Day 13: Kingman AZ to Barstow CA
Postcard from Barstow, California.
241 miles in a oven. I left early to avoid the expected heatwave but it wasn’t early enough.
Today’s leg started with some series of nervous narrow turns, in and out on the mountains leading to the ghost town of Oatman, now a kind of Disneyland for western movie lovers. After that, the Route 66 enters California, skirting the southern part of the Mojave desert and it is just nothingness, lizards crossing the roads and burning temperatures. Kinda beautiful.
One more sleep to the grand finale.
Driving from Kingman to Barstow Cheat Sheet
Accommodation in Barstow, CA
- Star Inn, 901 East Main Street, Barstow, CA, 92311. It is not the Hilton but it does the job. Clean, easy to find with a killing view over the mountains and the Mojave Desert.
Where to eat and what to see between Kingman, AZ and Barstow, CA
- Ludlow Cafe, 68315 National Trails Hwy, Ludlow, CA 92338 Decent food, friendly service in the middle of nowhere. A life saver.
- Oatman. I passed by pretty early in the morning and the place was actually looking like a Ghost Town. Now one around aside from a bunch of sleepy donkeys. The town, nestled in the Black Mountains as I said Otman is a kind of Disneyland for western movie lovers. it is worth stopping by tho.
- Lola’s Kitchen, 1240 E Main St Barstow, CA 92311 I hope I am not offending anyone saying that Barstow is one of the worst, lowkey places I’ve ever been (or maybe I was just tired, apologies) With an exception. Lola’s kitchen was a lovely surprise within the abundance of nothingness flourishing all around: a welcoming, friendly eatery offering traditional Mexican food such as tacos and enchiladas.
Driving from Kingman to Barstow FAQ
206 miles, but the historic Route 66 from Kingman to Barstow is 241 miles long.
It takes about 3 hours to drive from Kingman to Barstow.
The best thing about driving from Kingman to Barstow is that you are driving through the Mojave desert and all its incredible landscapes.
The main attractions when you are driving from Kingman to Barstow are the desert and the ghost town of Oatman.
A SUV midsize probably is a good choice. The temperatures might be pretty high, almost disturbing in the Mojave desert and the road feat some nervous narrow turns, in and out on the mountains,
Route 66 pictures: photos taken from Kingman to Barstow
My itinerary on the Route 66
- Route 66 the ultimate American road trip
- Day 1: Chicago to Springfield
- Day 2: Springfield to Cuba
- Day 3: Cuba to Carthage
- Day 4: Carthage to Oklahoma City
- Day 5: Oklahoma City to Amarillo
- Day 6: Amarillo to Tucumcari
- Day 7: Tucumcari to Santa Fe
- Day 8: Santa Fe to Gallup
- Day 9: Gallup to Bluff
- Day 10: Bluff to Chambers
- Day 11: Chambers to Sedona
- Day 12: Sedona to Kingman
- Day 13: Kingman to Barstow
- Day 14: Barstow to Santa Monica
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Day 2: Seattle WA to Port Angeles WA
Day 4 and 5: Asheville NC to Charleston SC
