This wonderfully illustrated, up-to-date guide to the natural, cultural, and historical gems hidden just off the legendary Route 66 outlines 50 trips for curious travelers. Route 66 is arguably the world's most famous highway (more than 60% of Route 66 adventurers are from overseas!)-its motels, greasy spoons, and roadside attractions comprising a time capsule of America's love affair with the automobile. While many of the road's iconic attractions have disappeared with time (along with large stretches of the road itself), others are as enduring as ever. In this completely revised and updated version of The Backroads of Route 66, author and Route 66 expert Jim Hinckley is your guide from the lowlands of the American Plains to the high plateaus of New Mexico and Arizona, from the Great Lakes to the mighty Pacific Ocean, and through major metropolises and remote country towns. But rather than take the road oft traveled and the sites most photographed, Hinckley encourages you to branch off the Mother Road and discover the hidden gems beyond today's familiar motels and tourist traps-quaint frontier communities that date to the nation's westward expansion; the legacy of ancient native cultures; and the awe-inspiring natural wonders that have graced these lands since time immemorial. There to be explored within a few hours' drive from the path of Route 66, discover: - State parks - Wildlife refuges - Museums - Historic sites - Literary landmarks - And much more The fifty trips in The Backroads of Route 66 offer new travel opportunities for you and the thousands of road-trippers who follow this legendary route, looking for something more.