After surviving some great hairpin turns and the descent from Sitgreaves pass and through the Black Mountains, the valley opened up and the driving was easy. It was still early morning on Day Two of my “Goodbye God, I’m going to Texas” roadtrip. I had left Oatman and the burros behind and driven through Goldroad, which is once again an active mining area. There were some spectacular views from Sitgreaves Pass but the view before me was pretty cool as well, with one of those Arizona-type of pokey mountains up ahead. My next stop would be Cool Springs, AZ.

Cool Springs dates back to 1926. At the time, it was the last stop before the steep Goldroad grade and many folks stopped here to take a breather before attempting the ascent. The small camp grew to include eight tourist cabins and the café was known for its chicken dinners. Cool Springs had its ups and downs as did most of the businesses along Route 66 but continued to operate until 1966, when the entire camp burned to the ground. The property remained abandoned and neglected for the next thirty-five years, until it was purchased in 2001 and restoration (actually, nearly a complete rebuild) of the property began. Click HERE for a more in-depth history of the camp.