Heading east out of Amboy, I tried to remember that the “66” didn’t mean 66 mph. I passed Kelbaker Road and continued on towards the ghost town of Chambless, Cal., even though signs warned me that the road was closed ahead.

James Albert Chambless, formerly of Arkansas, established a homestead at the intersection of Cadiz Road and the National Trails Road sometime in the early 1920s. His small homestead grew into a small community that took his name and as travel along Route 66 increased, so did the town’s prosperity. By 1939 a post office, café, gas station, motel, store and tourist cabins were all happily in business.