This 42-mile stretch of two-lane blacktop is one of the last and best-preserved segments of the original Route 66, one of America's first transcontinental highways. This portion of the highway once included one of the most fearsome obstacles for "flatland" travelers in the 1930's: the hairpin curves and steep grades of Sitgreaves Pass, which characterize Old Route 66 as it makes its way over the Black Mountains of western Arizona.

The Historic Route 66 National Back Country Byway begins five miles south of Kingman at the McConnico exit off Interstate 40. To begin at the southern end, exit off Interstate 40 at the Topock/Golden Shores. Switchbacks access Oatman and the mining community of Goldroad.