Not trying to be a jerk but this video implied that route 66 went through KC, Kansas and SE Colorado according to the map. It did not. It went from Chicago, to St. Louis, down to Springfield MO, THEN accross OK to the west. One of the major proponents of creating RT 66 was from Springfield Mo and insisted it go through there.
You're not a jerk! You may have not understood the video properly since it just focuses on the Cajon Pass. What you saw is the National Old Trails Road, not Rt 66. See our full story www.backroadswest.com/blog/forgotten-path-route-66/ or read en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Old_Trails_Road
Thanks for pointing that out Geoff. I was born in Springfield and my best friend and I just did the short leg of old 66 between Springfield and Joplin this May in his SS Camaro. I remember my Dad driving us down 66 when I was a kid and his Dad took him on a 66 tour when he was a kid but we never drove it together except a section of W. 7th Street in Joplin in 1979 in a '66 Chevelle. We're going to do the whole highway a section at a time due to time restraints. But Springfield is considered the "Birthplace of the Mother Road" and I think it's cool I was born there, just 2 miles south of 66 where US 65 intersects with US 60. Going to write a song about that! We did a video called The Highway on our RUclips channel Flatt Blagg Music.
Geoff, you are right. The video does imply that Route 66 uses the Old National Trails road through Kansas. The video says…Route 66 used this route of Old National Trails road. We were like…no, Route 66 does not go through Kansas. We almost stopped watching the video.
@@serokitty4068 when you leave Joplin, Missouri headed west on 7th Street (old U.S. 66) it takes you right across the Kansas border into Galena, Kansas then it jogs southwest to Baxter Springs then you cross the Oklahoma line. I was born in Springfield, Missouri and had family in Oklahoma so I remember riding on it then. Since I got older I have driven almost all of 66 that's left. Thanks for the comment!
Having been born and raised in California until I was 23, I had no idea that many of the old dirt roads were actually quite historical and had a lot of stories behind them. This is so cool
I spend almost 5 years on the road with my Harley-Davidson, camping every night. Got to explore sections of Route 66 where it is preserved, and was amazed cars could fit on the narrow road. I rode 50 from the bridge in Ocean City MD to Sacramento CA. I crossed the country another time on as much of Old Highway 40 as possible. Found quite a few federal campsites, often under Corps of Engineers administration, sometimes Bureau of Land Management. Even found the only National Wildlife Service preserve in the country with full service campsites. It had an interesting history of how it came to be. From NW Washington I dropped down on historic highways and ended up in Sturges SD. But I stayed on paved roads other than short country roads that lead to campgrounds. Touched every state of the Union except Hawaii.
@Gypsy JR I am SO jealous!!!! I would almost KILL to be able to drive more of Route 66 than what's available here in Southern California!!!! I'm driven on Foothill Blvd to San Bernardino, up Cajon Blvd to the 15, got off at the Kenwood exit, and drove the old section back to the 15 at the Cleghorn Exit. In 2015, someone FINALLY had the two sections of Route 66 so that you can now drive from Santa Monica all the way though Cajon Pass. You can see an updated RUclips video about this section of Route 66 here: ruclips.net/video/ZQdJDtRPhwc/видео.html In Oak Hills, you can catch the old route 66 road from the Summit Inn all the way into Victorville, and then you can take Route 66 into Barstow. That's as far as I've gone on the route here in California. But man...I am DYING to drive as much of it as I can while I'm still above ground. Again, Gypsy...I envy you for being able to make that journey.
@@antonbruce1241 - agreed! I've done a good bit from Flagstaff to around Victorville. Waze was showing miles of traffic down toward Cajon Pass so we ended up west on SR-18, then 138....somehow we ended up on the "Rim of The World Highway," so it actually ended up working out. But I'd like to do Victorville to the end someday, and of course from Chicago to Flagstaff :)
Aww, so sorry to hear about the Summit! As 'displaced' californios, when I drove semis I always stopped and bought a whole Boysenberry pie to bring back to share with my dad. I'm so glad we got to share a few before, like so many great memories, it faded into obscurity. I feel mighty lucky to have been raised in cali in the 60s. It was a golden age that we'll never see again.
I remember seeing it and a lot of cars would stop there but until the “blue fire” burned it down and almost the whole pass was burnt and some of the 138 too.
This was wonderful for me. Now a 75 year old, I grew up in the LA basin, living in Duarte in my late first decade. I remember the Cajon pass from trips with my parents. This brought back those early years, including driving up the pass from the LA basin with a canvas bag of water strapped to the front of the car, in case of over-heating. Thanks "for the memories"!
@@EMILY4DAYS One characteristic of that time, prior to antifreeze (which also protects against heat and radiator rust) was that radiators would rust and need to be "boiled out". A major transformation in the auto industry happened when the Japanese cars began to appear in the American market. Japanese cars were built to last and had great repair records. American cars were built with big engines and small brains. So, Americans started to buy Japanese cars. American manufacturers - facing obsolescence - changed their ways. Now we have a very different auto industry. So, my comments from my childhood on Cajon pass were spawned with recollection of being in some kind of American car of the time.
Grandma Valda told me years ago about when they moved from Arizona to Salinas in Dust Bowl days. She said they were coming down the Cajon Pass in spring of 1933, and she said, "Look Gordon, someone has a trailer just like ours!" Grandpa Gordon realized there was no vehicle towing that trailer - IT WAS THEIR TRAILER, rolling down the pass next to them!! Grandpa somehow got that old Ford pickup in front of the trailer and stopped it. She said what happened was the man who they'd paid at the trailer sales to weld the hitch on hadn't done a good job, and it had come off. Some old guy who lived up on the pass stopped, went back to his place, brought equipment, fixed it and sent them on their way. Despite them trying to pay him, he refused; told them, "We got hunnerds of you Okies comin' through here every day; my wife says we should help you poor people, 'cause 'but by the Grace of God there goes you and I.'" He even offered to let the family stay at his home for the night, but they felt like they'd already taken enough.
@@5crassrocker, Thank you!! I agree, people were kinder, more sympathetic to those less fortunate; it seems like so many have lost that empathy and softness in their souls, the generosity that costs so little, or nothing but their time isn't given as freely any more. In the early 90's I was traveling with my children to see my family back in California (I had moved out to Oklahoma with my ex-husband who I'd met here when he was stationed at Fort Ord, and we'd moved there after he got out of the Army), and got a flat tire on I-40 in Northwestern New Mexico. A tow truck stopped as I was removing the tire, and insisted on finishing changing it for me. When he put the spare tire on, it was FLAT (thanks jerk ex-husband, he did these kind of things on purpose!) This VERY kind man drive my children, old tire and I to the next very tiny town alongside the freeway, where the tire shop was owned by his brother-in-law. This guy then insisted on selling me a nearly-new tire, mounted, and balanced it, then took us back to my pickup and put it on for us - all for only $10.00!!!! I was so moved, I cried! He just hugged me and my children, told me if we're ever traveling in that area again and need anything, or just need a place to rest, to please stop in and say hello!! His kindness still brings tears to my eyes, and I've said hundreds of prayers for him and the tow truck driver over these years!! If only our world were filled with more like them: humble, good people!!
Nice to see you providing info on the old, almost forgotten roads that were the precursors to our modern highways. Still sad that the Summit Inn is gone. I like your quote at 5:39 where you say, “The pavement ends and the past begins.“ Very cool!
Man-o-man did you ever toss me deep into the _"Way Back Machine."_ I grew up (such that I did) in Victorville in the 70s and returned from the Navy in the late 80s to attend university at CSUSB in the 90s. I am very familiar with the area and you still taught me a great deal. You also broke my heart with all the history that is gone forever. I have many fond memories of the Summit Inn (the cheese burger was okay) We would take that 'cut from the SI to Cleghorn road to bypass the CHP road closures. If we just wanted to avoid them we would continue under the I15 and come out near Devore. I used to be able to get from Barstow to LA or San Diego with no interstates and few highways using mostly surface streets, going through Palmdale too. I can't even begin to tell you the memories this brings up. It also tells me there is no longer anything left for me in California. I left 16 years ago, but it is no longer the place I remember... it is no longer home. California is doomed she as has abandoned her history for unknown reasons. I have it on good authority from a guy that did the dynamite work for I40 that that cut was indeed with pick, shovel and dynamite. He took me and another guy out on the Mormon trail and he wrote a book about that area. message me and I'll tell you his name and the name of his book. He has long since passed on.
Glad you enjoyed it! Back in the '80s, if we needed to totally bypass I-15, if you had a 4WD, you were able to drive under the tunnel where the PCT comes out of Crowder Canyon, and then hook up to old 66 of Cleghorn. But now there are big gates there.
Californians history and especially the history of southern California is a about change; constant change. Los Angeles isn't the place I grew up in. It's not the place my mother grew up in . It's not the place my grandmother grew up in. It's not the place my great grandmother grew up in. It's not the place my great great grandfather immigrated to 140 years ago. LA has always been a place much more interested in the future than in the past.
I have lived in Riverside all my life, I've eaten at all the dinners you feature many times. I have been on the old route 66 through the pass in my 4X4 many times. The one thing I did not know about, was the toll road wagon trail, that is fascinating. Thank you so much.
@@mescko What it really was dictating into an iPhone. I didn't really proofread before I posted it. The guy really didn't have to be a d--k about it. But it was amusing how petty people can be. 😁
I have completed 40+ years and over 2 million miles as a tractor trailer driver in part because of my love and fascination of travel via land ! Part of what I loved most was my travel on the Golden Road in northern Maine and gave me a tiny glimpse into what people dealt with 100 plus years ago ! Nice 👍🏼 work !
In 1975, I traveled from Lewisport Newfoundland to Amarillo, Texas, One of the favorite areas was northern Maine, another was western PA, Great trip all the way.
Chuck Light , one of my favorites was a Great Northern Paper run from Millinocket, Maine to Laredo Texas which was about 2,900 miles, I enjoyed that run much !
Chris Flynn , I received safety awards for driving without having a accident and some companies give out million miles awards for hitting that’s magic mark, but I guess a million wouldn’t be that difficult in a jet plane, stay safe sir !
Grew up San Bernardino and have been all over those fire roads, but that is one I had never been on. I am shocked that I never heard of that old road. We used to drag race on route 66 between Muscoy and Palm Av. Kendall Dr. exit 50 off I-15. The starting line was right about where 5th Ave. is now, and Cimmeron was not there back then. The Highway Patrol was cool about it, they always came up from town with their red lights on warning us it was over.
Take I-15 N, to 138 east, approx 3.5 miles, on the left (AT THE POWER LINES-it's tricky and the traffic is a bear). Follow up past the train tracks, at the top, a junction, go LEFT! til you come out at the Freeway.
This is a fantastic demonstration of the vastness of the USA. Old abandoned roads allowed to decay. Over 40 years ago I used to spend every other weekend walking and camping in North Wales. We travelled the same road everytime. There are now newer larger roads serving that route up to halfway, the old route is still maintained and used because there isn't the space to leave it unused.
I was born and raised in New Mexico - Las Vegas to be exact = New Mexico. The Santa Fe railroad arrived in 1879. Six years later - 1885 - it reached the Cajon Pass - the tracks in your video! My cousin was the registered nurse on the train - LA to Chicago in the late 40's. EVERY Hollywood star road those tracks to New York.
At slightly over 3%, this track (1885) is used for downhill traffic but on occasion is used for uphills too. Sullivan's curve was built in the 1920's to alleviate the stiff grade of the 1885 route by adding around two miles of track to bring the grade down to 2%.
Summit was a great place to stop in the 50's, 60's, and 70's to cool down your radiator and add water if necessary. Finishing the trek up the pass. Lived in SoCal for 38 years before moving to southern Arizona in the mid 80's. Worked for the UPRR as a Locomotive Engineer from 1977 to 1985. At that time Union Pacific had track rightage with the Sante Fe RR and the UP ended up in Yermo, Ca. The UPRR track in your video was owned by the Southern Pacific RR and went to the Colton then to Los Angeles. Thanks for the memories!
I don't know how interested you are in historic California roads, but Henness Pass Road, off Highway 89 North, up above Truckee, has a pretty fascinating history. It was basically put in place after that whole Donner Party fiasco, and it was the main highway over the mountains for decades. That fact its still there, albeit mostly paved from Jackson Meadows dam to Highway 89, is a testament to how good those early road-builders were.
Thank you for sharing this video. I am fascinated with this area and the history behind it. I am a mechanic for a public utility and spent several nights sleeping in my service truck in and around 3N45 while crews restored power during the Blue Cut fire that wiped out the Summit Inn. Many have asked why efforts weren’t made by fire fighters to save the Summit Inn during the fire. As a first hand witness, I can tell you the Blue Cut fire spread fast, almost like something out of an end times movie. There was no slowing it down. Fire crews focused on homes in the fire’s path and had no choice but to let the Inn burn with everything else in the fire’s path.
Glad you enjoyed the tour. Yea, I saw that Blue Cut fire go through the pass real fast - I got stuck "down the hill" and had to go home over Big Bear. If you're interested in history, I'd recommend visiting some of Victor Valley's museums. There's lots to learn, as I have, and still plan to...
Cool. Thank you for using the original names for the trails. I never understood why they name places after a man, who found the place or was sent to conquer it, than what it really was. I like your simple directions. I am easily finding where you are talking about.
No more date shakes at the top of the pass. I remember with Hilda was running the place still, may she rest in peace. So much nostalgia, I grew up in Oak Hills and literally spent my early adulthood driving a lot of these off-highway routes.
Awesome! I drove Route 66 in 2007, and planned that trip for YEARS by reading old books, studying maps, and even spending time on Google Earth. I drove part of the dirt roads you mentioned, but I was in a VW Jetta at the time, so I didn't get far and turned around to continue on my trip. I stopped at the Summit Inn many times in the years after and am glad I got to experience it before it burned down. Last time I ate there was 2012. Thanks for the video, I'll be going back there when I get a vehicle with better ground clearance.
Well done story and report. If my memory is correct, as a kid, in the 1950's our family would take the Cajon Pass. On the way home from the back side of Big Bear Lake to San Gabriel Valley area where we lived. We stopped to visit a relative who worked in a mine at night and raised chickens during the day. I caught a quick view of Lake Arrowhead on your map. I recall Big Bear was further east. Thanks for the memory.
Lived in Redlands for over 20 years and had just started to research the Cajon Pass when we moved away. Always wanted to drive/walk the old wagon route that went from the top of the pass, past the Mormon Rocks, and into San Bernardino. After viewing this video, I consider that I have completed this wish. Thanks for a great video. Thumbs up.
Next to Baker, the Cajon Pass is one of my favorite parts of the drive from SD to Vegas. I also love the Route 66 sites along the 40 east towards Needles. Thanks for the attention to detail in your tour. The Google flyover at the end really summed it all up well.
Thanks for this little homage to the Mother Road. I’ve driven on old 66 in the Cajon Pass back in the late 90s in my little red pickup when I was stationed in Ventura, and I didn’t know about this intriguing little shortcut. Can’t wait to travel 66 again. Great video!
Wow just stumbled across your channel and I'm loving it. I grew up in this area and as a child my grandparents took us out told us we were going treasure hunting. We would find old silverware and log cabins syrup tins in the old washes where the pioneers stopped on their way west to Los Angeles. It was a great revisit watching this video. I am now a subscriber and I'm very excited to see more. :-) thank you for the little history lesson in an area that I used to consider my backyard.
That is so cool of you to bring this part of our history to life. Too bad the garage and cafe are gone. Places like that are historical to us. But ,,,there are hundreds of others in CA and Nevada,and all over the US. Need to check them out before my family can't do it anymore. Need these road trips to keep em alive. Thank you.
Wow, fantastic tour and history, thank you so much!! Really loved how you referenced the map and included labels in the video during the drive making it very easy to relate to the map!!! 👍🏼😃❤️
Used to travel from Orange County to Victorville in the 60s and 70s to ride dirtbikes with my family as a kid. Back then you would have to go around through Riverside and San Bernardino on the 215. Man by the time we got up to the desert I felt like I was on the moon ! Not much up there back in those days. Thanks for the great video.
@@BackRoadsWest1 ...and the effort is appreciated. I knew of an older friend from my childhood, long since passed on, who travelled from Iowa to Los Angles in 1916 (when he was 5 years old). He described the National Old Trails Road with the Red White and Blue signs, which he said were painted on phone poles, gates, fences and such -- "you'd have to look for them to make sure you remained on route..." He also stated that crossing the eastern California desert was, at its most challenging, reduced to "following two tracks in the sand..." He said gas stations were few and far between, so most of the time they bought gas from farmers along the way.
It's good to see people appreciating the history of our country and remembering the old days. I wish to see these and other historical passes and routes. Thank you.
Very informative! I had started truck driving just before the 2016 fire, and remember hearing that Cajon pass closed. I wasn't aware of how much history was destroyed by that fire.
Wow! Very beautiful! Those narrow parts of the old road are something. I can imagine wagons or automobiles going in opposite directions on those narrow places made for some interesting moments.
Yes indeed, interesting moments. However, since there wasn't much traffic, those moments probably rarely occurred. Just think of today's I-15 traffic going over that road!
It's good that these places are being recorded and remembered, otherwise they vanish and the future loses them and their history. These trails can be kept recorded for literally thousands of years. Watling Street in England is one such. It stretched for hundreds of miles, and though much of it is still broadly in use today as modern roads, there are sections that were bypassed, built over and otherwise forgotten over many centuries. Luckily, also over many centuries, a good deal of these portions were rediscovered by accident, disaster, archeology and documented. It dates back to the pre-Roman times of the ancient Britons and Celts. Your work here counts whether you realize it or not. These trails are relatively new in the grand scheme of things and may not appear very historically significant, but already they have quite the storied histories as you have shown. One day these trails will be as old as Watling Street is now, and you're helping pass on this information as part of an archive for future generations. The lack of detailed information clouds a great deal of history to the point that we may know of something but have only a vague idea of what that something was, or where that something occurred. So thanks 👍
I'm so happy to find your channel! I have a peculiar interest in road histories, as I've wondered " where did this road come from, was it a trail once when was it built and why here?' many times while driving over the roads of America. That information is hard to find. Loved this video and thanks for showing me on the map! You know I subscribed!
You're welcome and thanks for commenting. As the video explains, it was originally a toll road for local people, mainly for getting equipment to Big Bear (see another video we've done covering that topic). Google National Old Trails Road. A spur road of it used the toll road later which is what the pavement is from. Then came Rt 66, but it went close to I-15.
5 stars for this video. Great job! Lots of historical information that most people who do these kind of videos don't bother to research. Production values are top notch. (I used to be video editor). Can't wait to watch more of your work.
I used to live in Phelan, west of I-25. I've done that road, it was nice. Thanks for the updates. I was all over Cajon Pass. I lived in Phelan and worked in Hesperia and then in San Bernardino for ten years.
I know this. I know it very well from my time living in the upper desert. I was very sad to see the area burn a few years ago. I used to get kicked out by railroad police. They were good guys. Lots of troubles they had w criminals. The pass is magical, dangerous and down right terrifying at times. I moss the place. Sadly, I remember how wooded the pass used to be.
I have been all up and down Hwy 15 going to Barstow, CA.... my Dad's family lived there, but I NEVER heard of this 'short-cut'. I miss the "Summit Inn" , I remember when it burn down, it was ALWAYS a sight to see when you reached the top of Cajon Pass!! (written May 2021P)
In the 1930s travelers would have to wait about a week after a rain to go from Flagstaff to Kingman in northern Arizona on route 66. The road was clay and would turn to mud after a rain, and would take several days to dry out. This was ,of course, before the road was paved.
Very good video. Thank you. Florida born boy here 1958. Went to Colorado for a month long trip in 1976. Had fun in my 4x4 truck. Doubt I will leave Florida again.
I love this stuff. Tried finding route 66 in flagstaff and lost it back in the early 90's. Sure wish I could drive the whole route with some sort of map they have?
I love the content of the high desert area on your channel! All the historic knowledge! I live and grew up in Montclair, basically Urban these days, I met my girlfriend at Cal State she grew up in Victorville, I thought it was just the Boonies till I started learning the history and borrowing my dad's Nissan Frontier to take these dirt roads that you make videos on. So beautiful the high desert region off the road!
We used to stop at the Summit Inn for java on the way to camp & 4 wheel in the Mojave and that was in the 70's & 80's . Been down the trail you took us on once , nothing much too see so never went back . Last time I was by the Summit Inn on I-15 was 10 years ago delivering a load to a Walmart DC , it was still there at that time , sorry to hear it burnt down .
Summit Inn became a regular stop for my family when I was a teenager back in the early 70s. We owned a condo in Mammoth Lakes at the time and to get there from Long Beach, we typically took I-405 to SR-14 through Palmdale/Lancaster and Mojave; but after the earthquake in 1971 that route was closed off when the I-5/SR14 interchange collapsed. So we'd drive all the way out to Riverside/San Bernardino and take I-15 through Cajon Pass. Nearly every trip we'd stop for gas & grub at the Summit Inn. Sorry to hear it is no more. Brings back fond memories.
Same here, I had many meals at The Summit Inn with my family.. family bought property in Hesperia back in the 70s. was the only place to eat back in the seventies and eighties. Rip.
Ha ha ha, it's actually not too difficult. You have to cross several RR tracks and the likelihood of getting stuck behind one is high. I was simply running out of video time and it really didn't add to the story.
@@BackRoadsWest1 . I just found it humorous because during your presentation I was thinking a road trip would be fun... and then the "hard to find" part made me think "whew that was a close one!". I found the video (and since then others you've produced) well put together and i enjoy watching them. Thank you for the effort for those of us that are "motivationally challenged"!
@@BackRoadsWest1 Was intrigued by that also ; can’t you just take Wagon Train road past the gas station and McDonalds, park behind the truck scales, and then walk a few hundred yards on the Pacific Crest Trail, under I-15 and the railroad tracks, and there you are at the burned down historic site ? Great video in any case, I love picking up interesting stories in random videos like this.
In April, 1968, my husband and I drove the whole of route 66, in our 1961 Cadillac convertible. We actually started out in Green Bay, Wis. Spent the night in Springfield .....2 ond night , somewhere in Texas.I remember that the motel only cost 5$. When we got to Needles, Ca. It was 114 degrees! you can still drive bits of US 66 along lnterstate40....though there's not much left of it anymore. It was a great ride back in the day. He is gone now, and I live in Michigan,but when I drive out to Ca to visit my son, I still try to catch a little of it.... nostalgia, I guess....
This video is super interesting I enjoyed it. I love exploring. and this tour was amazing. it;s so amazing to look back to the good old days and see how route 66 use to be😀
I also as a kid remember going several times on 66, started in Cleveland and went by Chicago and St Louis to Mojave CA. 4 times, Remember all the Burma Shave signs and miles to JackRabbit trading post signs and the concrete Teepee's
Let them laugh. You can't tell some people anything. They already know it all. PS I've lost count of how many times I've watched Cars and wished I could travel the whole route 66 in a big comfortable automobile at my own speed without somebody being on my bumper.
Thank you for the tour. I live right there in Devore and love History!! I'm going to take a drive and hike that trail someday and it's much more exciting knowing the history.
I drive the Cajon everyday for work, Adelanto to Corona. I’m definitely going to take the family on this little journey. I had no idea the old route was there. I love driving Old Route 66 “ Cajon Blvd” even when traffic is bad, 1930s essential playlist on my iPhone and I’m set😀. Thank you for sharing!!
I have a love hate relationship with your videos. I love the content but hate that now I have another place I want to explore and I am already so far behind in my current travels.
Huell Howser once did a show on the old Ridge Route between Santa Clarita and Bakersfield; that's a fascinating route and if you haven't traveled it before you oughta put that on your bucket list.
*Anecdotes on the Summit Inn:* From 1958-61 my family lived in China Lake (near Ridgecrest) and we frequently stopped at the Summit Inn as we periodically went back and forth to various LA basin destinations. If we took the Cajon Pass route we were using US 395 to cross the desert. There was no I-15 at that time. - It does not surprise me that the Summit Inn burned down. They "hauled their own water" to run the facilities and would only serve you a glass of water if you asked for it. How much could possibly be available under pressure to fight a fire? - On our last visit to the Summit Inn my father stormed out when it became clear to him that management was refusing to serve a black family.
Atascadero, CA has an old road over the hills from the Salinas River on what is now the Rocky Canyon trail for hikers, mountain bikers, and horsebackers. The thumbnail clip of this Rte.66 looks a lot like the Rocky Canyon Road trail.
We love the Atascadero region and would like to create a few virtual road trip videos if we lived closer. Here's one of our's that's close to you: ruclips.net/video/-ueQ6WFeH5M/видео.html
Considering how many times I've sat in standstill traffic at this section of the 15 on the way up to the sierras, I think I found my new route! Thanks for an awesome video, these are great!
Living in SoCal, I can relate to traffic on the interstate being so bad it makes you contemplate taking a single lane dirt road up through a cut that was hand dug in 1861. That made me laugh.
Not trying to be a jerk but this video implied that route 66 went through KC, Kansas and SE Colorado according to the map. It did not. It went from Chicago, to St. Louis, down to Springfield MO, THEN accross OK to the west. One of the major proponents of creating RT 66 was from Springfield Mo and insisted it go through there.
You're not a jerk! You may have not understood the video properly since it just focuses on the Cajon Pass. What you saw is the National Old Trails Road, not Rt 66. See our full story www.backroadswest.com/blog/forgotten-path-route-66/ or read en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Old_Trails_Road
Thanks for pointing that out Geoff. I was born in Springfield and my best friend and I just did the short leg of old 66 between Springfield and Joplin this May in his SS Camaro. I remember my Dad driving us down 66 when I was a kid and his Dad took him on a 66 tour when he was a kid but we never drove it together except a section of W. 7th Street in Joplin in 1979 in a '66 Chevelle. We're going to do the whole highway a section at a time due to time restraints. But Springfield is considered the "Birthplace of the Mother Road" and I think it's cool I was born there, just 2 miles south of 66 where US 65 intersects with US 60. Going to write a song about that! We did a video called The Highway on our RUclips channel Flatt Blagg Music.
Geoff, you are right. The video does imply that Route 66 uses the Old National Trails road through Kansas. The video says…Route 66 used this route of Old National Trails road. We were like…no, Route 66 does not go through Kansas. We almost stopped watching the video.
@@serokitty4068 when you leave Joplin, Missouri headed west on 7th Street (old U.S. 66) it takes you right across the Kansas border into Galena, Kansas then it jogs southwest to Baxter Springs then you cross the Oklahoma line. I was born in Springfield, Missouri and had family in Oklahoma so I remember riding on it then. Since I got older I have driven almost all of 66 that's left. Thanks for the comment!
@@serokitty4068 Not just imply, but 2:31 blatantly says it used it. He even highlighted it in red
Every now and then the youtube algorithm recommends a hidden gem like this. Subscribed! Thanks for this.
Love when the algorithm does a good turn
Thanks for the comment!
Agreed. I also subscribed today to this hidden RUclips gem.
Yes, they should have many more subs.
@@gsdfan8455 q+
Having been born and raised in California until I was 23, I had no idea that many of the old dirt roads were actually quite historical and had a lot of stories behind them. This is so cool
Went skiing in wrightwood all the time I remember that moved when I was 26 to Ottawa Canada 1993
I spend almost 5 years on the road with my Harley-Davidson, camping every night. Got to explore sections of Route 66 where it is preserved, and was amazed cars could fit on the narrow road. I rode 50 from the bridge in Ocean City MD to Sacramento CA. I crossed the country another time on as much of Old Highway 40 as possible. Found quite a few federal campsites, often under Corps of Engineers administration, sometimes Bureau of Land Management. Even found the only National Wildlife Service preserve in the country with full service campsites. It had an interesting history of how it came to be. From NW Washington I dropped down on historic highways and ended up in Sturges SD. But I stayed on paved roads other than short country roads that lead to campgrounds. Touched every state of the Union except Hawaii.
Yy/y
There's a lot of space out there.
People in the cities just don't know about it...
to their own personal loss.
@Gypsy JR I am SO jealous!!!! I would almost KILL to be able to drive more of Route 66 than what's available here in Southern California!!!! I'm driven on Foothill Blvd to San Bernardino, up Cajon Blvd to the 15, got off at the Kenwood exit, and drove the old section back to the 15 at the Cleghorn Exit.
In 2015, someone FINALLY had the two sections of Route 66 so that you can now drive from Santa Monica all the way though Cajon Pass. You can see an updated RUclips video about this section of Route 66 here:
ruclips.net/video/ZQdJDtRPhwc/видео.html
In Oak Hills, you can catch the old route 66 road from the Summit Inn all the way into Victorville, and then you can take Route 66 into Barstow. That's as far as I've gone on the route here in California. But man...I am DYING to drive as much of it as I can while I'm still above ground.
Again, Gypsy...I envy you for being able to make that journey.
Good lord, that must have been amazing. Sure hope I'm able to do something like this some day
@@antonbruce1241 - agreed! I've done a good bit from Flagstaff to around Victorville. Waze was showing miles of traffic down toward Cajon Pass so we ended up west on SR-18, then 138....somehow we ended up on the "Rim of The World Highway," so it actually ended up working out. But I'd like to do Victorville to the end someday, and of course from Chicago to Flagstaff :)
Aww, so sorry to hear about the Summit! As 'displaced' californios, when I drove semis I always stopped and bought a whole Boysenberry pie to bring back to share with my dad. I'm so glad we got to share a few before, like so many great memories, it faded into obscurity. I feel mighty lucky to have been raised in cali in the 60s. It was a golden age that we'll never see again.
I remember seeing it and a lot of cars would stop there but until the “blue fire” burned it down and almost the whole pass was burnt and some of the 138 too.
Yep,
Way to many Leftist SJWs moved in and destroyed the state.
I was born in 84. This state is a dumpster fire. I’ll most likely move out sooner than later. SoCal is too expensive
@@vw1610
👍
I had never been there and last trip I got off the 15 and NOBODY TOLD ME. I parked there some rime before my allergies quit.
This was wonderful for me. Now a 75 year old, I grew up in the LA basin, living in Duarte in my late first decade. I remember the Cajon pass from trips with my parents. This brought back those early years, including driving up the pass from the LA basin with a canvas bag of water strapped to the front of the car, in case of over-heating. Thanks "for the memories"!
You're welcome! And thanks for commenting.
Haha, I remember those old canvas bags well.
What kind of car were you traveling in?
@@EMILY4DAYS One characteristic of that time, prior to antifreeze (which also protects against heat and radiator rust) was that radiators would rust and need to be "boiled out". A major transformation in the auto industry happened when the Japanese cars began to appear in the American market. Japanese cars were built to last and had great repair records. American cars were built with big engines and small brains. So, Americans started to buy Japanese cars. American manufacturers - facing obsolescence - changed their ways. Now we have a very different auto industry. So, my comments from my childhood on Cajon pass were spawned with recollection of being in some kind of American car of the time.
Grandma Valda told me years ago about when they moved from Arizona to Salinas in Dust Bowl days. She said they were coming down the Cajon Pass in spring of 1933, and she said, "Look Gordon, someone has a trailer just like ours!" Grandpa Gordon realized there was no vehicle towing that trailer - IT WAS THEIR TRAILER, rolling down the pass next to them!! Grandpa somehow got that old Ford pickup in front of the trailer and stopped it. She said what happened was the man who they'd paid at the trailer sales to weld the hitch on hadn't done a good job, and it had come off.
Some old guy who lived up on the pass stopped, went back to his place, brought equipment, fixed it and sent them on their way. Despite them trying to pay him, he refused; told them, "We got hunnerds of you Okies comin' through here every day; my wife says we should help you poor people, 'cause 'but by the Grace of God there goes you and I.'" He even offered to let the family stay at his home for the night, but they felt like they'd already taken enough.
People used to be nicer back then. Sure there was segregation, but good Christian folk were all over. Seems God in country was much better.
This is an excellent story, thank you for sharing!
Wow! What a great story, Cheryl! Thanks!
@@5crassrocker, Thank you!! I agree, people were kinder, more sympathetic to those less fortunate; it seems like so many have lost that empathy and softness in their souls, the generosity that costs so little, or nothing but their time isn't given as freely any more.
In the early 90's I was traveling with my children to see my family back in California (I had moved out to Oklahoma with my ex-husband who I'd met here when he was stationed at Fort Ord, and we'd moved there after he got out of the Army), and got a flat tire on I-40 in Northwestern New Mexico. A tow truck stopped as I was removing the tire, and insisted on finishing changing it for me. When he put the spare tire on, it was FLAT (thanks jerk ex-husband, he did these kind of things on purpose!)
This VERY kind man drive my children, old tire and I to the next very tiny town alongside the freeway, where the tire shop was owned by his brother-in-law. This guy then insisted on selling me a nearly-new tire, mounted, and balanced it, then took us back to my pickup and put it on for us - all for only $10.00!!!! I was so moved, I cried! He just hugged me and my children, told me if we're ever traveling in that area again and need anything, or just need a place to rest, to please stop in and say hello!! His kindness still brings tears to my eyes, and I've said hundreds of prayers for him and the tow truck driver over these years!!
If only our world were filled with more like them: humble, good people!!
@@doobielawson702, I thank YOU for your kind comment, I'm truly humbled and grateful!!
Nice to see you providing info on the old, almost forgotten roads that were the precursors to our modern highways. Still sad that the Summit Inn is gone. I like your quote at 5:39 where you say, “The pavement ends and the past begins.“ Very cool!
Man-o-man did you ever toss me deep into the _"Way Back Machine."_ I grew up (such that I did) in Victorville in the 70s and returned from the Navy in the late 80s to attend university at CSUSB in the 90s. I am very familiar with the area and you still taught me a great deal. You also broke my heart with all the history that is gone forever. I have many fond memories of the Summit Inn (the cheese burger was okay) We would take that 'cut from the SI to Cleghorn road to bypass the CHP road closures. If we just wanted to avoid them we would continue under the I15 and come out near Devore. I used to be able to get from Barstow to LA or San Diego with no interstates and few highways using mostly surface streets, going through Palmdale too. I can't even begin to tell you the memories this brings up. It also tells me there is no longer anything left for me in California. I left 16 years ago, but it is no longer the place I remember... it is no longer home. California is doomed she as has abandoned her history for unknown reasons.
I have it on good authority from a guy that did the dynamite work for I40 that that cut was indeed with pick, shovel and dynamite. He took me and another guy out on the Mormon trail and he wrote a book about that area. message me and I'll tell you his name and the name of his book. He has long since passed on.
Glad you enjoyed it! Back in the '80s, if we needed to totally bypass I-15, if you had a 4WD, you were able to drive under the tunnel where the PCT comes out of Crowder Canyon, and then hook up to old 66 of Cleghorn. But now there are big gates there.
Californians history and especially the history of southern California is a about change; constant change. Los Angeles isn't the place I grew up in. It's not the place my mother grew up in . It's not the place my grandmother grew up in. It's not the place my great grandmother grew up in. It's not the place my great great grandfather immigrated to 140 years ago. LA has always been a place much more interested in the future than in the past.
Bet you were familiar with the Screaming Chicken?😉 🐔
It doesn’t matter where you are talking about “You can’t go home again.”
I have lived in Riverside all my life, I've eaten at all the dinners you feature many times. I have been on the old route 66 through the pass in my 4X4 many times. The one thing I did not know about, was the toll road wagon trail, that is fascinating. Thank you so much.
“You have eaten” all the dinners “or “at all the diners”? This is where American illiteracy causes a problem.
@@garyfrancis6193 Holly smokes! A cyber grammar stocker. That's actually funny. lol I'm going to give you a like to inspire you. :)
@@garyfrancis6193 I knew you meant "Diners"...
@@5150GSD You mean 'stalker', don't you?
@@mescko What it really was dictating into an iPhone. I didn't really proofread before I posted it. The guy really didn't have to be a d--k about it. But it was amusing how petty people can be. 😁
I've been going up and down the pass for many years and didn't realize such history was hidden in plain sight. Great informative video!
Thank you! There's a lot more history in the Cajon than just this one road.
I have completed 40+ years and over 2 million miles as a tractor trailer driver in part because of my love and fascination of travel via land ! Part of what I loved most was my travel on the Golden Road in northern Maine and gave me a tiny glimpse into what people dealt with 100 plus years ago ! Nice 👍🏼 work !
In 1975, I traveled from Lewisport Newfoundland to Amarillo, Texas, One of the favorite areas was northern Maine, another was western PA, Great trip all the way.
Maine is the greatest!
Chuck Light , one of my favorites was a Great Northern Paper run from Millinocket, Maine to Laredo Texas which was about 2,900 miles, I enjoyed that run much !
Chris Flynn , I received safety awards for driving without having a accident and some companies give out million miles awards for hitting that’s magic mark, but I guess a million wouldn’t be that difficult in a jet plane, stay safe sir !
Chris Flynn you get to keep your job
I love these videos. They remind me of family road trips in the 60s and 70s.
Glad you're enjoying them!
Grew up San Bernardino and have been all over those fire roads, but that is one I had never been on. I am shocked that I never heard of that old road. We used to drag race on route 66 between Muscoy and Palm Av. Kendall Dr. exit 50 off I-15. The starting line was right about where 5th Ave. is now, and Cimmeron was not there back then. The Highway Patrol was cool about it, they always came up from town with their red lights on warning us it was over.
Take I-15 N, to 138 east, approx 3.5 miles, on the left (AT THE POWER LINES-it's tricky and the traffic is a bear). Follow up past the train tracks, at the top, a junction, go LEFT! til you come out at the Freeway.
This is a fantastic demonstration of the vastness of the USA. Old abandoned roads allowed to decay. Over 40 years ago I used to spend every other weekend walking and camping in North Wales. We travelled the same road everytime. There are now newer larger roads serving that route up to halfway, the old route is still maintained and used because there isn't the space to leave it unused.
Wales: Where the roads are short but the names are long.
I was born and raised in New Mexico - Las Vegas to be exact = New Mexico. The Santa Fe railroad arrived in 1879. Six years later - 1885 - it reached the Cajon Pass - the tracks in your video! My cousin was the registered nurse on the train - LA to Chicago in the late 40's. EVERY Hollywood star road those tracks to New York.
I miss the Summit Inn. We used to have breakfast there every weekend.
Me too grandma and grandpa took me there every Saturday or Marie Calendars off Bear Valley
Great video. Plenty of layers of history here! It's interesting that the railroads have maintained the oldest tracks as well.
At slightly over 3%, this track (1885) is used for downhill traffic but on occasion is used for uphills too. Sullivan's curve was built in the 1920's to alleviate the stiff grade of the 1885 route by adding around two miles of track to bring the grade down to 2%.
Summit was a great place to stop in the 50's, 60's, and 70's to cool down your radiator and add water if necessary. Finishing the trek up the pass. Lived in SoCal for 38 years before moving to southern Arizona in the mid 80's. Worked for the UPRR as a Locomotive Engineer from 1977 to 1985. At that time Union Pacific had track rightage with the Sante Fe RR and the UP ended up in Yermo, Ca. The UPRR track in your video was owned by the Southern Pacific RR and went to the Colton then to Los Angeles.
Thanks for the memories!
You're welcome! Thanks for commenting.
Lived in Hesperia for 4 years. Up and down the Cajon everyday ... Thanks for the memories
Lived in Spring Valley Lake for 30 years! So we used to know all those roads real well.
I was the last truck to fuel at. Nasty Newt's, outpost truck stop. Stoped their for years.😀🇺🇸
Wow you must have put a lot of hours into production of this video I really appreciate it thanks;
I don't know how interested you are in historic California roads, but Henness Pass Road, off Highway 89 North, up above Truckee, has a pretty fascinating history. It was basically put in place after that whole Donner Party fiasco, and it was the main highway over the mountains for decades. That fact its still there, albeit mostly paved from Jackson Meadows dam to Highway 89, is a testament to how good those early road-builders were.
Thanks for the comment. Yes, I've explored SR 89 north of Truckee years ago. So many roads, so little time!
Thank you for sharing this video. I am fascinated with this area and the history behind it.
I am a mechanic for a public utility and spent several nights sleeping in my service truck in and around 3N45 while crews restored power during the Blue Cut fire that wiped out the Summit Inn.
Many have asked why efforts weren’t made by fire fighters to save the Summit Inn during the fire. As a first hand witness, I can tell you the Blue Cut fire spread fast, almost like something out of an end times movie. There was no slowing it down. Fire crews focused on homes in the fire’s path and had no choice but to let the Inn burn with everything else in the fire’s path.
Glad you enjoyed the tour. Yea, I saw that Blue Cut fire go through the pass real fast - I got stuck "down the hill" and had to go home over Big Bear. If you're interested in history, I'd recommend visiting some of Victor Valley's museums. There's lots to learn, as I have, and still plan to...
Thank you for sharing and keeping the past forgotten historical history remembered 🤔
Cool. Thank you for using the original names for the trails. I never understood why they name places after a man, who found the place or was sent to conquer it, than what it really was. I like your simple directions. I am easily finding where you are talking about.
Glad you enjoyed the tour! The names I use are from various maps. Thanks for commenting.
No more date shakes at the top of the pass.
I remember with Hilda was running the place still, may she rest in peace.
So much nostalgia, I grew up in Oak Hills and literally spent my early adulthood driving a lot of these off-highway routes.
Awesome! I drove Route 66 in 2007, and planned that trip for YEARS by reading old books, studying maps, and even spending time on Google Earth. I drove part of the dirt roads you mentioned, but I was in a VW Jetta at the time, so I didn't get far and turned around to continue on my trip. I stopped at the Summit Inn many times in the years after and am glad I got to experience it before it burned down. Last time I ate there was 2012. Thanks for the video, I'll be going back there when I get a vehicle with better ground clearance.
You're welcome. Thanks for taking the time to comment.
Well done story and report. If my memory is correct, as a kid, in the 1950's our family would take the Cajon Pass. On the way home from the back side of Big Bear Lake to San Gabriel Valley area where we lived. We stopped to visit a relative who worked in a mine at night and raised chickens during the day. I caught a quick view of Lake Arrowhead on your map. I recall Big Bear was further east. Thanks for the memory.
Lived in Redlands for over 20 years and had just started to research the Cajon Pass when we moved away. Always wanted to drive/walk the old wagon route that went from the top of the pass, past the Mormon Rocks, and into San Bernardino. After viewing this video, I consider that I have completed this wish. Thanks for a great video. Thumbs up.
Thanks, glad you enjoyed it and thanks for commenting.
Next to Baker, the Cajon Pass is one of my favorite parts of the drive from SD to Vegas. I also love the Route 66 sites along the 40 east towards Needles. Thanks for the attention to detail in your tour. The Google flyover at the end really summed it all up well.
Glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for commenting!
Thanks for this little homage to the Mother Road. I’ve driven on old 66 in the Cajon Pass back in the late 90s in my little red pickup when I was stationed in Ventura, and I didn’t know about this intriguing little shortcut. Can’t wait to travel 66 again. Great video!
My pleasure and thanks for commenting.
Solid virtual tour. Good explanations, level of detail, and pacing. Total thumbs up!
Im just so blown away by the amount of information packed into a video! So much details and I am grateful for this! Thank you and keep making content
You're welcome and thanks for commenting. Oh, I have lots of plans for new content!
Wow just stumbled across your channel and I'm loving it. I grew up in this area and as a child my grandparents took us out told us we were going treasure hunting. We would find old silverware and log cabins syrup tins in the old washes where the pioneers stopped on their way west to Los Angeles. It was a great revisit watching this video. I am now a subscriber and I'm very excited to see more. :-) thank you for the little history lesson in an area that I used to consider my backyard.
Cajon Pass was my playground for many years. Riding my Harley, driving my Jeep, and hiking the PCT. a truly beautiful place. Thanks for this video.
You're welcome - glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for commenting!
Thank you for this tidbit of bygone
historical trail ways. 🚧
I spent my teen years in Hesperia, California. I’ve travelled every dirt road and old hwy in the area. This video brings back memories. Thanks!
You're welcome. Glad you enjoyed it!
Awsum Cajon History 👍🏻🇺🇸🤠...
It was Sad to see The Summit Inn was Gone When The Big Fire Blasted on Though The Cajon Pass...
Stay Safe Out There 👍🏻🤠🇺🇸
Yeah I was through there when the fire hit. I was on my way home to Ridgecrest. I ate there a number of times when I lived in Pinon Hills.
That is so cool of you to bring this part of our history to life. Too bad the garage and cafe are gone. Places like that are historical to us. But ,,,there are hundreds of others in CA and Nevada,and all over the US. Need to check them out before my family can't do it anymore. Need these road trips to keep em alive. Thank you.
You're welcome and thanks for commenting. That's inspiration to make more videos covering historical roads!
Wow, fantastic tour and history, thank you so much!! Really loved how you referenced the map and included labels in the video during the drive making it very easy to relate to the map!!! 👍🏼😃❤️
Used to travel from Orange County to Victorville in the 60s and 70s to ride dirtbikes with my family as a kid. Back then you would have to go around through Riverside and San Bernardino on the 215. Man by the time we got up to the desert I felt like I was on the moon ! Not much up there back in those days. Thanks for the great video.
Solid production and informative content. Too bad only about 0.1% of RUclips offerings are similarly substantial. Thanks for a job well done.
Thanks for the comment! Definitely a primary reason why I go the extra several miles to put out a good production.
@@BackRoadsWest1 ...and the effort is appreciated.
I knew of an older friend from my childhood, long since passed on, who travelled from Iowa to Los Angles in 1916 (when he was 5 years old). He described the National Old Trails Road with the Red White and Blue signs, which he said were painted on phone poles, gates, fences and such -- "you'd have to look for them to make sure you remained on route..." He also stated that crossing the eastern California desert was, at its most challenging, reduced to "following two tracks in the sand..." He said gas stations were few and far between, so most of the time they bought gas from farmers along the way.
appreciate the sound of your voice and cadence in this presentation, calming and pleasant. Not enough calm and pleasant things these days, eh wot?
Thanks for commenting and the kudos. Appreciate it!
It's good to see people appreciating the history of our country and remembering the old days. I wish to see these and other historical passes and routes. Thank you.
Very informative! I had started truck driving just before the 2016 fire, and remember hearing that Cajon pass closed. I wasn't aware of how much history was destroyed by that fire.
Thank you! Yes, it is unfortunate.
You have me and my metal detector excited. . . . . .Been looking for a good trail thru the Cajon Pass. . .
Great Video ... Great Information ... Crystal clear voice & microphone ... Keep going
Excellent, that's what I'm aiming for! Thanks for commenting.
Like Bill said great video . Love learning the history of California!
Wow! Very beautiful! Those narrow parts of the old road are something. I can imagine wagons or automobiles going in opposite directions on those narrow places made for some interesting moments.
Yes indeed, interesting moments. However, since there wasn't much traffic, those moments probably rarely occurred. Just think of today's I-15 traffic going over that road!
Thats a lot of history in such a short piece of roadway!! Thank You,
What a great tour! Thank you for going through the trouble to bring it to us!
Thank you! Your comment is well appreciated.
It's good that these places are being recorded and remembered, otherwise they vanish and the future loses them and their history. These trails can be kept recorded for literally thousands of years. Watling Street in England is one such. It stretched for hundreds of miles, and though much of it is still broadly in use today as modern roads, there are sections that were bypassed, built over and otherwise forgotten over many centuries. Luckily, also over many centuries, a good deal of these portions were rediscovered by accident, disaster, archeology and documented. It dates back to the pre-Roman times of the ancient Britons and Celts.
Your work here counts whether you realize it or not. These trails are relatively new in the grand scheme of things and may not appear very historically significant, but already they have quite the storied histories as you have shown. One day these trails will be as old as Watling Street is now, and you're helping pass on this information as part of an archive for future generations. The lack of detailed information clouds a great deal of history to the point that we may know of something but have only a vague idea of what that something was, or where that something occurred.
So thanks 👍
I'm so happy to find your channel! I have a peculiar interest in road histories, as I've wondered " where did this road come from, was it a trail once when was it built and why here?' many times while driving over the roads of America. That information is hard to find. Loved this video and thanks for showing me on the map! You know I subscribed!
You're welcome and thanks for commenting. As the video explains, it was originally a toll road for local people, mainly for getting equipment to Big Bear (see another video we've done covering that topic). Google National Old Trails Road. A spur road of it used the toll road later which is what the pavement is from. Then came Rt 66, but it went close to I-15.
Love how you explained it and did the labeling! Very nice work
Great info and presentation. I've driven through the Cajon Pass for years, never knew about this historical road. Thank you very much.
Glad you enjoyed it! I have driven it many many times too since the 1970s. Thanks for taking the time to comment.
5 stars for this video. Great job! Lots of historical information that most people who do these kind of videos don't bother to research. Production values are top notch. (I used to be video editor). Can't wait to watch more of your work.
I used to live in Phelan, west of I-25. I've done that road, it was nice. Thanks for the updates.
I was all over Cajon Pass. I lived in Phelan and worked in Hesperia and then in San Bernardino for ten years.
A nice bit of history. Thank you.
Thank you very much for a wonderful tour! I am an Indonesian from West Java who loves the USA. 👍👍👍
You're very welcome! Greetings from Utah.
I know this. I know it very well from my time living in the upper desert. I was very sad to see the area burn a few years ago. I used to get kicked out by railroad police. They were good guys. Lots of troubles they had w criminals. The pass is magical, dangerous and down right terrifying at times. I moss the place. Sadly, I remember how wooded the pass used to be.
I have been all up and down Hwy 15 going to Barstow, CA.... my Dad's family lived there, but I NEVER heard of this 'short-cut'.
I miss the "Summit Inn" , I remember when it burn down, it was ALWAYS a sight to see when you reached the top of Cajon Pass!!
(written May 2021P)
In the 1930s travelers would have to wait about a week after a rain to go from Flagstaff to Kingman in northern Arizona on route 66.
The road was clay and would turn to mud after a rain, and would take several days to dry out. This was ,of course, before the road was paved.
And they called those the "good old days"! Nevertheless, I'd love to have a time machine to travel these old roads in their heyday...
Very good video.
Thank you.
Florida born boy here 1958.
Went to Colorado for a month long trip in 1976.
Had fun in my 4x4 truck.
Doubt I will leave Florida again.
I love this stuff. Tried finding route 66 in flagstaff and lost it back in the early 90's. Sure wish I could drive the whole route with some sort of map they have?
A top notch narative/documentary. 5 stars
Thank you!
Lived in Apple Valley 40 years ago scared me to death when I went down the hill. Don't miss Cajon pass.....lol
I love the content of the high desert area on your channel! All the historic knowledge! I live and grew up in Montclair, basically Urban these days, I met my girlfriend at Cal State she grew up in Victorville, I thought it was just the Boonies till I started learning the history and borrowing my dad's Nissan Frontier to take these dirt roads that you make videos on. So beautiful the high desert region off the road!
I know what you mean. We've lived in the Victor Valley for 35 years. We live in Southwest Utah now.
We used to stop at the Summit Inn for java on the way to camp & 4 wheel in the Mojave and that was in the 70's & 80's . Been down the trail you took us on once , nothing much too see so never went back . Last time I was by the Summit Inn on I-15 was 10 years ago delivering a load to a Walmart DC , it was still there at that time , sorry to hear it burnt down .
Summit Inn became a regular stop for my family when I was a teenager back in the early 70s. We owned a condo in Mammoth Lakes at the time and to get there from Long Beach, we typically took I-405 to SR-14 through Palmdale/Lancaster and Mojave; but after the earthquake in 1971 that route was closed off when the I-5/SR14 interchange collapsed. So we'd drive all the way out to Riverside/San Bernardino and take I-15 through Cajon Pass. Nearly every trip we'd stop for gas & grub at the Summit Inn. Sorry to hear it is no more. Brings back fond memories.
Same here, I had many meals at The Summit Inn with my family.. family bought property in Hesperia back in the 70s. was the only place to eat back in the seventies and eighties. Rip.
Great video! I am amazed about how well you documented your journey. Thank you 🙏
Thank you! And thanks for taking the time to comment.
I went through rt66 in 1968 they was building I15 WE looked up and saw heavy equip. cuting the highway
I was there to see that, still live near Cojon Pass
Excellent video. I enjoyed it and learned a lot. Thanks for putting it together. Lots of work on your part.
Thanks for commenting
Great idea to summarize with a google earth flyover.
Thank you guys! Yes, I'm glad I learned the tricks in Google Earth to give viewers a better sense on where things are.
That is a great feature
Yes. Well done.
Great research! The amount of cross-checking and double-checking that had to be done for this small stretch of road is impressive.👍
I used to enjoy many lunches at the Summit inn!
Another great tour, Cliff.
Thanks a bunch!
"We won't explain how to get there because it's too difficult to get too"... Now that's my kind of motivation.
Ha ha ha, it's actually not too difficult. You have to cross several RR tracks and the likelihood of getting stuck behind one is high. I was simply running out of video time and it really didn't add to the story.
@@BackRoadsWest1 . I just found it humorous because during your presentation I was thinking a road trip would be fun... and then the "hard to find" part made me think "whew that was a close one!". I found the video (and since then others you've produced) well put together and i enjoy watching them. Thank you for the effort for those of us that are "motivationally challenged"!
I'm over here on the East Coast, but immediately set about finding that white monument on Google Earth. 😀
@@BackRoadsWest1 Was intrigued by that also ; can’t you just take Wagon Train road past the gas station and McDonalds, park behind the truck scales, and then walk a few hundred yards on the Pacific Crest Trail, under I-15 and the railroad tracks, and there you are at the burned down historic site ? Great video in any case, I love picking up interesting stories in random videos like this.
Yep, I run this section of PCT often @@owenphil
In April, 1968, my husband and I drove the whole of route 66, in our 1961 Cadillac convertible. We actually started out in Green Bay, Wis. Spent the night in Springfield .....2 ond night , somewhere in Texas.I remember that the motel only cost 5$. When we got to Needles, Ca. It was 114 degrees! you can still drive bits of US 66 along lnterstate40....though there's not much left of it anymore. It was a great ride back in the day. He is gone now, and I live in Michigan,but when I drive out to Ca to visit my son, I still try to catch a little of it.... nostalgia, I guess....
I used to camp there in the early eighties. Catch Crawdads and have Burgers and poor man's Lobster. :)
The owners of the inn will have to pay for a California environmental study to make sure rebuilding the inn won't affect those crawdads at all!
This video is super interesting I enjoyed it. I love exploring. and this tour was amazing. it;s so amazing to look back to the good old days and see how route 66 use to be😀
always thought it would be cool to drive the entire rt 66.
I also as a kid remember going several times on 66, started in Cleveland and went by Chicago and St Louis to Mojave CA. 4 times, Remember all the Burma Shave signs and miles to JackRabbit trading post signs and the concrete Teepee's
Parts of it no longer exist.
It’s rough
@@safffff1000 66 started in Chicago. That Cleveland road was something else
@@StandWatie1862 Yea i know that's where we lived so we drove to Chicago to start out on 66
What you have done is historical. A visual history of Old Route 66!
Thanks for the comment. Hopefully you'll see some more videos from us on historic Rt 66 soon...
HA! They laughed at me when I said the plot to the Disney movie Cars is based on a true story.
Let them laugh. You can't tell some people anything. They already know it all. PS I've lost count of how many times I've watched Cars and wished I could travel the whole route 66 in a big comfortable automobile at my own speed without somebody being on my bumper.
Love how well produced this video is
Thank you! And thanks for commenting.
Definitely not going to try taking that road with my big rig truck!
Be careful the GPS doesn't send you on that route. You are right,stay on the BIG road. Keep the shiney side up.
Thank you for the tour. I live right there in Devore and love History!! I'm going to take a drive and hike that trail someday and it's much more exciting knowing the history.
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for commenting.
The Donner party was trying to avoid paying the toll.
LOL - they were avoiding a lot of things and they were running late
"I have an idea. Trust me. We'll save two bucks."
Lol.
Donner Party: Hold my Donnelly
@Ocee BeeDonner woman setting down dinner plate: "Here you go."
Donner guy: "What's this?! I asked for wings."
Donner woman: "Didn't find any. No gizzards either."
Comfort and joy, your videos provide.
I feel like I just walked through an EPCOT ride.
You had me at abandonned road. As a canadian, the american southwest has always facinated me.
I drive the Cajon everyday for work, Adelanto to Corona. I’m definitely going to take the family on this little journey. I had no idea the old route was there. I love driving Old Route 66 “ Cajon Blvd” even when traffic is bad, 1930s essential playlist on my iPhone and I’m set😀. Thank you for sharing!!
RIP Summit Inn.
I remember the day it burned.😥😥
Me too. Sad day. I went there once. Good food. Wish i had gone more.
I really like the part at 12:30 about the bridge and asphalt, we hiked the PCT through this section yesterday
Yes, fortunately, unlike so many other historic roads, no new road was built on top of it. In a way, the PCT preserves the old road.
I have a love hate relationship with your videos. I love the content but hate that now I have another place I want to explore and I am already so far behind in my current travels.
Well, that's why I call them "virtual". Tomorrow I'm off to central Nevada, so that might be another place you may just have to check out virtually...
@@BackRoadsWest1 Berlin Ichthyosaur State park is a cool place to visit as well as Hickison Petroglyphs, though that is more North than Central.
Huell Howser once did a show on the old Ridge Route between Santa Clarita and Bakersfield; that's a fascinating route and if you haven't traveled it before you oughta put that on your bucket list.
Great coverage! Definitely adding to my bucket list of trails to explore. Appreciate your time and tour. 👌🏼
My pleasure! Thanks for commenting.
*Anecdotes on the Summit Inn:* From 1958-61 my family lived in China Lake (near Ridgecrest) and we frequently stopped at the Summit Inn as we periodically went back and forth to various LA basin destinations. If we took the Cajon Pass route we were using US 395 to cross the desert. There was no I-15 at that time.
- It does not surprise me that the Summit Inn burned down. They "hauled their own water" to run the facilities and would only serve you a glass of water if you asked for it. How much could possibly be available under pressure to fight a fire?
- On our last visit to the Summit Inn my father stormed out when it became clear to him that management was refusing to serve a black family.
Atascadero, CA has an old road over the hills from the Salinas River on what is now the Rocky Canyon trail for hikers, mountain bikers, and horsebackers. The thumbnail clip of this Rte.66 looks a lot like the Rocky Canyon Road trail.
We love the Atascadero region and would like to create a few virtual road trip videos if we lived closer. Here's one of our's that's close to you: ruclips.net/video/-ueQ6WFeH5M/видео.html
"for our metric friends"
Pffft. The whole world, you mean, except for 'Merikuns. Ssst.
Why quit a system that works? I lived in Canada when they made the switch. What a expensive cluster fuck that was.
More like this! Beautiful integration of old maps and photos with modern video and Google Earth. Wonderful work!
There's plenty more on our channel like this. Thanks for commenting.
Considering how many times I've sat in standstill traffic at this section of the 15 on the way up to the sierras, I think I found my new route! Thanks for an awesome video, these are great!
Living in SoCal, I can relate to traffic on the interstate being so bad it makes you contemplate taking a single lane dirt road up through a cut that was hand dug in 1861. That made me laugh.
I wonder what they did when somebody was coming the other direction?
Thank You, Nicely done, and this journey is now on my BUCKET LIST.