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Along historic Route 66 in the Arizona desert sits the tiny town of Oatman—a former gold-mining community where the most famous residents have four legs.

In this edition of Naturally Scott Adventures, Scott Harris visits the wild burros of Oatman, Arizona, descendants of the animals that once worked the region’s mines. When mining faded, the burros were left behind. They adapted to the brutal desert, survived, and generations later still roam the Black Mountains.

But Oatman’s “town burros” have discovered an easier way to make a living.

Each morning they wander into town, stroll down Main Street, climb onto sidewalks, poke their heads into shops, and happily accept treats from visitors. If a burro decides to lie down in the road, nobody moves it—locals simply put out traffic cones and everyone drives around.

In this episode:

🫏 How Oatman’s mining burros became wild desert animals

⛏️ The gold-rush history behind this unusual Route 66 town

🏜️ How burros survive extreme heat, scarce food, and limited water

👑 Why Oatman’s town burros really do seem to run the place

💪 The surprising strength and toughness of wild burros

💧 How jacks protect their groups and defend precious water

🐴 The challenge of managing America’s wild burro populations

🍦 Scott’s childhood memories of Oatman and Thrifty Ice Cream

Scott also heads outside town to see the more independent desert burros and shares other places to find them, including Lake Mead, Death Valley, and Custer State Park.

It’s a wildlife adventure, a Route 66 road trip, and a visit to one of the wonderfully strange places that could only exist in the American West.