In the Black Mountains along Old Route 66 between Sitegreaves Pass and Oatman, you will find a strange knoll. Travel Arizona.
Photo by Mary Cook Geivett
Not for reuse
SITEGREAVES PASS
From the Sitegreaves Pass overlook, you can see Arizona, California, and Nevada. Not to mention that the Black Mountains are some of the most beautiful along Route 66. It is worth the stop to take some pictures.
Travel Arizona Along the Golden Road
Along Golden Road (that stretch of Old Route 66) you will find switchbacks and steep grades. It’s a fun trail for the traveler who is familiar with the highway, but for travelers new to the highway, slow down! You may feel like you’re the only one on the road, but you aren’t.
There are a number of pull-offs along Golden Road between Kingman and Oatman. These pull offs lead to viewpoints or trails to ruins, old mines, and car crashes which were never retrieved. I would personally recommend wearing boots or hiking boots off of the road. There are rattlesnakes in the area.
HISTORY OF SITEGREAVES PASS OR “BLOODY 66”
In October 1857, Edward Fitzgerald Beale and an expedition of men passed through and built Beale’s Wagon Road. He then named the pass John Howells Pass after one of the men in his expedition. It was later mistakenly named Sitgreaves Pass after Captain Lorenzo Sitgreaves who had never passed through Beale’s Wagon Road but had traversed nearby passes.
There were many deaths along Old Route 66. It was especially so in Arizona because of the road’s narrow lanes and poor engineering before the 1960s. It was so bad on Oatman Highway (Golden Road) that locals were often hired to drive people through the Sitegreaves Pass.
Traveling the Arizona Pass
Sitegreaves Pass, at an elevation of 3,550 feet, is a dangerous pass. My recommendation as you travel Arizona is to take it slow. as you travel Arizona. But, with many road improvements since the 1960s, it is not nearly as dangerous as it once was.
Photo compliments of Loren Javier
MURALS AND MEMORIALS
The stop on your journey, that doesn’t look like much to see, is called Murals and Monuments. Upon first walking upon it, it looks like a small, weird cemetery. There is a scatter of half-shod crosses, some with ribbons tied around them, or stuffed toys, buttons, or other relics deposited at each disorderly plot. There is a strange poem tagged on the back of a large rock.
And we’ll march…
And we’ll ride…
the rails
with our blindfolds on
wearing our pistols
Billy Talent
Photo by Mary Cook Geivett
Not for reuse
The site, if you are alone, is very surreal. However, it is not a cemetery. It is a memorial to each person whose ashes had been spread across the site! This revelation left me with questions. Were the ashes in containers? Some are. Are the ashes buried? Not if the ashes were spread. Did the ashes blow away – am I WALKING on the ashes? Not Only did I mull over these questions, but I also erased all of the photos of the site! Since that time, I have returned to the site and taken new photos.
According to locals, the memorial is a place where people gather for (of course) memorials, “going away” parties, and even a military salute. For the fans of Jack Skellington and Sally from Nightmare Before Christmas, an occasional wedding has even been officiated at the site!
The Golden Road portion of Route 66 is, in my opinion, one of the most beautiful drives in the State of Arizona. It is worth the flight in, or the drive out. Take time to walk barefoot (metaphorically speaking) in Arizona. Just don’t walk barefoot on the cactuses!
