Sitgreaves Pass Drive (Sunday, May 3rd, 2020)

Today, we turned the AC off and rolled the windows down as we made our way to Sitgreaves Pass.  

The Oatman Highway is a piece of the original U.S. Route 66 that ran from Los Angeles to Chicago from 1926 to 1984.  It was one of America's primary east-west arteries at the time, linking cities and towns along its way.  It is a highlight for a lot of people that visit the southwest U.S. to drive parts of this iconic road.  And this is a great way to do it!

To get to it, you head west on Shinarump Road, from I-40, south of Kingman, AZ.  This road will take you to the old mining town of Oatman, AZ, or you can just enjoy the desert beauty as you wind up and over Sitgreaves Pass.  It is some beautiful country, and about 10 degrees cooler than Lake Havasu.  And right now, the desert is blooming beautifully!

There are so many burros along this route if you keep your eyes open.  If you keep your windows down, you can hear them braying all around.

 

Just after we summited Sitgreaves Pass, we came upon a fairly large parking lot, where we stopped for lunch.  And I have to admit we had a pretty good lunch.  Bacon, Avocado and Tomato sandwiches!  Yum!

After lunch, we walked out to the point, and there we found this mural and memorial area.  Apparently, it is a popular area for sprinkling ashes.  Very interesting!

 Then we continued on, enjoying the beauty as we made our way toward Oatman, AZ.

There is a mine on the west side of Sitgreaves Pass.  It appears that this mine was active back in the "gold rush" days, and it is still active today.  There is an interesting contrast between the old abandoned mining town of yester-year, and the railroad track and tailings from the current mine.  The valley is full of these old stone structures, showing that this was a big mine even many years ago.

More burrows.

When we arrived in Oatman, we were greeted by the ever present burros that grace the town.  They are so darn cute and friendly!

They aren't opposed to stopping traffic in hopes of a nibble from a passing car.

What was once a bustling mining town, is now a tourist town famous mostly for it's burros.

Without stopping, we made our way through Oatman and back to Havasu via Golden Shores.  As we passed the Oatman fire station, they had hay out for the burros.  Apparently COVID-19 has decreased their "human provided" food supply, so the firefighters are lending them a hand.  

The highlight of our trip back was this chuckwalla sunning himself by the road.  It was about 18 inches long and as big around as Steve's fist.