…It remains a mystery as to what lies beyond what you can see…

‘Route Blue’ definitely has roots…Our transportation system had deep roots long before it had assigned ‘numbers’.  The early highway corridors carried mankind (of all ethnic origins) in a unified destination of discovery.  This network started as foot paths and evolved into worn trails carved into wagon ruts and powered by horses that transported humanity ‘beyond boundaries’.  This was the beginning of our transportation network fueled by the quest for mobility and symbolic of freedom & liberty in our ever changing society.

Humans are nomadic by nature.   As society advanced from foot passage to horse to engine powered vehicles (including the “Iron Horse”), the horse remains as a timeless, bold & integral symbol of our culture.   The resonating sound of thundering hooves speak to us beneath the concrete, as our modern civilization is driven in perpetual motion to move us forward.

In Michelle’s narrative “The Blue Horse Story of the Herd”, she states “We each have a place in the herd”, such profound words of wisdom!  Michelle’s words are touching and convey an integral link connecting the dots with our past, present and future in a shared pathway, driven by the knowledge of where we’ve been and where we’re going.  Along this beaten path, lie ‘gateways’ of our forefathers that guided them home from the goldfields and other historic events.    Notable gateways, road houses and stagecoach depots served the needs of travellers.  The O’Keefe Ranch, Hat Creek Ranch and Barkerville are everlasting icons that stand guard over the test of time.  Meanwhile in 1911, our US neighbors to the south founded the National Old Trails Association in the USA to establish the National Old Trails Highway, a road linking New York City with Los Angeles.  That same year, the National Highway Association was started with the slogan “Good Roads for Everyone”!

The famed “Mother Road” a.k.a. Route 66 remains a world renowned symbol of “going somewhere” and no matter the country of origin, this route remains in the human conscience as the ultimate renaissance, open for all nations to rediscover.   (*) A news release in December, 2014 announced by the California based National Historic Route 66 Federation declared the original 1927 Historic US 66 Highway Association is officially reborn!  There lies the connection with Canada, sharing a common footprint, a circle route that has no beginning and no end, with a direct link to the British Columbia highway system via the Highway 97 & 99 corridors.  Most notably, The Peace Arch monument situated at the border crossing between Blaine, Washington and Surrey, BC has inscriptions on both sides of its frieze.  The American side reads “Children of a Common Mother” and The Canadian Side reads “Brethren dwelling together in unity”.  Within the arch, there is an iron gate hinged on either side of the border.  Above the gate are the words:  “May these gates never be closed”.  The arch also commemorates the Treaty of Ghent, which ended the War of 1812 between the Unites States and Great Britain.  A wagon road in 1873 opened up settlement in Surrey and provided an overland link between New West and the USA.  The final section to the USA Border followed the line of the Boundary Trail used by the 1856 Boundary Commission.  By 1890, the route became known as “The Semiahmoo Trail”.

Yes indeed, our history speaks through a land of braided trails…Foot ~~ Hoof ~~ Tire;   a revolutionary good roads movement.

… “Let Route Blue Move You”…

Respectfully submitted by:

Lorrie Fleming

Founder – Canadian Route 66 Association

Non Profit Society S36022

Incorporated October 23, 1996