Winslow, Arizona

Standing on the Corner

Yep, you guessed it… in Winslow, Arizona. 

On a recent road trip through Northern Arizona I couldn’t help but stop in the infamous town of Winslow. If you don’t know why Winslow, Arizona is famous let me introduce you to the Eagles song “Take It Easy.” Seriously, go look it up right now.  

“Now I’m a-standin’ on the corner in Winslow, Arizona…”

Go with the flow

It wasn’t my original intention to visit this map dot along I-40 but my plans changed at the last minute and suddenly it was within reach. I was driving from Southern Arizona to Moab, Utah to meet some friends for a whirlwind rafting trip through Cataract Canyon. My time was rather limited so I was planning to go the fast (and generally boring) way and take the interstate. Personally, I prefer to travel on smaller roads but speed limits make a difference when time is not on your side. 

However, at the very last minute another friend decided to join us and I had to pick her up in Gallup, New Mexico. This isn’t too far out of the way, mileage wise, but it doesn’t lend itself well to interstate travel. I needed to change course so I looked at the map and found there were options! 

Arizona is my home state so I’ve traveled through it extensively but I’ve always managed to skirt around the middle of I-40. Namely, I had never been to Winslow, Arizona. Generally, I’ve driven north along I-17 through Flagstaff. Occasionally, I’ve taken the smaller highway 77 through the White Mountains to Holbrook. And once I took Highway 191 all the way which is an absolutely beautiful drive but it is excruciatingly slow. 

Take the road less traveled

The most direct route for me on this trip would have been Highway 77 but in the spirit of adventure I decided to take the road less traveled (at least for me.) And boy, was I glad I did! 

I packed up a day early and left the afternoon before I needed to pick up my friend. This gave me half a day to drive up into the mountains where I intended to camp. The whole area is National Forest so you can pretty much camp anywhere and there are loads of back roads leading to all sorts of amazing places. Unfortunately, that was not meant to be. As I arrived in Payson, I noticed a number of signs along the highway that read “Forest Closed.” I thought, “That can’t mean what I think it means. Can it? They can’t close an entire forest. Can they?”

Strawberry to the Rescue

They can. And they did. And I thought I was totally out of luck. It was very nearly dark at this point so I decided to scarf down some fast food and keep going to see how far the forest closure really went. I tried to Google it to see if I could find more information but the forest service website left some things to be desired and I could not, for the life of me, tell where the closure ended and what restrictions applied where. 

As I drove out of town, I continued seeing “Forest Closed” signs for the next 20 minutes. All of the side roads were blocked off, I was high in the mountains, it was mostly dark, I had no cell phone signal, and I was losing hope.

And then what to my wondering eyes should appear? No, it wasn’t Santa Clause but it was just as magical. Wondering where I was going to sleep that night and hoping against hope that I would be able to stop soon, I came to the Strawberry Inn. Absolutely. Adorable.

Read more about my 12 hours in Strawberry here.

Second star on the left and straight on to…Winlsow?

Stay on Highway 87 going north out of Strawberry and it only takes about an hour more to get to Winslow. You drive through lush green forest for a long while before dropping down into juniper bushes and finally high sage desert. I pulled into Winslow just in time because I can’t go long in the mornings without coffee and nothing in Strawberry was open. Visiting a cafe called the Sipp Shoppe right on the corner to get the full effect from my short time there, I was not disappointed. 

Winslow, Arizona is so full of color and nostalgia. While the entire town is built around a single corner, a slightly deeper delve reveals intricate murals and quaint window dressings. Flowers adorn the lampposts on the main street and there are several small parks and historic buildings to explore.

After breakfast, I took my coffee over to the corner to see what that’s all about. There are at least 3 stores on the block selling Route 66 souvenirs and an entire wall dedicated to the Eagles song, complete with a flatbed Ford. Like all the other tourists, I posed with the statues and the truck and admired all the knickknacks in the windows up and down old Highway 66. And I loved it. I am a sucker for a good tourist trap. 

More than just a tourist trap

I had a few minutes to spare and I wanted to see more of the town so I walked away from the hustle and bustle a few blocks. In one direction I found several interesting old buildings and a storefront with an upstairs door leading to nowhere. In the other, I saw a darling gazebo by the train tracks. So of course, I wandered that way. 

Figuring that it was just a picnic spot, I was surprised to see a path heading off to the right. I followed it around some bushes and was rewarded with more nostalgic Route 66 memorabilia. An old clock towered over a large Route 66 logo on the sidewalk and there was a series of old highway signs advertising Route 66. As I posed for pictures yet again, I saw a splash of color in the alley across the way.  

Better than I could have hoped

Already enamored with the vibrancy of the town, I meandered over for a better look. The backside of the buildings lining the main drag were even more interesting that their window displays. A taco toting, sombrero wearing, mustachioed saguaro invited you down a narrow alley where Frida Khalo loomed, set against her signature turquoise. Monarch butterflies navigating an intricate maze of blue and black and white were followed by even more complex Native American symbols. All of it in dazzling shades of color. 

After taking a minute to absorb as much as I could, I continued down the alley and popped out right where I had started my tour of the town. My car parked only a few feet from the alley. If I hadn’t walked the long way back, I would never have known that such delight was hiding among those narrow walls.