-degree-plus heat was taking its toll. I missed an exit for Route 66, and another section off Mountain Springs Road was closed for construction. I finally exited I-40 at Kelbaker Road and rode south to Route 66 near the iconic but defunct Roy’s Motel & Cafe in Amboy.

Riding west, I began seeing large white Route 66 highway symbols painted on the roadway as it passed through empty desert and wilderness areas. For miles, I-40 was nowhere in sight, but eventually it drew closer and Route 66 ran right next to it, passing through hardscrabble communities like Ludlow, Newberry Springs, and Daggett. Route 66 stopped abruptly at a Marine Corps Logistics Base, so I returned to I-40 for the last few miles into Barstow.

An iconic sign in Amboy, California.

Riding all the way to Santa Monica Pier wasn’t in the cards. The final 130 miles of Route 66 goes through the sprawl of Los Angeles on surface streets and takes hours to ride. I was still three hours from home, and by the time I got there, I had logged 678 miles over 16 hours in temperatures ranging from 41-106 degrees. I enjoyed my Route 66 motorcycle ride, but I was overdue for a beer.