Attractions

There isn't much to do right in Kingman, but while you're in town, you can learn more about local history at the Mohave Museum of History and Arts, 400 W. Beale St. (tel. 928/753-3195; www.mohavemuseum.org). There's also plenty of Andy Devine memorabilia on display. The museum is open Monday through Friday from 9am to 5pm, Saturday and Sunday from 1 to 5pm. Admission is $4 for adults, $3 for seniors, free for children 12 and under. Afterwards, take a drive or a stroll around downtown Kingman to view the town's many historic buildings. (You can pick up a map at the museum.)

If you're interested in historic homes, you can tour the Bonelli House, 430 E. Spring St. (tel. 928/753-3175), a two-story stone home built in 1915 and furnished much as it may have been at that time. It's open Monday through Friday from 11am to 3pm, but before heading over, check at the Mohave Museum of History and Arts to see if a guide can show you around. Admission is by donation.

The Historic Route 66 Museum, 120 W. Andy Devine Ave. (tel. 928/753-9889; www.kingmantourism.org/route66museum), has exhibits on the history of not just Route 66, but also the roads, railroads, and trails that preceded it. There's a great collection of old photos taken during the Depression, and even an "Okie" truck on display. You'll also see a Studebaker Champion and mock-ups of a gas station, diner, hotel lobby, and barbershop. Hours are daily from 9am to 6pm (until 5pm Dec-Feb); admission is $4 for adults, $3 for seniors, and free for children 12 and under.

When you're tired of the heat and want to cool off, head southeast of Kingman to Hualapai Mountain Park, 6250 Hualapai Mountain Rd. (tel. 928/681-5700; www.mcparks.com), which is at an elevation of 7,000 feet and offers picnicking, hiking, mountain biking, camping, and rustic rental cabins built in the 1930s by the Civilian Conservation Corps. Daily admission to the park is $5.

Ghost Towns

Located 30 miles southwest of Kingman on what was once Route 66 is the busy little mining camp of Oatman, a classic Wild West ghost town full of tourist shops selling tacky souvenirs. Founded in 1906 when gold was discovered here, Oatman quickly grew into a lively town of 12,000 people and was an important stop on Route 66 -- even Clark Gable and Carole Lombard stayed here (on their honeymoon, no less). In 1942, when the U.S. government closed down many of Arizona's gold-mining operations, Oatman's population plummeted. Today, there are fewer than 250 inhabitants, and the once-abandoned old buildings have been preserved as a ghost town. The historic look of Oatman has attracted numerous filmmakers over the years; How the West Was Won is just one of the movies that was shot here.

One of Oatman's biggest attractions is its population of feral burros. These animals, which roam the streets of town begging for handouts, are descendants of burros used by gold miners. Be careful -- they bite!

Daily staged shootouts in the streets and dancing to country music on weekend evenings are the other big draws, but you can also tour a gold mine. Tours operated by Gold Road Mine Tours (tel. 928/768-1600; www.goldroadmine.com) take you underground and also show you all the topside workings of a modern gold mine. Tours last 1 hour; the cost is $12 for adults and $6 for children 12 and under. The mine is on historic Route 66 about 2 1/2 miles east of Oatman.

And, of course, the Wild West isn't the Wild West if you don't spend some time in the saddle. Oatman Stables (tel. 928/768-3257; www.oatmanstables.com) offers 1-hour horseback rides for $25 per person and 2-hour rides for $45.

Annual events staged here are among the strangest in the state. There are the bed races in January, a Fourth of July high-noon sidewalk egg fry, and a Labor Day burro biscuit toss. Saloons, restaurants, and a very basic hotel (where you can view the room Clark and Carole rented on their wedding night) provide food and lodging if you decide you'd like to soak up the Oatman atmosphere for a while. For more information, contact the Oatman-Gold Road Chamber of Commerce, P.O. Box 423, Oatman, AZ 86433 (tel. 928/768-6222; www.oatmangoldroad.com).

Chloride, yet another quasi ghost town, is about 20 miles northwest of Kingman. The town was founded in 1862 when silver was discovered in the nearby Cerbat Mountains, and is named for a type of silver ore that was mined here. By the 1920s, there were 75 mines and 2,000 people in Chloride. When the mines shut down in 1944, the town lost most of its population. Today, there are around 150 year-round residents. For more information, contact the Chloride Chamber of Commerce, P.O. Box 268, Chloride, AZ 86431 (tel. 928/565-2204; www.chloridearizona.com).

Much of the center of the town has been preserved as a historic district that includes, among other less-than-remarkable buildings, the oldest continuously operating post office in Arizona.

Every first and third Saturday of the month at high noon, Chloride comes alive when The Immortal Gunfighters (tel. 928/565-4109; www.immortalgunfighters.com) stage gunfights at Cyanide Springs mock cow town. On the second and fourth Saturday of each month at high noon at Cyanide Springs, gunfight shows are staged by the Wild Roses of Chloride (www.chloridewildroses.com), an all-women gunfighters' group. Note that there are no shows in July or August. I guess the wild roses wilt in the heat.

Chloride's biggest attractions are the Chloride murals, painted by artist Roy Purcell in 1966. The murals, sort of colorful hippie images, are painted on the rocks on a hillside about a mile outside town. To find them, drive through town on Tennessee Avenue and continue after the road turns to dirt. You can also see old petroglyphs created by the Hualapai tribe on the hillside opposite the murals.