The Hi-Desert Nature Museum is celebrating the centennial of Route 66 with the multi-sensory exhibition, “The Journey is the Destination – 100 Years of Route 66,” scheduled to open on Saturday, October 17, 2026.  The exhibit invites visitors to experience Route 66 through both sight and scent. Alongside the panoramic color photography of Andy Romanoff and Brian Helder, the exhibition uses scent, led by Sofia Collette Ehrich, The Olfactory Contractor, as a tool to interpret the people, places, memories, and culture of America’s Main Street.

Commissioned on November 11, 1926, as part of the newly established U.S. Highway System.  The 2,400-mile highway provided a physical connection between Chicago, Illinois, and Santa Monica, California by linking existing regional roads into a continuous all-season transcontinental route.  It served as a primary artery for economic development, military transport, and westward migration, most notably carrying families fleeing the Dust Bowl during the 1930s and vacationers during the post-war tourism boom. By the 1980s the safer, faster, and more direct Interstate Highway System had rendered Route 66 out-of-date and obsolete.  Though the last original Route 66 sign was taken down on July 24, 1985, the historic route remains a symbol of American ingenuity, mobility, and adventure. 

So, get hip to this timely tip, and get your kicks for Route 66 at the Hi-Desert Nature Museum in Yucca Valley.