13. Sitgreaves Pass & Cool Springs Camp

The sinuous ride on Historic Route 66 resumed, descending the mountains from Oatman and then climbing again to Sitgreaves Pass. We stopped for the breathtaking view, especially looking back toward Oatman, where I could really visually appreciate the switchbacks in the narrow road just traversed. While we were standing at the pass, a young man coasted in from the opposite direction–on line skates! I talked with him briefly. He and his family hail originally from China but now reside in San Francisco. He was skating solo across the country. I know neither his starting point nor his destination, but he was on the road up to eight hours a day! After he took a selfie with the twisting road behind and below him, he posed so that I could capture a profile of him. Then, grabbing his poles to push off and balance himself, this ambitious adventurer continued on his odyssey, speeding off down that tortuous road. Wow!

Our destination for the night, Kingman, was only 26 miles from Oatman. On the way, a stone building with vintage Mobile gas pumps came into view:

The building appeared in good shape, for a reason: it was a recent reconstruction. The original Cool Springs Camp, built in 1926, included both gas pumps and a cafe. It was a popular stop to fuel up before climbing the Black Mountains when traveling westward to Sitgreaves Pass and then on to Oatman. However, Cool Springs Camp was bypassed in the 1950s by the same realignment of Route 66 that bypassed Sitgreaves Pass and Oatman, even before the interstate (I-40) came through. Traffic and business drastically declined, but the camp remained in business until it burnt down in 1966, leaving only a stone foundation. Here is an example of a landmark that was destroyed and then after decades resurrected. In 1991 Cool Springs Camp was rebuilt for the movie Universal Soldier, basically so that Van Damme could blow it up. With the aid of old photos, the rebuilding of the camp began anew in 2004.

Today it contains a gift shop and a museum:

The canvas water bag on the old model car display in the museum (which occupies the space of a small room) impressed me most. I never gave any thought before about this precursor to the water bottle, though a vessel containing water obviously was a critical accoutrement for the sojourner driving through the desert:

Next stop….Kingman, Arizona.

(to be continued) SUBSCRIBE to my blog at the very bottom of the page!