On Sunday, the Victorville (Calif.) Daily Press took a closer look. And one longtime roadie, Jim Conkle, said Victorville isn’t doing enough to draw Route 66 tourism:

Conkle has seen small towns along the route flourish by bringing in tourists after they’ve redeveloped their main streets around the Route 66 theme, opening antique shops, souvenir stores and diners.

But few tour buses traveling on Route 66 stop in Victorville, he said, because there’s almost nothing related to Route 66 in Old Town other than the California Route 66 Museum on D Street.

“To attract Route 66 tourists, you have to have places for them to eat, sleep and shop,” Conkle said. “Victorville has not made itself an attraction. There are people within this city that don’t find Route 66 all that appealing. It’s just unbelievable that the city doesn’t embrace Route 66. Route 66 is here, you don’t have to invent it. Tourists are not going to come into the community unless they feel safe and they feel welcomed.”

Joe Flores, general manager of the city’s Green Tree Inn, echoed Conkle:

“Coming from a marketing background, you look at what’s the most valuable asset you have. Route 66 is just tremendous and it always has been,” said Flores, who grew up in Victorville. “No one in the area has really embraced it.”

The Green Tree will serve as the official host hotel of the International Route 66 Festival in August.

The report, once it gets disseminated more widely in the coming weeks and months, probably will serve as a wake-up call for many Route 66 communities. The figure of $127 million — the total spending that Route 66 generates each year — is bound to draw attention.

A summary of the report can be read here.

First, construction on all the hotel’s rooms is about to come to an end. Sharpe said:

We are presently at 49 and will top 53 by April. More guests staying here translates to more people to feed so we will have to be ready by April.

Second, La Posada is about to expand further:

We have made some modifications to the kitchen that will help us do just that (expansion). Allan is relocating our management offices to the area that used to be the original front desk of the hotel.

This is to facilitate the next phase of the hotel’s expansion eastwards into the Depot and the grounds surrounding this area. We are hoping to have increased seating by the spring of 2013 in the form of a patio. It will be entered from the east end of the dining room where you now see us going into the management office. This building, known as the “Spam Room,” is to be demolished. It will make way for the partially enclosed patio. As a footnote – the “Spam Room” is where the spam sandwiches were prepared during World War Two. Many troop trains stopped in Winslow as they carried the troops to war and back home again.

There will be the planting of a “Chefs’ Garden” as well as a vineyard. All of this will enhance the eastern entrance to what will be the transformation of the Depot into art gallery space also being referred to as the Museum project.

The back of the kitchen will be thankfully hidden behind walls and so that the eastern part of the property can be as desirable a place to walk as some of the other areas. Construction is due to start on this later in 2012. I will keep you posted through my newsletters and blog.

La Posada sits next to Route 66 on one side, and the Burlington Northern-Santa Fe railroad tracks on the other.

La Posada’s owner, Alan Affeldt, also seeks to renovate and reopen the long-closed El Garces in Needles, Calif. Like La Posada, El Garces was built as a Harvey House.

More of Bor’s work can be seen here, here, and here.

Also, Bor’s Route 66 Art blog shows more of his work.

(Photos courtesy of Willem Bor)

A few details about the tour from the website:

An eighteen-day road trip down Historic Route 66, from Chicago to LA with roots rock icon Fred

Fred Eaglesmith

Eaglesmith at the helm. Fred and his band in their bus. A chartered motorcoach for Fredheads and friends. Others in vans, campers and vintage vehicles. And – if sufficient demand – a full-fledged Nashville tour bus for fans desiring the Fantasy Tour experience! Folks coming for the whole tour or part. Guest musicians hopping aboard for a few days. At least one show daily -public or private- in every state traversed by Route 66. Be a part of it. It’s going to be wild.

Among the guest musicians participating include Robbie Fulks, Audrey Auld, Jon Dee Graham, Mary Gauthier, and “maybe more.”

A full journey down the Mother Road with Eaglesmith’s gang will cost nearly $4,300, and partial trips range from $989 to $1,289. The fees include admissions, one meal a day, lodging — the whole works.

And the Route 66 tour looks like is going to be the real thing, and not a fly-by-on-the-interstate operation. Here are the things planned:

• Visits to the Illinois Route 66 Hall of Fame & Museum and the Pontiac Car Museum in Pontiac.
• Lunch at the Palms Grill in Atlanta, Ill.
• Visit to Henry’s Rabbit Ranch in Staunton, Ill.
• Barbecue and private show at the Elbow Inn in Devil’s Elbow, Mo.
• Light-night jam at a fire pit at the Munger Moss Motel in Lebanon, Mo.
• Dinner and private show at Cafe on the Route in Baxter Springs, Kan.
• Visits to the Coleman Theater in Miami, Okla., and Afton Station in Afton, Okla.
• Lunch at Clanton’s Cafe in Vinita, Okla., and visiting the Blue Whale of Catoosa, Okla.
• Lunch at either Russ’ Ribs in Bristow, Okla., or Rock Cafe in Stroud, Okla.
• Visit to the Devil’s Rope Barbed Wire Museum in McLean, Texas.
• Lunch at the Midpoint Cafe in Adrian, Texas.
• At late-night song circle under the neon sign of the Blue Swallow Motel in Tucumcari, N.M.
• Lunch at the Landmark Grill in Las Vegas, N.M., before a show later in Santa Fe.
• A tour of Acoma Pueblo.
• Tour of the Painted Desert National Park.
• Dinner at La Posada’s Turquoise Room in Winslow, Ariz., with a private concert there.
• Tour of the South Rim of the Grand Canyon.
• Stops at Grand Canyon Caverns and Hackberry General Store.
• Visits to Goffs Schoolhouse in Goffs, Calif., and the Bottletree Ranch near Oro Grande.

That’s only the partial list. Credit needs to be given to the organizers for putting together a remarkably comprehensive road trip.

For those traveling in their own vehicles, organizers also strongly recommended buying the “Here It Is!” map series, Jerry McClanahan’s “EZ 66 Guide,” and Drew Knowles’ “Route 66 Adventure Handbook.”

UPDATE: I got this message from Charlie Hunter at Roots on the Rails, which is organizing the event:

In the next week, we’ll be putting up single-day caravan tickets (generally $59/day, $49 if people type in “CARAVAN” in the code block) for the whole trip (the link to them will be off of the rootsontherails.com website.

The storm blanketed snow from Amarillo to the north, Tucumcari, N.M., to the west, and Wink to the south. Even El Paso got 5 inches of snow. But here’s the excerpt that made me gasp:

At first light on Feb. 5, the snow was 14 inches deep in Amarillo, but Texas’ northernmost city had gotten off light compared to nearby Vega. The small community halfway between Amarillo and the New Mexico line was buried beneath an unbelievable 61 inches – a state record that stands to this day.

I can’t even comprehend that much snow in the Plains. Last year about this time, portions of the Grand Lake area of northeastern Oklahoma experienced 50 inches of snow. But that accumulated over several successive storms — not in one shot like Vega’s.

The next time you’re in Vega, you ought to ask old-timers about that storm. I bet you’ll hear a few interesting stories.

The NOAA’s Monthly Weather Review published a story a few weeks later about the storm. You can read a PDF of the article here. It contains a lot of material that’s interesting mostly to meteorology geeks. But this except tells how historic the storm truly was:

The snow depth broke records of 50 years duration, and the combination of snow, cold, and winds caused blizzard conditions and considerable hardship. At least 18 deaths were attributed directly to the storm. The normal life of  the area was completely paralyzed during the storm and there were still transportation difficulties up through February 14. Highway travel was stopped as drifts blocked the roads and even intercity buses suspended operations after several buses were stranded and the passengers rescued by tractor.

The Courier also told this stirring story that involved the border town of Glenrio, Texas, now a ghost town:

Early in the morning of Feb. 5, Continental Trailways driver John Hearon pulled out of the Amarillo bus station with 16 passengers, two children and 14 adults, and headed west in the blinding blizzard toward Tucumcari, New Mexico.

Less than 10 miles from the Texas-New Mexico boundary, the bus slipped off the icy asphalt and into a snow-filled ditch. Presuming it was only a matter of time until help arrived from Tucumcari, the driver stayed with his worried passengers.

At half past two that afternoon, Hearon decided he had no choice but to go for help. That meant walking eight miles through waist-deep snow to tiny Glenrio on the New Mexico side of the state line.

“I fell down at least three times but I knew I had to get up and go on,” Hearon later said from a hospital bed. “I was afraid to stop because I knew I would never start again.” [...]

It was 11 o’clock that night, when Hearon at last saw the lights of Glenrio. Exhausted, snow-blind in one eye and nearly delirious, he collapsed 200 yards from his destination.

The only thing John Hearon could think to do was to whistle. Off in the distance, someone heard his distress call and within minutes his ordeal was over.

Three “Land of Enchantment” highway patrol cars followed a road grader to the stranded bus. The anxious passengers were cold and very hungry after their 21-hour wait, but they were alive thanks to their dedicated driver.

It’s been slow, but the Needles (Calif.) Desert Star reported this week that the effort to restore and eventually reopen the historic El Garces hotel, restaurant, and railroad depot in Needles is making progress.

The stumbling point has been whether the Federal Transportation Administration will approve a joint operating agreement between El Garces LLC and the city, or some other arrangement.

Alan Affeldt, owner of La Posada in Winslow, Ariz., and lead developer of the El Garces project, sent a recent email that clarified things :

Now FTA has to decide if the City can be a partner with anyone (like me, which is very challenging but possible) or if the city has to do it themselves (which is highly unlikely).

Most importantly, FTA has to decide if the City can transfer (sell) title to the property to a private party (like me) if certain USE conditions/restrictions are met.

Everyone thinks they should allow transfer, without which the rehabilitation cannot be financed, but FTA has statutory obligations to protect the public interest in the project grants.

It is alas not a simple problem, but we seem to be getting closer to an answer which will make the options clear to all the parties.

We should hear something by spring…

It should be noted that Affeldt isn’t an unproven or fly-by-night operator. His revival of La Posada is one of the greatest success stories of the Southwest. His track record should carry a lot of credibility.

El Garces opened as a Harvey House hotel and restaurant in 1908. It closed in 1949. The older alignment of Route 66 goes right by the landmark. Efforts by Affeldt to restore El Garces began in 2007, but were put on hold in 2011.

The Wigwam Motel on Route 66 in Rialto, Calif., was placed on the National Register of Historic Places effective Jan. 3, according to an email Thursday afternoon from the National Park Service.

The Wigwam, which features individual motel cabins in the shape of tepees, was nominated in late 2011; its inclusion on the National Register was a near-certainty.

According to the Wigwam’s website:

The California Wigwam Motel was built within the city limits of San Bernardino in 1949, a period when citrus groves flourished. The motel would later acquire a Rialto postal address, creating confusions as the property actually sits in San Bernardino. [...] This location would mark the final of 7 Wigwam Motels that were constructed. The motel’s village-style arrangement of nineteen 30-foot-tall tepees made from wood framing, concrete and stuco draws much admiration from all generations. Each individual wigwam is carefully equipped with all the traveler’s essentials with grounds that includes of grass area, an outdoor barbecue grill, and kidney-shaped swimming pool.

The mastermind behind this retro motel was a clever man by the name of Frank Redford, who was heavily influenced by the native Indian culture. He would bring his imagination to a reality in the early 1930s explained in the following section.

A total of only seven Wigwam Motels were built throughout the nation, of which three managed to remain preserved. Two of the last three remaining rest along historic Route 66 in the states of Arizona and California, while the other rests in Redford’s home state of Kentucky.

The other Wigwam Motel on Route 66 mentioned is located in Holbrook, Ariz., and it also is marvelously preserved.

The Kumar Patel family doesn’t give itself nearly enough credit for their role in the Wigwam’s preservation. It purchased the motel nearly 10 years ago, when it had declined into a by-the-hour establishment (with an infamous “Do It in a Tepee” sign). The Patels chased out the bad element, cleaned up the interiors, and welcomed Route 66 travelers with open arms.

In the fall of 2011, the Wigwam’s Facebook page posted photos of workers blasting off years of old paint on the cabins’ exterior so they could repaint them in the original hues. The oft-updated page also contains plenty of other roadie delights, including Kumar showing off the premium cigars he favors.

(Vintage photo of the Wigwam Motel courtesy of 66postcards.com)

Disney needed Larry’s pipes for Mater’s Junkyard Jamboree, one of the rides featured in Cars Land at Disney’s California Adventure:

Cars Land is based on the fictional Route 66 town of Radiator Springs from “Cars.” Cars Land is set to open sometime this summer.

Of the eight states where the old highway traverses, six have attained Byways or All-American Road status for Route 66. A seventh — California — soon will gain that status as well. (Texas remains the only holdout.)

A rendering of what a Route 66 National Historic Trail might look like.

With that in mind, it’s time for Route 66ers to set sights on a new and bigger goal — getting National Historic Trail status in time for Route 66′s 100th anniversary in 2026.

The benefits of a National Historic Trail designation for Route 66 are:

— Better and more consistent directional signs. Signs directing travelers to Route 66 are scattershot or even nonexistent in several areas, much like America’s road system was before highway federalization in 1926. The lack of signage remains travelers’ No. 1 complaint about Route 66, according to the recently released Route 66 Economic Impact Report. Attaining Historic Trail status would require better signage throughout the route, largely solving that persistent problem.

— Boosting local economies. With a National Historic Trail designation, the greater number of Route 66 travelers would give an economic shot in the arm for many communities along the route. The Economic Impact Report says Route 66 generates $127 million annually to the U.S. economy. As a Historic Trail, that figure could rise to $200 million and above.

— More preservation of historic properties. Because of the subsequent increased economic activity of a Route 66 National Historic Trail, this would give more incentive to maintain or enhance historic properties. Route 66 travelers want to see landmarks from a bygone era. With more of those travelers, most of those owners will keep their historic places shored up.

Nearly 20 trails exist under the National Historic Trail Act. Nearly all were deemed historically relevant in the 19th century and even before. Route 66 would become one of the few trails in the National Park Service that hearkens to the 20th century. And it instantly would be the most famous of all the trails.

About 10 days ago, I participated in a conference call with National Park Service officials about the possibility of making Route 66 a Historic Trail. Also there were Kaisa Barthuli, program manager of the Route 66 Corridor Preservation Program; Jim Ross, a prominent Route 66 historian; and Michael Wallis, author of “Route 66: The Mother Road” and chairman of the Route 66 Alliance.

Aaron Mahr, superintendent of the National Historic Trails in the Intermountain Region, said during the call that Route 66 boasts “thousands” of high-potential historic sites, while the 2,000-mile El Camino Real, in comparison, totals maybe 100.

Mahr said property rights would continue to be respected even if Route 66 became a Historic Trail.  “There is a clause in the Trail Act where the federal government can purchase  land, but only from willing suitors,” he said. “There is absolutely no threat to land owners from the federal government.”

Mahr said the initial study of Route 66 in the early 1990s concluded that the Mother Road qualified for Historic Trail status. But the public rejected the idea at that time because of potential federal involvement.

However, the goodwill generated in subsequent years by the Route 66 Corridor Preservation Program has lessened those concerns.

“The Corridor Preservation Program has done a marvelous job demonstrating that government involvement can be a good thing,” Ross said, who acknowledged he was one of those skeptics.

Generally, a feasibility study is required before a National Historic Trail is designated. However, John Conoboy, a retired National Park Service manager who help draft the Route 66 Corridor Preservation Program legislation, said a feasibility study is not needed. Conoboy says the 1990s study already shows that Route 66 meets the criteria. Therefore, Route 66 can avoid a costly, time-consuming step to attain Historic Trail status.

Conoboy and Mahr agreed that Route 66 stakeholders need to ensure the noteworthy alignments of Route 66 (such as the 1926-34 loop that went to Santa Fe) be represented in the National Historic Trail.

Conoboy said NPS trail administrators also should avoid putting too many interpretive centers or kiosks along the Mother Road.

“You want the mom-and-pops to tell the story,” he said, “to keep the essential character of Route 66 alive.”

But those are future concerns. What’s needed now from the Route 66 community is to discuss the National Historic Trail idea at association meetings and at roadie gatherings. Route 66 fans should bring up the idea to local congressmen, especially in the states where Route 66 exists.

(The U.S. House of Representatives website has a handy page where you can look up and write to your congressman here.)

Write lawmakers a letter, or talk to them at constituent meetings. You might be surprised how much they might like the idea. For instance, Mahr says U.S. Rep. Tom Cole of Oklahoma is an enthusiastic backer of National Historic Trails, especially the Trail of Tears Historic Trail due to his Chickasaw Indian heritage.

It would be ideal if a majority of Route 66′s states landed sponsors in Congress for Route 66 Historic Trail legislation. However, it’s not crucial. The Route 66 Corridor Preservation Program bill was shepherded into law by one lawmaker from New Mexico. Even with just a few legislators on board, it can still be done.

I will write Route 66 state associations, asking them to support this idea and contact their U.S. representatives and senators about it. The National Historic Trail idea already has drawn support from the Route 66 Alliance, the National Historic Route 66 Federation, and the Oklahoma Route 66 Association.

This can get done. We just need to be persistent. And if you have other ideas to speed this proposal along, let me know in the comments section.

Rep. John Mica (R-Fla.), chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, introduced legislation Tuesday that would repeal the byways program, according to an email from Vickie Ashcraft of the association.

Sure enough, the American Energy and Infrastructure Act of 2012 contains this text on Page 201:

(k) NATIONAL SCENIC BYWAYS PROGRAM.—Section
8 162, and the item relating to that section in the analysis
9 for chapter 1, are repealed.

Six of the eight Route 66 states have attained Byway or All-American Road status for Route 66. The program has given out thousands of dollars in grants to help Route 66 tourism over the years.

Supporters of the Byways programs are urged to contact the committee and ask the panel to eliminate the program’s repeal language. One letter to the committee was forwarded to me; you can use part of this excerpt if you wish:

With a national effort to  implement new efforts to attract international visitors and create jobs, we cannot put at risk a proven tool like the system of 150 All-American Roads and National Scenic Byways. [...]

The Illinois River Road National  Scenic Byway, as well as the other federally designated roadways across the U.S., have been an integral part in developing and strengthening the economies of our country’s rural and metropolitan communities.

Byways are extremely important today as an international tourism marketing tool and will become even more important with the advent of the Corporation for Travel Promotion/Brand USA efforts to regain our lost share of international travel and create jobs.  Claims of international significance for our byways are indeed substantiated.  The new organization set up to market the US to international visitors, Brand USA, has a chart showing its  marketing plan.  One of the four experience pillars Brand USA is targeting is the Great Outdoors –  and Byways are prominently listed along with National Parks.  In fact to a considerable extent, Byways   fit into all four pillars.  We have $200 million available to attract visitors and create jobs through this initiative – Abolishment of  the proven and successful National Scenic Byways Program would take away one of the prime marketing assets for countless communities and regions.

Abolishing the National Scenic Byway Program would be devastating to our Byway, our state and th entire country.  Our Byways have done incredible work and made great strides to impact tourism, economic development and transportation under the National Scenic Byway Program.  Byways across the country have leveraged the National Scenic Byway Program designation to obtain funds from other federal, state and local funding resources to make a significant impact on American transportation, our visitor-based economy, on community livability and protection of our natural resources – just to name a few.

It might also be a good idea to refer to the recently released Route 66 Economic Impact Report when writing the committee. It makes a very good case on why historic preservation is a very efficient cog in the U.S. economy.