Hinckley Jim - Backroads of Arizona: along the byways to breathtaking landscapes and quirky small towns

A strange forest of twisted, spike-topped trees unlike anything on earth gives the Joshua Tree Parkway in northwest Arizona its name.

E VEN THOUGH THE NORTHWEST portion of the state has often been on the forefront of development, it still is a mix between the modern and the frontier era. In spite of explosive growth during the past decade, there are large portions of this area that remain as wilderness, little changed from when the conquistadors first came through this area more than four centuries ago.

Mohave County may be geographically larger than several states, but the population in the northern third of the county is numbered in the thousands. Separating the northern part of the county from the southern part is a raw, rugged land with deep, colorful gorges, including the world-famous Grand Canyon.

With the exception of Kingman, Lake Havasu City, and Bullhead City, the communities in the northwest are, to a large degree, time capsules. In many towns, it feels as if time stopped in the 1950s, while in others, the trappings of that period are but a thin faade covering relics from when this area was a territory and not a state. In the village of Supai, for example, mule trains still bring the mail and most supplies into town.

The longest remaining uninterrupted portion of historic Route 66 crosses northwestern Arizona. As you motor west along this legendary stretch of asphalt, little imagination is required to believe that it is the year 1955, or even 1950, for there is almost nothing to break the illusion, except the passing of a Honda.

Finding adequate words to describe this amazing land is difficult indeed. If, however, I were limited to just two words to describe northwestern Arizona, they would be time capsule.

A wild burro forages on a once-busy stretch of Route 66 near Oatman.