Riverside to Pueblo Road Trip Guide
Introduction
You’ll know you’re in for an adventure when you visit Riverside, CA, a city of over 300,000 people that is lined with palm trees literally everywhere you look! The fine dining, extravagant shopping centers, nature parks, and intriguing museums and historic sites will make you fall in love with the largest city of California’s Inland Empire.
Castle Park, Mount Rubidoux Park, March Field Air Museum, Riverside Metropolitan Museum, California Museum of Photography, Whitewater Preserve, and Fox Performing Arts Center are some of the most exciting attractions of this amazing city.
Any road trip that includes passing through the states of California, Nevada, and Colorado is bound to be one the greatest road trips of all time. The famous route 66 is the road you’ll be taking on this breathtaking journey that will lead to some of the best attractions along the way.
There’s hardly anything that the city of Pueblo, CO, doesn’t offer. History, skating, hiking, fly-fishing, arts, and much more can be found in this old mining town. For an eventful day in the city hike the St. Charles Peak Trail, or learn all about wartime aircraft at the Pueblo Weisbrod Aircraft Museum.
One can also simply park the RV and walk the city streets to make new friends with friendly locals and fellow road trippers at the Historic Arkansas Riverwalk of Pueblo – a place that holds events, exhibitions, festivals, and markets throughout the year.
If you can still not bring yourself to leave just yet, check out Rosemount Museum, a 19-century mansion with all its original furnishings still intact.
Point of Interest
First Original McDonald’s Museum
Your first roadside attraction on the road trip will show up in San Bernardino, California. The First Original McDonald’s Museum has been established in the same place where the first-ever McDonald’s, founded by the McDonald brothers, opened its doors in 1940.
The property does not belong to McDonald’s anymore but to a local restaurant owner Juan Pollo, who decided to convert the location into a landmark museum.
According to McDonald’s Corporation, the official first location of the restaurant is in Des Plaines, Illinois. However, this location was established after the restaurant was bought by Ray Kroc and converted into the corporate business it is today.
The museum itself exhibits decades worth of relics of the fast-food chain’s lengthy history. The collection here includes old McDonald’s toys, signs, and the equipment from an old McDonald’s play place.
Seven Magic Mountains
Seven Magic Mountains in Las Vegas, NV, is a natural desert with a human twist. Internationally recognized Swiss artist Ugo Rondinone made a large public art installation on the desert landscape near Jean Dry Lake and turned it into a tourist attraction.
This installation includes seven, three-feet-high, bright and vividly colorful towers made of a stack of boulders. The installation, a burst of color against the tawny desert, is certainly a sight to behold. The site appears even more beautiful because of Sheep Mountain, as well as the McCullough, Bird Spring, and Goodsprings mountains ranges, located in the backdrop.
The boulders that create the tower were also locally sourced from the same region and according to the artist himself, described as “physically and symbolically mid-way between the natural and the artificial.” These day-glow totems are a two-year art installation and were co-produced by the Nevada Museum of Art.
Havasu National Wildlife Refuge
With all the beautiful sights along your route, pretty soon you’ll start craving a little outdoor retreat of your own, not to mention a place to camp and catch up on sleep. Fortunately, a very gorgeous mix of natural wonders will be waiting for you at Needles, CA.
Havasu National Wildlife Refuge is a sanctuary for all the wildlife that relies on the life-giving waters of the lower Colorado River. Hence, the refuge protects the entire natural stretch of the river from Needles to Arizona in an otherwise dry, hot, and arid land and makes sure that wildlife and people have something to aim towards.
In addition to the terrestrial wildlife, the refuge also attracts thousands of bird species during the migratory season and is home to the endangered southwestern willow flycatcher. To allow humans to appreciate this sight just as much, there are several recreational opportunities including boating, kayaking, canoeing, fishing, and waterfowl hunting.
Lowell Observatory
Lowell Observatory located on Mars Hill, in Flagstaff, AZ, is an astronomical observatory and a haven for all amateur and aspiring astrologists. In fact, any person who visits this place will develop a fondness for all things astronomy-related. The ninth planet (now a dwarf planet) Pluto was actually discovered here in 1930, by Clyde Tombaugh.
There are many interesting things offered at the observatory, starting with an opportunity to look through the telescopes and gaze at the cosmos. Additionally, there will be professional astronomers right next to you, and they would happily satisfy all your curiosity.
Lowell Observatory was founded in 1894, and is now one of the oldest observatories in the US and has been behind many milestones in the astrology department.
Today, Lowell Observatory’s 24-inch Clark Refractor and its historic dome remain open to the public and you can almost always catch a glimpse of Mars
New Mexico Museum of Natural History
New Mexico Museum of Natural History in Albuquerque, NM, allows you to learn all about the geography and history of New Mexico. The museum doesn’t leave any stone unturned and they are exhibits that feature everything from the "Big Bang" and the formation of the universe to dinosaurs.
The most popular exhibition at the museum has to the Dawn of the Dinosaurs which also happens to be the one and the only Triassic hall in North America. Another exhibition at the natural history museum will allow you the unprecedented experience of walking through a live volcano. You will also get a chance to see a 30-ton and 110-feet long Seismosaurus – the world’s largest dinosaur ever discovered.
The many historical exhibits displayed here will make you wonder as to what other mysteries are yet to be discovered and fill you with a sense of how little we still know about our universe.
Summary
At the end of your road trip, you’ll find yourself in a city that once housed many cowboys filled with excitement and hope during the time of the southern Gold Rush. The city is mostly known for being an old mining town but modern days have made it a place of unique cuisines, history museums, and paths to explore.
When in Pueblo, visit the El Pueblo History Museum to learn all about the region’s history, diverse culture, and handcrafts. Lake Pueblo State Park is another must-visit destination in Pueblo. The park is especially perfect for summer excursions. To disperse yourself in the history of the region, don’t miss out on the Union Avenue Historic District.
