By Visit California Trace the east-to-west path of this historic highway while also enjoying a few modern twists — like exploring it in an electric vehicle. This trip starts in Needles and ends in Santa Monica. It can take you 2-3 days to make the entire 351-mile trip.
Needles 929 Front St., Needles First opened in 1926, the original Route 66 was created to traffic people and goods across the 2,400 miles between Chicago and Los Angeles, but it soon became an American icon. Route 66 was the “Mother Road” for folks seeking a better life in John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath and by the 1950s it had become an express lane for sunshine-seeking vacationers.
Although the road was gradually superseded by the federal highway system, you can still trace most of Route 66’s path and see plenty of signs — literal and figurative — along the way. (Two great navigation apps to choose from: the Route 66 Ultimate Guide and Route 66 Navigation.) The Mother Road will soon celebrate its centennial too.
For travelers making that trip out West during Route 66’s heyday, the Colorado River and the desert town of Needles offered the first look at the Golden State. You can still see that Route 66 logo emblazoned on the road right outside the Needles Regional Museum, where you can learn more about the local history related to the highway, the Mojave Indian Tribe, and the Santa Fe Railroad. Embrace the river-meets-desert scenery by paddling a canoe and seeing some of the 300 bird specie.