Head down Route 66 to the Grand Canyon

When visiting Oatman, Ariz., you’re likely to see more donkeys than people.

The idea for this road trip was born on New Year’s Eve. I was planning to ring in 2015 with friends in Los Angeles, but also thought it would be cool to go see the Grand Canyon for the first time. I punched it into my phone and saw that I could be there in just five hours — “That’s it?” I thought. It wasn’t so far away. I went for it, and learned that getting there was half the fun.

Our trip begins on I-40, just across the California state line in Needles. I take the Topock/Golden Shores exit over the Colorado River to the mother road: Route 66. Here in Arizona, most of this iconic old highway — marked by old and new signage — is still drivable. We head northwest along the snaking green river to our first destination. Oatman attracted gold miners to its Black Mountains in its heyday, but this is one ghost town that just won’t die. A dirt road surrounded by clusters of old homes leads to the center of town. Immediately we’re greeted by Oatman’s most famous residents — free-roaming donkeys. We’ll learn that they belong to the Bureau of Land Management, which allows them to roam free and for tourists to purchase food for a few bucks and feed them.

There are more than 40 shops as well as a few places to eat in this one-street town. First we stop and say hello to Jackie, who owns a souvenir shop called Fast Fanny’s Place. Jackie is quite the historian — of not only Oatman but all of Arizona and the West. She explains that the town was named in honor of Olive Oatman, who as a young girl was kidnapped by an Apache tribe, sold to the Mojave Indians and later rescued in 1857 in a trade near the current site of the town. What attracts me to this shop, in addition to Jackie’s stories, is a recording studio in the back —Jackie’s husband Bob, it turns out, is a Waylon Jennings tribute artist (looks just like him, too!) and uses the space to record his songs.

Cruising along Route 66, you’ll see markers in many forms.

A few stores and burros up the road from Fanny’s is the historic Oatman Hotel, where Clark Gable and Carole Lombard spent their wedding night in 1939. (Back then, to get married in California, a couple would have to wait three days, but Arizona had no such law and so several movie stars would drive to Kingman or Yuma to get hitched right away.) Legend has it that Gable’s spirit haunts the honeymoon suite, which is now a museum in the upstairs of the hotel. A photograph of what the hotel alleges is the late actor’s ghost hangs outside in the hallway. Downstairs in the lobby is a cantina (serving old-fashioned candies and ice cream cones) and a restaurant and bar — quite a sight, with every square inch covered in dollar bills, all signed by past patrons. A large portrait of Willie Nelson hangs above a small stage in back. I’m told that the owner, apparently a die-hard fan, always says that Willie will play here someday, and even keeps his favorite drink ready if he does show up — but so far, no Willie.

Departing Oatman for our next ghost town, the road narrows and winds through some pretty amazing canyons and buttes. Moving up and down along the mountain, I’m fascinated thinking about older cars that once made the trip through this portion of Route 66 from Chicago to California. In the 1960s, the construction of I-40, which bypasses the area into Needles, left Oatman nearly abandoned. But the development of Laughlin, Nevada — about 40 minutes away — and legend of Route 66 kept the town flourishing.

Roy Purcell’s rock murals have kept the ghost town of Chloride City alive.

On the way, we pass the vintage Cool Springs gas station. There is no gas here anymore, just empty pumps, but inside we find cold drinks, odd trinkets — and a large collection of signed Rolling Stones memorabilia. The attendant, George, also informs us that this part of the route inspired the fictional town of Radiator Springs in the Disney movie Cars.

Soon we arrive in Kingman, a “crossroads” town dotted with old Route 66 cafés and motels and museums (many worth a peep!), and home to one the largest biker conventions in the country. But what interests me most in Kingman is the copper and turquoise mine, and a little turquoise store nearby called Colbaugh Processing. This is the most famous turquoise in America, and it all comes from the mine just a few miles way in Mineral Park. Known for its sky-blue hue, Kingman turquoise was first sought after by the Mayans and Aztecs more than 1,000 years ago, and is the biggest supplier to the Southwest jewelry industry. On the way here, we spot a Native American woman carrying a sign that reads “Good Luck Turquoise.” When I ask the store’s owner, Marty, a miner, if there’s any truth to this, he pulls a piece about the size of a silver dollar from his pocket. He carries it with him every day for good luck, he says.

I top off the gas tank (there aren’t any fuel stations where I’m going) and head north on U.S. 93 for about 30 miles, and then turn right onto Pierce Ferry Road. I follow signs for our ultimate destination: Grand Canyon West. This isn’t part of the National Park system, and it lies on the outskirts on Hualapai Indian reservation land. Here you can experience the canyon by air, river or land via helicopter rides, rafting and shuttle bus. It’s also home to the renowned Skywalk — a horseshoe-shaped bridge made of glass that’s suspended 4,000 feet over the canyon. We’re heading for a ranch that sits about 100 feet from the rim — a family-friendly place where you can horseback ride, roast s’mores around a fire pit and “camp out” in a private cabin, complete with a full bath, cozy bed and a front porch. This trip, I’m checking out the sites on foot.

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Chloride City is a haven for antique and treasure hunters