Why I Keep Returning to Route 66

After more than two decades on Route 66, people still ask me the same question: what’s my favorite place on the road? The truth is, I don’t have one. My answer depends on the day, the light, and the people I’m thinking about. Sometimes it’s a neon sign glowing over Tulsa at sunrise. Sometimes it’s a historic bridge across an Oklahoma river. Sometimes it’s a conversation with someone who has spent years keeping the Mother Road alive.

That’s what keeps pulling me back: not a single destination, but the living spirit of the road itself.

Oklahoma has always been one of the states that calls me back. Historic bridges still carry travelers across rivers. Neon glows against the evening sky. Small towns like Stroud and Erick preserve their stories while writing new ones, and every trip reveals something I hadn’t noticed before.

Some of my favorite memories come from the people who keep the road alive, like Michael Jones of Gasoline Alley Classics in Sapulpa. Michael is a natural storyteller, and his shop celebrates Route 66 and the history of American travel: classic automobiles, vintage petroliana, and roadside Americana, all of it creatively repurposed into pieces visitors can take home. He reminds me that the road is shaped, every day, by the people who care for it.

The photographs here are a few of the scenes and personalities that have inspired me along Oklahoma’s Route 66, from the streets of Stroud to Tulsa’s iconic neon. One of them, the historic Capitol Motel and Will Rogers Motor Court signs in Tulsa, was selected for the USPS Route 66 Centennial stamp pane, bringing the spirit of the Mother Road to millions of Americans.

What draws me back is simple. Route 66 is not a piece of history held behind glass or a velvet rope. It is something you can step into and experience for yourself.

For more than twenty years, photographing Route 66 has been my life’s work. These images are available as fine art prints, made to live on the walls of a home or office and carry a piece of the road into everyday life. If one of these photographs speaks to you, or you would simply like to explore more, you can see the full collection at PicsOnRoute66.com or reach me directly at eat1@eau1eav1eaw1!