The Greater Los Angeles Metropolitan Area

From San Bernardino it would have taken us about four hours driving through heavy traffic to cover the remaining 80 miles to the end of Route 66 in Santa Monica. So we decided to save those last 80 miles for another trip, and we ended our 2021-2022 Route 66 experience by driving from San Bernardino to Palm Springs for a little R&R before heading home.

When we decide to see those last 80 miles, here are some of the key things we’ll want to see. (I haven’t yet researched everything we’ll want to see and do along this stretch.)

From the Wigwam Motel in San Bernardino, Route 66 continues west on Foothill Boulevard about 16 miles to Rancho Cucamonga. There are three great Route 66 sights here. On the right at 9670 Foothill Boulevard is the 1915 Cucamonga Service Station. It’s been beautifully restored to how it looked when it was a Richfield station in the 1930s.

Cucamonga Service Station (from TripAdvisor.com)

About a mile and a half past the Cucamonga Service Station, also on the right, is the Sycamore Inn at 8318 Foothill Boulevard. It was built in 1848 and was once a stagecoach stop.

 Sycamore Inn in Rancho Cucamonga (from Cityof RC.us)

Just past the Sycamore Inn on the left, at 8189 Foothill Boulevard, is the Magic Lamp Inn, built in 1957. Check the neon Aladdin’s lamp!

Magic Lamp Inn in Rancho Cucamonga (from Facebook)

In another 7½ miles, after passing through Claremont, Route 66 reaches La Verne. Here, on the right at 2975 Foothill Boulevard, is La Paloma Café. It's in a building that dates to 1828.

La Paloma in 1928 building in La Verne (from Facebook)

In about 4 miles, at a fork in the road in Glendora, Route 66 forks left off Foothill Boulevard and becomes Historic Route 66. They merge back together in about 3 miles in Azuza. Here at 675 East Foothill Boulevard is a preserved neon sign for the now-gone Foothill Drive-In Theatre

Sign for the Foothill Drive-In Theatre in Azusa (from roadarch.com)

Foothill Boulevard now becomes Huntington Boulevard. In about 5 miles, just past Duarte, turn right (north) on Shamrock Avenue. In about ¾ of a mile, turn left (west) to get back on Foothill Boulevard. This stretch of Foothill Boulevard was Route 66 for just five years, until 1931. In about 1 mile, at 301 West Foothill Boulevard in Monrovia, is the amazing Aztec Hotel. It was built in 1925 in Mayan style.

Aztec Hotel in Monrovia (from Facebook)

About 2 miles west of the Aztec Hotel, turn left (south) on Santa Anita Avenue. After crossing I-210, turn right (west) on Colorado Boulevard (Historic Route 66) into Pasadena.

At 1320 East Colorado Boulevard is an old milestone.

Foothill Boulevard milestone (from nps.gov)

The milestone was placed here sometime between 1906 and 1908. The “F.B.” means Foothill Boulevard; the “11” means it was 11 miles to the Los Angeles Courthouse. The “220” and “222” represent a very early street address numbering system.

Across the street from the mile marker, at 1285 East Colorado Boulevard, is the 1927 Howard Motor Company Building. Its elaborate style is called Churrigueresque, a style I never heard of before!

Howard Motor Company Building (from Wikipedia)

There have been several “alignments” of Route 66 between Pasadena and Los Angeles. While we normally haven't done much backtracking on our Route 66 experience, here I would do a bit of backtracking because there are interesting things to see along three of the alignments.

I would first continue straight on West Colorado Boulevard, which was Route 66 from 1935 to 1939. About 2 miles past the Jones Motor Company is the beautiful Colorado Street Bridge. When it was completed in 1913, it was the highest concrete bridge in the world. It was restored in 1993.

Colorado Street Bridge in Pasadena (from onlyinyourstate.com)

After seeing the bridge, I would turn around and head back into Pasadena on Colorado Boulevard to experience another Route 66 alignment. Turn right (south) on Fair Oaks Avenue. This was Route 66 from 1926 through 1934, going into South Pasadena. In about 2 miles, at the corner of Fair Oaks Avenue and Mission Street, is the Fair Oaks Pharmacy at 1526 Mission Street. It was built in 1915 and still has a soda fountain selling ice cream sodas and phosphates.

Fair Oaks Pharmacy in South Pasadena (from fairoakspharmacy.net)

Two blocks south of the Fair Oaks Pharmacy is the 1925 Rialto Theatre at 1023 Fair Oaks Boulevard. The art deco marquee was added in the 1930s.

RialtoTheatre in South Pasadena (from southpasadenan.com)

Until 1936, Route 66 continued south on Fair Oaks Boulevard, then turned right (west) on Huntington Boulevard and, after some more turns, ended at South Broadway and 7^th Street in downtown Los Angeles. A sign on the streetlight at the northwest corner of the intersection marks the spot.

But I would skip the rest of that alignment. After seeing the Rialto Theater in South Pasadena, I would turn around and head back north on Fair Oaks Boulevard about a half mile. Turn left (west) onto CA 110. This is the Arroyo Seco Parkway. When it was completed in 1940, it became the final “alignment” of Route 66 in this area. It’s one of the oldest freeways in the United States and the first one west of the Mississippi. So this was the first stretch of Route 66 on a freeway. It was built when cars were driven more slowly than they are now, so it has more curves than today’s interstate highways.

Arroyo Seco Parkway art deco tunnets (from Wikipedia)

In about 5 or 6 miles, exit the Arroyo Seco Parkway at the Hollywood Freeway (US 101) toward Hollywood. In about 3 miles, exit the Hollywood Freeway at the Santa Monica Boulevard (CA 2). Go west on the Santa Monica Boulevard about 10 miles to Lincoln Boulevard. Turn left (southeast) on Lincoln Boulevard and go 3 blocks. Route 66 officially ends (or begins, depending on your perspective) at the intersection of Lincoln Boulevard and Olympic Boulevard. There’s a sign on south corner, across Olympic Boulevard from Mel’s Drive In. 

Official end of Route 66 in Santa Monica (from sidetrackadventures.com)

If you’re thinking, “Whoa, this is kind of anticlimactic! I thought Route 66 would end at the Pacific Ocean!” you’re not alone. In the 1930s a movie company placed a very unofficial “End of the Trail” Route 66 sign on the Santa Monica pier. The pier now has a replica of that sign, and it’s far more famous and popular than the official end of Route 66.

To reach the unofficial end on Santa Monica Pier from the official end of Route 66, drive 1 block back (northwest) on Lincoln Boulevard to Colorado Avenue. Turn left (southwest) on Colorado Avenue to reach Santa Monica Pier. The sign is near a kiosk selling Route 66 souvenirs.

Unofficial end of Route 66 on Santa Monica Pier (from atlasobscura.com)

As I noted at the beginning of this post, we haven’t yet traveled Route 66 from San Bernadino to Santa Monica. In fact, I haven’t yet researched all the things we’d want to see and do along this stretch. When we travel this stretch, I’ll update this post with more things to see and do along the western end of Route 66.

Helendale, Victorville, and San Bernardino, California

From Barstow, Route 66 transitions from desert to the San Bernadino and San Gabriel Mountains and then to the busy roads of the greater Los Angeles metropolitan area. 

From Barstow, we drove west on Route 66 (CA 66) about 22 miles to Helendale. Just past the intersection with Vista Road is a restored sign for Polly Gas. Polly was once a southern California gas station chain. The prices from the 1950s.

Polly Gas sign in Helendale

About a mile further on the left is the former Watson’s Richfield Station, built in the 1940s. An outhouse is still in the rear.

Former Watson's Richfield Station in Helendale

About 2 miles past the Richfield Station, on the right (north), is a Route 66 icon: Elmer’s Bottle Tree Ranch.

Elmer's Bottle Ranch in Helendale

Another view of Elmer's Bottle Ranch

About 5 miles past Elmer’s Bottle Tree Ranch, we reached Oro Grande. At the intersection with Mill Street is the former Mohawk Service Station.

Former Mohawk Service Station in Oro Grande

About 2 miles past Elmer's Bottle Tree Ranch, Route 66 crosses the Mojave River Bridge, built in 1930 with beautiful guard rails.

Mojave River Bridge in Oro Grande

After the Mojave River Bridge, Oro Grande transitions into Victorville. Less than a mile past the bridge, on the outskirts of Victorville, is a Route 66 icon: Emma Jean’s Holland Burger.

Emma Jean's Holland Burger in Victorville

Guy Fieri of the TV show Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives calls Emma Jean’s one of the top three roadside cafes in the United States. A scene in the movie Kill Bill 2 was filmed here. A plaque out front tells Emma Jean’s story.

Plaque outside Emma Jean's Holland Burger

Route 66 becomes D Street as it approaches downtown Victorville. At 16825 D Street is the California Route 66 Museum. Unfortunately, it was closed when we visited.

California Route 66 Museum in Victorville (from hulalandblog.com)

Route 66 turns right (west) on 7^th Street (Business I-40). A Route 66 gateway arch welcomed us to “Old Town” Victorville.

Route 66 gateway sign in Victorville

Half a block off Route 66, at 16937 C Street, is the Green Spot Motel. Herman Mankiewicz and John Houseman wrote first drafts of the movie Citizen Kane here.

Green Spot Motel in Victorville

South of Victorville, 7^th Street intersects with I-15. Between here and Oak Hills, Route 66 is gone, replaced by I-15. Rather than take the interstate, just before the I-15 intersection we turned left (south) on Mariposa Road. It’s a frontage road that runs along the southeast side of I-15. It’s not Route 66, but we found it a bit more pleasant than the interstate.

In about 12 miles, we reached Oak Hills. We turned right (northwest) on Joshua Street to cross I-15. Here is another Route 66 institution: the Outpost Café in Oak Hills, California.

Outpost Cafe in Oak Hills

Joshua Street deadends a block past the Outpost Café. We turned left (south) on Caliente Road. We were once again on Route 66. We stayed on Caliente Road until it ended in about 3 or 4 miles. Here we had to get back on I-15 south to head toward the Cajon Pass between the San Bernardino and San Gabriel Mountains.

Approaching the Cajon Pass on I-15

In about 7½ miles, we exited at Cleghorn Road (Exit 129). We turned right (south) on Cajon Boulevard—and we were back on Route 66, with great scenery. Route 66 once again runs alongside a railroad.

Route 66 through the Cajon Pass

In about 2½ miles, Route 66 crosses the San Andreas Fault. The surface of this part of the planet rests on two enormous plates. Their edges meet at the San Andreas Fault, which runs the length of California. The North American plate is slowly moving south, while the Pacific plate is slowly moving north. The edges of the two plates aren’t smooth. So when they rub against each other, earthquakes can result.

If you want to stop at the San Andreas Fault (we didn’t), there’s a pullover here for a marker identifying the Blue Cut Trail, which eventually became Route 66 through this region.

Route 66 crossing the San Andreas Fault

The scenery continued to be beautiful as we descended toward San Bernardino, with the railroad still on our right.

Like Springfield, Missouri, San Bernardino once had two Route 66s. From 1928 until the 1950s, “City US 66” went south on Mount Vernon Avenue, then turned right (west) on 5^th Street. “Alternate US 66” tried to bypass downtown San Bernardino by going south about a mile east of City US 66 on North E Street, then right on 5^th Street.

We took the City US 66 option. On the north edge of San Bernardino, Route 66 (Cajon Boulevard) bends a bit to the right (south) and becomes Mount Vernon Avenue—City US 66. There are some vintage motels and signs along here.

Instead of turning right (west) on 5^th Street, we stayed on Mount Vernon Avenue one more block. Here is the Santa Fe Depot, another Harvey House, built in 1918.

Santa Fe Depot in San Bernardino

(See my post on Winslow, Arizona, for more information on the Harvey Houses built along the Santa Fe Railroad.) Today the depot houses the San Bernardino History and Railroad Museum.

We drove back to 5^th Street and turned left (west) to stay on Route 66. In about a mile, 5^th Street becomes Foothills Boulevard.  In another mile, we reached one more Route 66 gem: Wigwam Village #7 at 2728 Foothills Boulevard. It was built in 1949.

Wigwam Village #7 in San Bernardino

Another view of Wigwam Village #7

Our Route 66 adventure ended in San Bernardino. Between here and Santa Monica, there’s more to see, but we decided we didn’t want to spend what would likely be four hours in heavy traffic to see it all. (We made a similar choice at the beginning of our trip, bypassing Chicago to start our Route 66 experience near Cicero.) We turned south and spent the end of our Route 66 experience in Palm Springs. We stayed at the Inn at Little Paradise, a beautifully restored mid-century motel.

Inn at Little Paradise in Palm Springs

With its wealth of mid-century modern architecture, Palm Springs was an unorthodox but great end to a wonderful series of trips experiencing Route 66.

If you want to experience Route 66 all the way to Santa Monica, I have one last blog post on Route 66 in the greater Los Angeles metropolitan area.

Barstow, California

Throughout our Route 66 experience from Illinois through California, we’ve seen numerous towns that have embraced their Route 66 heritage and tried to make their town attractive to visitors. In California this has been harder because the harsh desert conditions and—closer to Los Angeles—urbanization have left fewer remnants of Route 66. We saw just three towns in California that clearly celebrate their connection to Route 66: Needles, Amboy, and Barstow. Main Street—Route 66 in Barstow—is marked with pillars celebrating Route 66, and there are a number of interesting buildings and signs that once catered to Route 66 travelers.

One of the Route 66 pillars along Barstow's Main Street

At 916 East Main Street is the 1950s Cactus Motel. Its neon sign is original.

Cactus Motel sign in Barstow

The former Village Hotel & Café at 201 East Main Street still has its neon sign. It’s now a Chinese restaurant.

Village Hotel & Cafe neon sign in Barstow

On the southwest corner of East Main Street and 2^nd Avenue is the site of the former El Rancho Motel (not to be confused with the El Rancho Hotel in Gallup, New Mexico). The motel was built in 1947 out of old railroad ties. Sadly, much of it burned in July 2022, a few months before we visited.

Remains of the El Rancho Motel in Barstow as of October 2022

Shortly after our visit, the El Rancho was demolished.

 Across the street from the El Rancho site is a very nice mural that pays tribute to the Old Spanish Trail that once ran through Barstow.

Mural of the Old Spanish Trail in Barstow

Behind that mural, on Cozy Street, are two more murals. The one on the right (east) is a tribute to General Edward Beale, who surveyed a wagon road that eventually became Route 66.

Mural honoring General Edward Beale in Barstow

The mural on the left (west) is a map of the southern route of the Mormon Trail. 

Map of the southern route of the Mormon Trail in Barstow

We turned right (north) on North 1^st Avenue. In about half a mile we reached a gem: the beautiful Casa del Desierto railroad depot.

Casa del Desierto in Barstow

Casa del Desierto is one of the Harvey Houses built for the Santa Fe Railroad. This one was built in 1911-1913 after the previous depot burned. It was designed by the remarkable Mary Colter. My post on Winslow, Arizona, shares more on Mary Colter and the Harvey Houses. Today Casa del Desierto houses the Route 66 Mother Road Museum. Unfortunately, it was closed when we visited.

We returned to Route 66, turning right to keep going west. The New Life Fellowship at 134 Main Street was once the Barstow Garage, built in the 1920s.

Former Barstow Garage

At 195 Main Street is the Route 66 Motel with a great neon sign. Its cabins were built in 1922.

Route 66 Motel in Barstow

At 201 Main Street is The Torches Motel. This was once the Hollon Motel, built in the 1940s.

The Torches Motel in Barstow

The Torches’ cool neon sign was probably added in the 1960s.

The Torches Motel sign

As you can see, Barstow is a true desert oasis. Probably because it's home to a significant railway hub and the Marine Corps Logistics Base, it's a large town. There's plenty to see and also lots of restaurant and hotel options. 

After seeing Barstow, we continued west on Route 66 (CA 66), back into the desolation of the Mojave Desert, heading toward our next stop in Helendale.