Ghost Town, U.S.A.

Today is Valentine’s Day; we kind of lost track of time and as a result we did plan very well, so we have very few hotel options for this weekend.  Heading into California, we are going to a little out of the way stop in-between the Ghost town we are visiting today and Lake Havasu which we plan to visit tomorrow.

After two short days in Nevada, we cross the state line back into Arizona.  We connect up again with the Historic Route 66 just outside of Bullhead City.  Up the Arizona mountain side we climb, winding around rough and ragged landscape.

Oatman, AZ, a mining town, founded about 1906, with business created from 1.8 million ounces of gold extracted from the surrounding mines.  By the mid 1930's, the boom was over and in 1942 the last remaining mines were closed as nonessential to the war effort.  

The remnants of the safe that regularly protected large sums of gold for the old Arizona hotel guests, is still standing. In 1921, a fire burned down many of Oatman's smaller buildings, yet sparing the Oatman Hotel. “Oatie the ghost” is one of the hotel’s most famous visitors.  Believed to be an Irish miner, William Ray Flour who’s  while waiting for his family, received word that they all died on the journey from Ireland. Flour started drinking, often heavily. One night he passed out in the alley behind the hotel, never waking up.

Burros first came to Oatman with early day prospectors.   As the mines closed and people moved away, the burros were released into the surrounding hills. Today, as we walk down the streets of Oatman, US Route 66, we see the wild descendants of those domestic work animals. They come to town every day at the same time to be feed.  Alfalfa nuggets are sold by the local establishments; the owners very attached to their daily visitors, knowing the burros by name.  The wild burros are protected by federal law from capture and kept well feed by the visitors to Oatman. 

I am thinking that Brad might have been distracted by the nicely decked out Indiana parked on the street and less interested in the burros than I was.  

Twice a day, on most days, there is a reenactment of a famous shoot out which occurred there many years ago.  It seems that we are not going to see the show today so we look in the many shops up and down the street.  Everyone in that little town was very friendly.  

No one as friendly as Kathy, we became friends immediately.  She is right next to the cafe and has the best shop in whole state of Arizona.  

Thank You for the valentine! 

Please email me, your name went through the wash with the laundry.

We can not leave town without mailing our daily post cards to the grand kids.  They are tracking our trip on a map and have little books that they collect the post cards we sent them each day.  Love and Miss them so much!

We are very glad to have heard about this quaint little place last night.  Thanks, nice people by the pool.  Enjoy Oceanside tonight!