Amboy, population 0 — a Mojave Desert ghost town and Americana icon fights to survive

It’s a Friday afternoon in mid-May and a Czech biker is eating an ice cream cone at the counter of a gas station along a desolate stretch of the Mojave Desert. “It’s in the middle of nowhere in the desert, but you see a multitude of different types of people in Amboy,” said Kyle Okura, 31, who owns Roy’s gas station, along with the rest of the ghost town, after inheriting it from his father last year. Where are we even going?’” And then, when they got there: “Just a bunch of empty buildings.” Kyle Okura is trying to honor his father’s legacy and bring the ghost town back to life. “I thought we would be the same, we’d be working together until he was 100.” Okura is in talks to have a portion of National Trails Highway, as Route 66 is now officially known, renamed Albert Okura Memorial Highway and hopes to eventually hang plaques around Amboy detailing his father’s quest to save it. While the town has served as the backdrop for many a slasher flick — “I don’t think we’ve had any romantic comedies,” Rachel said — some of the recent shoots have leaned higher-end.