Nothing, Arizona - Nothing, Arizona

In 2003 we stopped in Nothing, desperate for fuel. We were on our first road trip with a new RV and misjudged the fuel consumption of our vehicle. It was early in the morning and we were relieved when we came upon this place. The very nice people who lived/worked there looked to have rolled right out of bed when they heard us. They fired up the generator and pumped the gas for us. We were a bit concerned because we felt that we were at their mercy and they could charge anything that they felt like, but they were very fair. I don't remember what we paid but it was not much more than the going rate at the time. We were treated in a friendly manner and had a nice time visiting with the folk there. We left Nothing feeling like it was really something.

Last month we were on our way through again. We were saddened to see that the place was not only abandoned, but the building was collapsing. There is a lot of garbage there, but it still has the feel of a friendly place. [Jer, 08/18/2008]

Sadly, Nothing, Arizona is no more. The Rock Shop is closed, as has the gas station and tiny convenience store. The signs are still worth a stop, but there are no restrooms available, nor any chance for an overpriced candy bar. [Juliana Scrivner, 05/29/2007]

[RA: We suffered that same disappointment in March. Craggy rock beauty abounds in this region, but there are no signs of civilization for miles in both directions on US Hwy 93. Aside from the funny name, this really was a fluid and fuel oasis....]

10+ years ago, while working for a Southern California engineering/surveying company, I found myself deep in the Arizona desert conducting a survey on a lonely bridge somewhere between Wikiup and Wickenburg. It was August and must have been 110 degrees if it was six. My partner and I had left Phoenix in a gas-guzzling beat-up work truck that we kept at a Sky Harbor storage lot after stopping at a Circle-K for a six-pack of beer and a quart of bottled water (we thought it would be plenty).

I was so thirsty after finishing our survey that I thought the huge NOTHING ARIZONA (pop. 4) sign was just another mirage, but nope, it was real. If it wasn't for the beautiful !FREE! well water that was offered by the residents of Nothing, I might have thought the entire experience was just a dream (I was a little dehydrated and a bit loopy after all). We happily bought some stuff at the store, and I would have paid more for the water, but it was free! Just remember if you are ever thirsty in the Arizona desert and you round a bend in the highway where there is a huge red sign identifying NOTHING, ARIZONA, it is not a mirage and you are saved! It does seem a bit like a dream after all these years, but I'll never forget that water, or the friendly residents of Nothing. [David Eisenbeisz, 09/05/2005]

Didn't have a choice -- a 7-year-old granddaughter couldn't wait for Wickenburg, so we stopped for relief and another couple of sodas and a leg-stretcher before heading south. When we got to Tucson and our hotel, I discovered that I'd left my wallet in the Nothing, Arizona restroom. After a very brief moment of panic over having no driver's license, I began to try to find a way to contact one of the 4 residents of Nothing, AZ (some of whom are STILL dogs), but telephone information could only shrug helplessly. A phone call to the sheriff's office yielded the police department in Wickenburg -- about 70 miles south of Nothing -- which yielded the Highway Patrol Office in Tucson, which provided the Highway Patrol Office in Flagstaff. WHICH thankfully yielded a phone number in Nothing. Yes, the male half of the owners said, we found it and took it over to the house for safekeeping. Yes, he said, he'd hold the wallet until my daughter and son-in-law came through two days later and could pick it up.

"Aren't you going to cancel all your credit cards and stuff?" my family asked. Nope. Anybody who chooses to make a life in a bend in the road, call it Nothing, and hope to make a living selling the occasional soda and gallon of gas is definitely not in it for the money. I'm trusting 'em.

Sure enough, when the wallet showed up everything that was supposed to be in it was in it. When we stopped in a week later on the return trip north, we stayed and chatted for half an hour and heard some other great lost-and-found stories. We recommend that you take your time in Nothing, Arizona. Nothing to do, and lots of space to do it in! [Lee Gurr, 04/20/2005]

Population: 4. Some of those 4 are dogs! Nothing is in the middle of a Joshua Tree forest, and if you are unlucky enough to not get gas before you enter this strip of highway (like I was) you will pay (happily) double what you would pay anywhere for gas. This is truly the "Last Chance" gas em up! The old man there takes his time to make change, not too many visitors you see.....he has a tow truck, and pretty much makes a living on foolish tourists who run out of gas along the way. When you first start up that stretch of hwy. 93, the signs tell you it is 40 miles to the next town. At 60 mph, an hour later, you are seeing signs that say 30 miles to the next town! About thirty minutes later you are in "Nothing" and are so glad! A trailer, assorted signs and junk decorate the place.

I drove from Winter Haven, Florida to Lake Tahoe California and back that summer (1997). Nothing was the highlight of my trip!
[Deborah Cannon, 09/14/1999]