by Gaz
Biking Day 17: Western End of Route 66
On Friday we checked out of our Hollywood Hotel after breakfast in search of the Western end of Route 66, purported variously to be at Santa Monica Pier, Santa Monica Boulevard and Palisades Beach Road, or the end of Santa Monica Freeway (aka I-10). With the help of the SatNav, we fought our way through bumper-to-bumper traffic to Santa Monica Pier, and after some looking around eventually to the Santa Monica Visitor Center on Palisades Beach Road… We were told that a few years earlier, someone who had lost their football scholarship had sadly driven their car into the original “Route 66″ sign, which was tragically destroyed in the ensuing fire along with said car and driver. That plaque has not been replaced as a matter of respect for the poor driver. The only remaining signage might be found at the intersection of Colorado Avenue and 4th Street, but after a couple of laps and a search on foot we were unable to find any sign of it.
The photo shows me standing outside the Visitor Centre looking confused by the map we’d been handed. And yes, that is an albino bat bungeed to the back of Tave’s Harley. Don’t ask. Regardless, we dutifully set off back along all 9 miles of Santa Monica Boulevard, through Beverley Hills and West Hollywood, and all the way along Sunset Boulevard to I-5… stopping every block or two for the traffic lights. It took us more than 2 hours to cover a little over 20 miles of this alignment of the Mother Road, so we stopped for a very late lunch and finished the remaining 80 miles to our hotel on the freeway, arriving around 7pm after 10 hours in the saddle.
Bearing in mind that we were riding on a weekday, outside of rush-hour traffic, in the low season for tourists, the traffic was appalling. I’m glad that our bikes reached the end of Route 66, but under any other circumstances I think the train is a far more sensible means of transport around LA!
So glad you are enjoying your trip. If you can, head to Sedona and Oak Creek Canyon. It will be worth it. Then, keep heading south to come back toward Los Angeles via I-10. You can take US-60 west toward Quartzite (worth a stop for its funky feel) before picking up 10. From there, journey the long way around through 29 Palms (check out the 29 Palms Inn … it’s amazingly cool!) or just continue on the slab. If you stay on the freeway, just after Desert Center, you’ll pass the old filling station that is my company logo, the photo on the main page of my website.
Of course, continuing west, you’ll go through Palm Springs before heading back toward Los Angeles via Palm Springs. Once in that area, you’ll pick up old US-99.
If you have time and you are heading back to Los Angeles, drop me a line and we can try to hook up for beers.
We made a very brief visit to Sedona last year, and we definitely wanted to spend some more time there this year, but were worried that snow and ice might stop us getting through Flagstaff. You’re right that the ride through Oak Creek Canyon is jaw dropping, as I was reminded when we rode down it this afternoon :-D
Last year we went through Phoenix from Sedona, and then crossed the mountains into Sandiego from Yuma on I-8, which was a pretty terrifying experience. Since we haven’t yet entered California on I-10, it would be fun to ride that route back, but I also want to visit Hoover Dam, and Las Vegas… so we’re probably stuck with retracing our steps along I-15 this time.
It’d be great to chat over a beer before we leave! As long as we are in plenty of time to drop our bikes off for shipping from LA when we get back, I’ll let you know when we’re in back in town.
There were actually three western termini of 66 in California. From 1926-1936, the original western terminus was at the intersection of 7th and Broadway in the heart of the Theater District in Downtown Los Angeles. From 1936 to 1964, the highway was extended to the intersection of Lincoln and Olympic Boulevards in Santa Monica (currently the intersection of Lincoln and I-10. Finally, in 1964, California truncated the highway to Pasadena, thus creating a western terminus at the intersections of Arroyo Parkway and Colorado Boulevard.
Regarding LA traffic, there is no “light” time to be in LA. But I highly recommend that any 66′ers interested in seeing all that the last 40 miles of road has to offer – including over 30 National Register of Historic Places landmarks, the only vehicular tunnels ever to be a part of the road, the first freeway portion of 66, and the oldest remaining Route 66 bridge – try their darndest to come through on a Sunday when the Dodgers don’t have a home game. That’s about as light as it gets.
Hope you enjoyed your trip.
Scott Piotrowski, Director 66 Productions http://www.66productions.com
Hi Scott! Wow, I wish we’d found your book before tackling the LA traffic unprepared :-) Thanks for the insight. We plan to round up some friends and ride along 66 again in a few years time: I’m certainly more prepared for what this end of the road is like now, but it sure was a surprise after the relative quiet of the other 2500 miles of the route!
And thanks, yes, we are still having an absolute blast on this road trip, and the 12 weeks we’ve spent on it so far is still nowhere near enough time to see all the roadside attractions we’ve passed. We’re doing things a little unconventionally though, we travelled from Chicago to Williams between October and December last year, and starting in LA last week, we’re now headed back as far towards Williams as weather permits.