Planning a route 66 trip, any ideas?

[Pacerized]

We've always wanted to check out old route 66 so we're planning a trip starting June 4th. We'll be heading to Tucumcari on the 4th., going down to Roswell, then picking 66 back up at Albuquerque and going across to Sedona where we plan to spend 3 nights, then back through the San Juans where we want to spend a night or two boon docking near Telluride before going home. We're leaving a lot of flexibility for the trip to stop and check things out as we go. We usually dry camp or boon dock, but I'd like to find at least 1 rv park with a pool for the kids along the way, something campy with a theme would be great. Any ideas on the rv park, or things not to miss along the way would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks: Charlie

[azflycaster]

Route 66 across Northern Arizona is spotty at best. There are a few small sections that are drivable, but much of it has been abandoned or replaced by I-40. Here is a good site for more information about "The Mother Road": The Mother Road: Historic Route 66
Sedona is going to be warm in June, plan on temperatures in the 90's, but it's a dry heat.

[juel]

Come East to Oklahoma. I can see Rt.66 from my window. There are many Rt.66 museums, one right here in Chandler, Oklahoma, and one out West in Clinton, Oklahoma. You can even see the old round barn and an old abandoned service station made of sandstone sitting off the side of the road. 66 is still alive and well in Oklahoma.

[eubank]

You know, I'm thinking that just about the only rv park along your route that would have a swimming pool is American RV Park out on the west mesa near Albuquerque. (But "campy with a theme" might be too much to ask for American, too.) Before and especially beyond there, you're in for some pretty long stretches with pretty narrow choices.

But if you can do without the pool, there are some really neat places, especially as you leave the interstate!


Lynn

[Zeppelinium]

Do you know about the Dead Horse rally in mid-Feb? Very nice state park, but no pool and right next to Sedona.

Zep

[Pacerized]

I'm afraid that time restrictions with work limit us from taking in any more of the road. We haven't been to Sedona for about 10 years and thought that would be a great stopping place. I guess it wouldn't be a big deal if I couldn't find the right rv park, we planned on boon docking a lot anyway so I bought the government lands map books for New Mexico and Arizona. Any suggestions for boon docking sites would also be great. I'm not too concerned about the temperatures. Although I've never camped near Sedona the temperature range for June shows a high of 90 and low of 57 which is almost identical to Moab for that time, and I've stayed there in early June several times with no hookups. Hiking gets a little warm but the temps at night are fine for sleeping. I've bought the book by Tom Snyder and checked out several websites. We planned on staying on the old road as much as possible through New Mexico. The map books show what you confirm AzFly with very little of the old road to choose from in Az.

[ROBERT CROSS]

You do have quite a lot to choose from in AZ.

Route 66 Association of Arizona

Did the entire journey back in "99", the AZ segment was the best of the original sections. The DW called the the trip the Horizontal Disney World.

The Bagdad Cafe outside Barstow is kinda kool...

[SnorkyII]

I found this sometime back. I don't think they are running this tour any longer. The tour schedule and itinerary may help.
Route 66
SamH

[Gene]

Charlie, just to tempt you, there are good sections of 66 from the middle of Arizona to Cal. You can pick it up near Seligman and take it west eventually getting to Oatman, a really strange place. Bob's picture in the upper right hand corner above is in Seligman showing the Snow Cap. It's owned by Juan Delgadillo who I understand is really nuts. Across the street to the west is the barber shop and gift shop run by Angel Delgadillo, Juan's brother. Angel is a genuinely nice guy who helped preserve the Rt. 66 atmosphere in that area and some people call the mayor of Route 66. We enjoyed meeting him several years ago. Some of the road east of Oatman seems to be very much the original route. There's a Rt. 66 museum in Kingman. Once in Cal., the Rt. 66 goes through the Mojave area, south of the Mojave National Preserve, including the Bagdad Cafe. No WMD's there. We camped at the Preserve in Nov., '07, at a nice campground with great views. Might be warmer there in June.

Of course, if you're going to Sedona, you won't see any of this. So, change your plans. Everybody goes to Sedona.

Gene

[B4WEDI]

The Snow Cap is most definitely a worthy stop !
Great authentic mexican snacks and a fun time.

Sadly, Juan passed on a few years back, but his son is "carrry-ing on" in his name and I mean that in the most literal sense !

Welcome to Juan Delgadillo gone

Be sure to seek out Angel and his daughter next door for a real history lesson of the area and his thoughts on Rt 66.

Route 66, route 66 gifts - Angel's Barbershop in Seligman, Arizona

Last time we were there, I persuaded Angel gave me a straight edge shave at his barber shop, my first and likely one shave that I'll never forget !

PS.......... Sedona ain't what it used to be..

[Zeppelinium]

Originally Posted by B4WEDI

...
PS.......... Sedona ain't what it used to be..

Sedona is the most unfriendly town to trailers I have ever been in. Can't park, can't turn around. Really, really sucks.

But there is a very nice RV park just before you cross the creek bridge into town from the south. Park there and leave the Airstream. Or you can boondoock west of town.

Zep

[eubank]

Sedona really is tight. Even that RV park that Zep talked about seemed to us a bit tight for good maneuverability.

Just down the highway is Cottonwood and Dead Horse Ranch State Park, which is nice! Seems like there were also several RV parks in/around Cottonwood, but we didn't drive into any of them.


Lynn

[Zeppelinium]

Originally Posted by eubank

Sedona really is tight. Even that RV park that Zep talked about seemed to us a bit tight for good maneuverability.

...

I had the Caravel, so it was a piece of cake compared to longer Airstreams...

CLAYBAGS was right across from us in a very new, seemed like 27', rear door model and they didn't seem to have any problem, but we were in the area right behind the office.

Zep

[eubank]

Originally Posted by Zeppelinium

I had the Caravel, so it was a piece of cake compared to longer Airstreams...

CLAYBAGS was right across from us in a very new, seemed like 27', rear door model and they didn't seem to have any problem, but we were in the area right behind the office.

Zep

I think you're probably right. We have a 30', so size matters, so to speak. (That's the reason why, if we had it all to do again, we'd have a shorter rig -- or at least a second rig!)


Lynn

[Diesel1]

Coming into Arizona on I-40 is R 66, the first few miles there are a number of exits with Indian trinkits. They are fun stops. Holbrook,az is home to the Tee Pee motel( it may be Winslow) the TeePee is a must see. Flagstaff Main st is old R66 lots to see. Williams,Az Main st is old R66. While in Williams it is only 50 miles down Oak Creek Canyon to Sedona. If I were a kid I would pray my parents did not inflict Sedona on me. However Oak Creek is a MUST see!! Williams has several Rv parks and is 60 miles from the south entrance to the Grand Canyon.On down I-40,5 miles past Ash Fork take the Crookston exit. This is the start of the longest unbroken streach of R66.You can now drive to the Colorado river on R66. In Seligman see all the above listed attractions. Westside Lilo's is a VERY good place to eat. West of Seligman is the Grand Canyon Caverns. In addition to the caverns the is a Motel,RV Resterrant,Gas. VERY campy I think they have a pool. A neat Animal rescue farm( tigers and such) in Valintine. Hackberry is a neat stop. Kingman has Lots of R66 stuff. Oatman is very touristy but fun, donkeys roaming the street( lots), gunfights every day. From Oatman to the Ca. border is about 30 miles. InJune it will be 115-120 degree's during the day at the river. Route 66 is just good fun! Adios , John

[Gene]

Oak Creek is pretty, but when we were last there—maybe 4 or 5 years ago, all the FS picnic stops along the creek required a fee, but you had to go to the FS office just south of Sedona to pay it, so anyone driving south couldn't stop there, and anyone driving north, probably wouldn't know it. Hardly anyone was at those picnic areas as a result (plus a lot of people refuse to pay the fee).

Gene

[dogpound]

Charlie:

I would not recommend travelling Oak Creek Canyon with your trailer on. It is a narrow windy road and Gene is correct. Now, if you were to camp in Williams and make a day trip to Sadona then you would do O.K. We stayed in Dead Horse Ranch State Park (Cottonwood) last year and took a trip up to Sadona. It had been several years since we had been there. It is still a nice town but with a RV on it would be a little difficult to get around.
Any plans to do like we did in Leadville last year? We really enjoyed the rally and trying to plan something this year. When you head for Telluride and go through Cortez, if you need a place to pitch you tent for the night let me know because I have more than enough room to put your rig.
Bob and Lou
Member 4CU/CAC
WBCCI # 10105
AIR # 28748

[Phoenix]

Instead of Sedona (it's real touristy and expensive), you might want to consider checking out Flagstaff. It's cooler there, too.

There's a lot to do in and near Flagstaff:

1. Grand Canyon Railway, departs from Williams, AZ. They have a campground (more like a parking lot) there, but there are several campgrounds nearby. I think the KOA near Williams is open again (they had a fire there a few years ago and were closed for quite awhile). It's a little pricey, but it's a once in a lifetime experience. Besides the ride to the Grand Canyon, there's an old west shootout, and the train gets robbed by masked horsemen on the return trip. Don't count on spending much time at the Canyon, though; they only stop off for an hour or two before returning.

2. Black Barts in Flagstaff. Food is pretty good, and you get lots of it; but people go there for the entertainment. Music majors from Northern Arizona University are the servers, and they sing and dance all through dinner. Lots of sing-a-long fun for the family. There's a campground and general store on-site, too; but the campground is a little worn. OK for overnight, but probably not a destination.

3. Beautiful, National Park campground at Sunset Crater (the actual campground is called . Really clean, flush toilets and running water, but no showers. This would be a good base camp for exploring Flagstaff, which is only a couple of miles away. There's tours of the cinder fields near the base of Sunset Crater, which is a old volcano, and Indian ruins in the park.

4. There's a KOA right in Flagstaff, too; but it's really crowded in the summer. Also, not as enjoyable as boondocking. But they have nice showers, and it backs onto National Forest land, so there's lots of hiking trails nearby.

5. Short stretch of Route 66 right in Flagstaff. If you like diners, check out the Galaxy diner. I don't recall it being there before I-40 was built, but they've got authentic diner food, like giant burgers and frosty shakes. Great breakfasts, too.

6. Lots of cultural stuff, too, including: An observatory and planetarium, a couple of Indian museums,

[nilesrob]

I kind of liked Joe and Aggies in Holbrook (AZ). Nice place for lunch. Life could be worse.

[Pacerized]

That's a lot of great info in just a couple of days, it'll take a while for my wife and I to look into everything. Thanks to everyone, and keep it coming if you have more ideas. As far as Sedona we actually planned on staying at Cave Spring state park near Sedona and taking in Slide Rock state park while we're in the area. They have some natural water slides that I think the boys would enjoy after a day of hiking. We haven't ruled out traveling a little more across 66 while staying at Cave Spring. Seeing Williams, and Oatman are likely but making to Kingman, or the California line would mean pushing through New Mexico with very few stops since we only have 10 days. Work always seems to get in the way of camping, but at least my job gives me very little time off during ski season and a lot of free time during the summer when we can camp.
It's nice to here from Gene, Bob, and Lou. If you're up for it I could go for another boon docking weekend. Turquoise lake was great, or maybe the Shrine pass could give us a break this time.

Charlie