West of Seligman, Arizona, Route 66 arches northwest then southwest to Kingman, Arizona, passing through several tiny towns, striking desert scenery, and an essential stop for Route 66 enthusiasts: the Hackberry General Store.
About 35 miles past Seligman, Route 66 descends into the town of Peach Springs.
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| Route 66 approaching Peach Springs, Arizona |
Peach Springs is the headquarters of the Hualapai Indian Reservation. It may have been one of the towns that, along with Seligman, inspired the town of Radiator Springs in the movie Cars.
On the southwest corner of the intersection of Route 66 and Diamond Creek Road are the remains of the John Osterman Shell Gas station.
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| Osterman Station in Peach Springs |
Osterman Station was built in 1927 or 1932 (sources give varying dates) to resemble the Alamo in San Antonio, Texas. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2012.
About 300 feet west on the Osterman Station, on the north side of the Route 66, is the Historic Peach Springs Trading Post. It looked pretty plain to me, but it was built in 1928 in Pueblo Revival style.
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| Historic Peach Springs Trading Post |
I thought the building to the right of the trading post looked interesting, but I couldn’t find out anything about it.
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| Next to Peach Springs Trading Post |
West of Peach Springs, the views continue to be striking.
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| Route 66 west of Peach Springs |
About 8 miles west of Peach Springs is the tiny town of Truxton, Arizona. Truxton was founded in 1950 when a service station was built here. On the northeast corner of Route 66 and West 1st Street are the remains of the Truxton Cafe and Texaco Gas Station, complete with outhouse.
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| Truxton Cafe |
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| Frontier Motel in Truxton |
Across Route 66 from the Frontier Motel is Truxton Station, a former Whiting Bros service station.
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| Truxton Station |
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| Wooden signpost at Gas & Grub in Truxton |
West of Truxton, Route 66 passes through some hills.
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| Route 66 west of Truxton, Arizona |
About 9 miles past Truxton, Route 66 passes through the tiny town of Valentine, Arizona. Just past Valentine Way, we saw the former Schoolhouse at Truxton Canyon Trading School a block north of Route 66.
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| Schoolhouse at Truxton Canyon Trading School |
The schoolhouse was built in 1903 as part of a boarding school complex to train Hualapai children in trades and assimilate them into white culture. Government policy required the children to be removed from their families and placed at the school, where they worked long hours. The school closed in 1937 when a day school opened in Peach Springs.
Two miles past the school, on the south side of Route 66, is a much more fun stop: the delightfully restored Valentine Station, built in 1945.
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| Valentine Station |
About 3 miles past Valentine Station is an essential stop for Route 66 enthusiasts: the Hackberry General Store.
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| Hackberry General Store |
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| A close-up of the gas pumps at Hackberry General Store |
Hackberry General Store was built in 1934. From 1992 to 1998 it was owned by Bob Waldmire, a Route 66 artist and enthusiast whose Volkswagen microbus inspired the character Filmore in the movie Cars. His father owned the Cozy Dog Drive In in Springfield, Illinois. Today Hackberry General Store is part museum, part souvenir shop.
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| Part of the interior of Hackberry General Store |
Inside the store we had the pleasure of meeting Ruben Rodarte, who manages the Hackberry General Store and lives at the Valentine Station. When you visit, plan to spend some time here! We wish we’d allowed more time—we didn’t realize there was so much to see here. My husband said guys should definitely see the men's room!
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| Another part of the interior of Hackberry General Store |
Six miles past the Hackberry General Store is another tiny town: Antares, Arizona. Here you can’t miss the former Rancheros motel and gas station, built in the mid-1960s in space-age or Googie architectural style. Today the complex is best known for the giant green Giganticus Headicus sculpture built in 2004.
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| Giganticus Headicus at the former Ranchero gas station in Antares, Arizona |
Adjacent is the Guardian of Route 66, installed in 2021.
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| The Guardian of Route 66 in Antares among some cool old vehicles |
West of Antares, Route 66 again passes through flat land for about 20 miles to our next stop: Kingman, Arizona.
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| Route 66 west of Antares, Arizona |
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