Photo Album

If you would like to see more photos from our trip (can you believe we took over 1,400? Don't worry, there are only 68 or so in the album...) go here to see our Flickr photo album:

Route 66 Photo Album

Epilogue

I will be adding a link to an online photo album soon, with captioned pictures from the trip.

As you can imagine, we are all very happy to be at home. I don't think Mark is going to be driving anywhere for the next couple of days....

This was a very special journey for our family, and we're happy we could share some of it with you through the magic of cyberspace.

Day 15 - Barstow CA to Santa Monica CA

We arrived at the end of our Route 66 journey at 4:50 PST - more to come.......
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We left Barstow, after stopping for a photo and video shoot at a very cool mural in town. The first (and probably last) time for both Mark and I staying in Barstow. Not that it was bad, there just isn't much there...except heat!

We had decided before departing that we were going to drive to the very end point of Route 66 - that means along Foothill Boulevard to Pasadena, down the Harbor Freeway to Sunset, then on to Santa Monica Boulevard to Ocean and Pacific Palisades Park along the waterfront in Santa Monica. If you are familiar with LA traffic, that can be quite a task, depending on the time of day.

You can still travel the old highway from Barstow to near the El Cajon Pass, which we did, then exit on the San Bernardino side to pick up the 66 old road again. We inadvertantly stopped at a Route 66 roadside attraction in San Berdu - La Plaza Park. We had pulled over for a Macey Moment, and Trajan went on the play equipment for a bit. As we pulled away, we noticed the Route 66 signage at the opposite side of the park.

On to Foothill Blvd, we saw the second location of the Wigwam Motel, in Rialto. They had more wigwams there than the one we stayed at in Holbrook, but they didn't have the vintage cars parked next to them like the other one, either.

It was time for lunch, and what could be more quintessential California road food than In-N-Out Burger? After a quick stop at the Rancho Cucamonga location, we headed west to Pasadena. We saw the beautiful Colorado Bridge just down the street from the Rose Bowl (my first time seeing it in person). Then we headed south along the Arroyo Seco Highway (aka 110 Fwy) to Sunset Boulevard.

Sunset and Santa Monica Boulevards pass though every socioeconomic strata in Los Angeles - from the the inner city urban environments, through Beverly Hills, then on to the beach. It is a very interesting drive! We picked up Santa Monica Boulevard at its eastern beginning point in where it branches off from Sunset in Los Angeles. Then due west til we hit the Santa Monica Pier and The End! WOW - we can't believe we actually did it!

Day 14 - Kingman AZ to Barstow CA

Waffles for breakfast! Finally, after passing all of those Waffle Houses, our motel offered waffles as part of their continental breakfast. They actually had a very nice spread, surprising considering they were the least expensive place we've stayed along the way.

Leaving Kingman, our first adventure was driving on the Gold Road thought the Black Mountains and over Sitgreaves Pass. This is an original section of Route 66 with a lot of hairpin turns and switchbacks - it is so hair-raising that some of the original travelers of 66 used to hire local folks to drive their vehicles through, or have them towed over. I can understand why, as I wouldn't attempt to navigate it in a vehicle lacking power steering. This section of road was replaced on 1953 with an new straighter alignment. The terrain in this section of the roadway is gorgeous - lots of red and brown rocks, and funny cacti and other succulents. Mark safely navigated us through, and we then entered the old gold mining town of Oatman (see Trajan peeking out of the cactus).

Oatman was established about 100 years ago, and there have been several large gold strikes there since then. The town today is very charming, with wooden sidewalks, lots of little shops, and a haunted hotel. There are also a group of wild burros, who are descendants of the original pack animals used by the gold miners in the heyday of the town, that arrive in Oatman at 9:00 every morning, and depart for the outskirts at 5:00 each evening. You can buy carrots and burro chow to feed them while you are visiting. Oatman is a definite "Not to be missed", and would make an interesting side trip if you are visiting the Laughlin area.

Shortly after leaving Oatman, Trajan was happy to proclaim that we had arrived in California(!). After a lunch stop in Needles, CA (high temp 112), we pressed on to our first journey on CA Route 66 - through the ghost town of Amboy. Amboy is rumored to be the inspiration for Radiator Springs in our favorite movie. It used to be a thriving small town olong the Mother Road until Interstate 40 opened in the early 1970s. The owner of the gas station and cafe Roy's stated that the day the Interstate opened, the traffic through Amboy was zero. The town was privately owned by Buster Burris, who ended up bulldozing most of the town's buildings in the late 70s to avoid paying taxes on them. All that remains in the town are Roy's Cafe and a Post Office. The town is used frequently in films and commercials.

Just west of the town of Amboy is the Amboy crater - the remains of a volcanic explosion approximtely 6,000 years ago. There are a few craters along this stretch of Route 66 along with fabulous lava beds, full of black porous lava rock. You can hike up to the rim of the crater - supposedly there is a white lake in the center of it, but being that it was well over 100 degrees, we passed. :-) Mark and Trajan picked up a few lava rocks, after pouring cold water over them first to be able to handle them without burning their hands.

You may have noticed our picture at the top of this blog changed ever so slightly - or maybe you didn't. We've been on a "treasure hunt" of sorts to find the spot where this photo was taken, since I got it off of the internet with no attribution. Obviously from the setting, it had to be in the western section of the Route, but we weren't sure precisely where. Well, Mark "Eagle Eye" Miller spotted it yesterday just east of Chambliss on the Amboy section of 66. We had seen several other contenders, but they weren't right for one reason or another. We actually passed this one by initially, since we were distracted by a half demolished concrete building covered with graffiti that sits off to the right just out of view of the place in the photo. But M did a quick U-ie and there it was! He gets the gold star for the day.

The final stop for the day was the beautiful town of Barstow. We had dinner at the original Bun Boy - surprisingly they have very excellent food. I had a wonderful Gyro plate with delicious pita and a Greek salad. Mark had a yummy chili size, and Trajan had his standard chicken tenders.

Day 13 - Williams AZ to Kingman AZ

We had a light day today. We left Williams and our first stop was in Seligman for lunch. I would say of all of the small towns we've driven through, Seligman businesses have made the most of their place along the Mother Road. There are a lot of eclectic Mom & Pop storefronts with a Route 66 theme there, as a percentage of businesses.

We ate at one of the most unique drive-ins I've ever visited - The Snow Cap. It is a very small building that is covered inside and out with "Stuff" - the signs outside proclaiming the offerings there "Tacos Burritos Burgers Dead Chicken", to this bit of advice "The credit manager here is Helen Waite. If you need credit, go to Helen Waite" -or "Sorry, We're Open!" The inside is just big enough for about 5 people to stand in while placing their orders, and instead of getting a number, you are christened with a nickname by Juan the Order Taker. We were "U.S. Open", derived from the shirt Mark was wearing. The restrooms are wooden outhouses, though they are nice inside. They have 6 or 8 old cars in various states of disrepair along the side (see Trajan next to one in the photo), including one dressed out to look like Sheriff from our favorite flick. We just beat the lunch crowd, too - as we finished placing our order, we turned around and there was a line stretching out the door.

Our next stop was the Hackberry Visitors Center - another curio shop. They have a big collection of Route 66 memorabilia, as well as a nice selection of souvenirs. In the front is a beautifully restored 1957 Corvette, along with a very cool (and eerie) sign warning of the 300 miles of desert stretching before you with no water (see photo, lower left corner).

Our final stop was Kingman, where we hunted in vain for the rumored Starbucks location. (Mark got the inside track from some people in Flagstaff, but it was not to be.) We had dinner at the Cracker Barrel, where Trajan was enamored of a "Talking Toucan", which was a mechanical toy that recorded bits of conversation nearby and repeated it back a few seconds later. We discovered this because I happened to be standing next to it when I said something to T, and a few seconds later the toucan was squalking "Don't run around in the store! Don't run around in the store!". He thought that endlessly amusing. Of course he wanted to get it, and we said that was definitely out of the question. So we struck a bargain later at the table - we would buy it for him when he moved out of our house. :-)

Today and tomorrow we will be traveling the longest section of Route 66 in Arizona - from Seligman today until Topock tomorrow, appx 160 miles. We have completed 82% of our journey.

Note to the Helaview Crew: We've had zero waffles so far on this trip. There are still two more breakfasts to go, however...

Day 12 - Holbrook AZ to Williams AZ

“I was standin’ on a corner
in Winslow, Arizona,
Such a fine sight to see,
It’s a girl, my Lord,
in a flatbed Ford,
Slowin’ down to take a look at me….”

After a fine night of sleeping in a wigwam, our first stop was Winslow. We had breakfast at the Falcon Café, then on to the infamous corner, which is marked with a statue of a man with a guitar and a mural of a woman driving Ford in the background (see photo). Winslow is a very small town, typical of most towns we’ve passed through on Route 66. The Route through town is actually separated into one way streets traveling east and west bound. The “Corner” is on the east bound side across from a music store, appropriately.

Then it was on to Jackrabbit Trading Post, in the town of Jackrabbit. This was one of the inspirations for Lizzie’s Curio Shop in the movie Cars. They have a big metal jackrabbit sculpture in front (see photo for a familiar face recently found riding the big bunny). Unfortunately, we arrived before the shop was open, so we didn’t get to see inside.

Moving on to Meteor Crater – WOW! This is something you’d definitely have to see for yourself to truly realize the impact (heehee) of just what happened. The meteor impact is believed to have occurred about 50,000 years ago. The meteor is estimated to have been around 150 feet in diameter. The largest fragments discovered have been only a few feet in diameter. The impact site is over 500 feet deep, and over 1 mile across. Over time, there has been much speculation over what actually occurred at the site, and it wasn’t until the 1920s that is was agreed upon that it was the site of a meteor impact. A gentleman during that time was determined to find the rest of the meteor body, which he believed must lie beneath the crater. He initially drilled straight down in to the center of the crater, but they could not break through the stone layer underneath. Later, they tried drilling at another site, but the soil was so fine it was like quicksand, so they were unsuccessful at excavating it. It is now believed that the entire meteor either vaporized or melted upon impact with the Earth’s surface.

The drive from Meteor Crater to Flagstaff is gorgeous – you move from the flat desert into the Alpine mountains, and it becomes dramatically cooler. On the way to Flagstaff, you pass through Winona (don’t forget) – which if you blink, you will miss it. The city of Flagstaff is a beautiful setting, surrounded by pine trees and the smell of fresh air.

Our resting place tonight is in Williams. We are staying at the Canyon Motel, and our room is very unique. We are staying in a 1950s vintage Grand Canyon Railway railcar! It has been converted into two rooms – very cool! We enjoyed dinner and a show in town - they stage a gunfight in the street!

We saw our first highway signs referencing mileage to Los Angeles today while leaving Flagstaff, and just outside of Flagstaff, we eclipsed 2,000 miles driven since we picked up the rental in Chicago. We have completed 77% of our journey.

Day 11 - Albuquerque NM to Holbrook AZ

Today's entry was delayed due to lack of WiFi or telephone in the room in Holbrook - I'm posting from the van in ??????? and it is @#^$&%* hot outside!

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This morning, we had a fabulous picnic breakfast in the Rio Grande Park. They have hiking and a very nice bike path that run along the Rio Grande River. We broke our “family in the car and ready to go” record by 30 minutes, though we were helped by the hour we gained by moving into the Mountain Time zone.

We drove through Sky City, which is the oldest continually inhabited city in the United States. Most of the homes in the area are adobe style, - bricks made of mud and grass with flat roofs to minimize heat absorption. This whole area is covered with lava beds, remnants of the Bandura volcano. The lava rock is dark black – it looks very eerie in contrast with the reddish soil surrounding it.

We stopped at the Continental Divide just west of Thoreau NM. It is not as obvious as some other locations, such as in Yellowstone Park. The elevation at that point is appx 7,200 feet.

We had lunch in Gallup at the famous El Rancho Inn – home of the movie stars. It is a very charming place – it has both a hotel and a motel on the property, as well as a restaurant. It was very popular with the Hollywood set from the 1940s through the ‘60s. The entire second floor lobby walls are full of autographed photos of the famous visitors.

Our final outing was a tour through the Petrified Forest National Park and the Painted Desert. It is beautiful beyond description. The Petrified Forest was created by trees being preserved by silica over time, which created a chemical reaction with the cellulose in the trees and essentially turned them in to stone. There are various crystals which formed inside the trees during this process, including agate and amethyst. They are scattered all over the ground in this area. The same process also created colorful layers of soil and sediment, which over time eroded away to expose the layers in the mesas and buttes throughout the landscape. It is absolutely gorgeous.

We arrived at our very cool accommodations in Holbrook – we are staying in the Wigwams! They were built in the 50s and are a very famous Route 66 remnant.

I had my worst meal of the trip last night – at a steak house just down the street. I was leary when the “salad bar” had dill pickle spears and unpeeled carrot sticks as part of the offerings.  Mark kindly shared his ribs with me.

For those who took the poll – the correct answer is 12! We have Route 66 versions from everyone from Nat King Cole to the Rolling Stones.

Can anyone guess what inspired the photo for today’s entry?

Today, we’ll be standing on the corner in……

Day 10 - Amarillo TX to Albuquerque NM

We left Amarillo this morning, after one last round of photos inside the Big Texan restaurant. As I mentioned in yesterday's entry, we passed a significant milestone on our trip today - the midpoint of Route 66! In Adrian, TX is the Midpoint Cafe, precisely 1,139 miles from either end point of the Mother Road. As you go west, things get more and more spread out, so we will be covering a lot more miles each day as there are less and less things to see along the road.

One of our stops today was in another ghost town - the border town of Glenrio along the Texas-New Mexico border, it straddles the state lines. Since it was in two different states and counties - on the Texas side you couldn't sell liquor and on the New Mexico side there were no service stations because the gas taxes are higher. It is so sad to see these towns just abandoned, it makes you wonder at what point the people finally decided to walk away from their homes and businesses. I can't imagine what that must be like. http://www.legendsofamerica.com/TX-Glenrio2.html

As you drive west, the landscape changes from Texas pancake flat but still green into the mountains and mesas of New Mexico. The vegetation changes from grassy scrub to cactus, smoke trees and cedar.

We made a stop in Tucumcari NM for a sweet treat and a visit to a curio shop, and a look at the famous Blue Swallow Inn, a Route 66 institution. It is a unique in that each motel room has it's own pull in garage next to it. Tucumcari is also known for its neon along Route 66, unfortunately we passed through at the wrong time of the day to enjoy that aspect.

Our final stop before entering Albuquerque was a very cool car museum in Santa Rosa, NM. It was started by a local man who owned a car repair shop and collected vintage cars as a hobby. He needed space to store his growing collection, so decided to share them with others by placing them in a museum. Over time, he has collected and restored over 30 cars, as well as amassed a nice collection of road signs and other Route 66 memorabilia.

We arrived in Albuquerque, and cruised Route 66 through town to our hotel on the west side near Old Town Albuquerque. We walked over to the Old Town Plaza, which is where the city of Albuquerque was first established over 300 years ago. They have a beautiful plaza with a park and gazebo, and there are a lot of authentic New Mexican restaurants, art galleries and other shops surrounding it. If you are not familiar with New Mexico, it is a melding of Mexican and Native American cultures. It really is a unique environment - with long historical context in place for both groups. We enjoyed out dinner outside on the restaurant patio while listening to a live band playing a concert in the Plaza Gazebo across the street. Mark had sopapillas for the first time, which are squares or rectangles of fried bread that are usually eaten with a drizzle of honey, and typically accompany meals similar to rolls, biscuits, or a breadbasket. I had some fabulous chili rellanos - one of my favorite things in the world. Trajan doesn't do Mexican food, so he had some fruit and chips and had a mini McDonald's picnic afterward while we listened to more music in the Plaza.

We covered a lot of miles today, and had another wonderful day on our journey. It looks like we are finally going to hit some real heat tomorrow as we cross in to the Painted Desert in AZ.

Day 9 - Amarillo TX

We had our rest and laundry day today - though we did venture out and see some Route 66 sites, including the famous Cadillac Ranch, which is just west of town in a cow pasture. Originally staged in 1974 by Stanley Marsh III, it is composed of ten Cadillacs, noses buried into the dirt, and covered with ever mutating graffiti. Read more about it here: http://www.roadsideamerica.com/attract/TXAMAcadillac.html

Did I mention everything in Texas is big? This morning, we went to the Big Texan Restaurant for breakfast. The main item is their breakfast buffet, but you can also order from the menu. Of course, my dear son who eats first with his eyes, did not find anything pleasing at the buffet, so our waiter asked what he would like from the kitchen. Without having seen the menu, I asked if they could do some silver dollar pancakes. The waiter looked funny at me, said "Oh, I can get him some pancakes", and came back a bit later with 3 pancakes as big as Trajan's head! I guess you can't get anything small around here.

After breakfast, we went in to the lobby of the restaurant, where they have an arcade shooting gallery. Trajan tried it several times, and then I decided to give it a whirl. I chose my weapon (a shotgun), and let'er rip, hitting 13 of 15 attempts. Not too shabby for a girl who hasn't handled a rifle in about 20 years! Have I ever mentioned my Dad was a marksman and did arms training in the Coast Guard, and was later a police officer - guess what we used to do on the weekends when I was growing up?

After target practice, Mark and Trajan went swimming in the Texas-shaped pool - fun! Macey and I did laundry, and then we all watched the huge rainstorm as it blew through town. Watching the Weather Channel, it looks like we got out of Oklahoma just in time, as they had severe storm and tornado warnings today.

We hit the road again tomorrow, on to Albuquerque. We will hit a significant milestone on our journey tomorrow - a free donut to anyone who can guess what it is....

Day 8 - Arcadia OK to Amarillo TX

This morning, since we are staying at B & B, we were served breakfast in the room, which we had ordered the previous evening. Trajan got the biggest, fluffiest pancakes we've ever seen! Mark loved the bacon, and I had biscuits and gravy, mmmm.

We are staying right across from the Old Round Barn, a famous landmark along Route 66. Mark and Trajan walked over to tour it while Macey and I got ready to hit the road. The barn is over 100 years old, and is truly a unique looking structure: http://www.arcadiaroundbarn.org/history.htm

Our first road stop was in Oklahoma City to visit the Oklahoma City Memorial site of the bombing of the Federal Building on April 19, 1995. It is hard to believe this happened 12 years ago, I remember seeing the aftermath unfold on television while I was at work - some business partners of my boss worked out of Oklahoma City at the time, so it had some added relevance to us. The memorial is very nicely done, and is placed so as you enter you can see the side of the original building's foundation with the evidence of the explosion still visible. The victims are represented by clear glass and stone chairs in rows along a beautifully manicured lawn. There is a large rectangular reflecting pool in the center of the site. It is a very beautiful and moving place. http://www.oklahomacitynationalmemorial.org/

After playing a hot game of "Find Your Way Back Onto The Highway Without Any Marked Onramps" (we won, if you are keeping track at home) - we were on to Hydro, home of Lucille's Roadhouse. The roadhouse has been there since the 1920s and owned by Lucille Hamon and family since the 40s. It is one of two remaining "porch style" or over the coach style service stations left on Route 66.

Next stop was a very nicely done Route 66 Museum in Clinton. They have a lot of memorabilia of Route 66 as well as other items (cameras, clothing, magazines, etc.) used during the time the road was in service. The Museum is organized by decade, complete with music representative of the times - we got to listen to Woody Guthrie, Benny Goodman, Elvis, and The Eagles. Trajan had a lot of fun serving us food from the 50s decade dinner, and we learned some lingo as well - "drag a dog through the garden" will get you a grilled hot dog with relish.

Driving through this section of Route 66 really demonstrates the impact of the Interstate Highway system on the small towns who thrived along the Mother Road. We passed through ghost town after ghost town on this stretch of the road. The towns truly died when the Interstate passed them by, even though some of them are literally right alongside it.

We arrived in Erick too late to go in to the Sandhills Curiousity Shop, but we got to peek in the windows and look at all of the cool signs outside. This was the inspiration for Lizzie's Curiousity Shop in the Cars movie.

The saddest thing we saw today was the town of Texola - on the border of Oklahoma and Texas. It was the ghostliest of ghost towns today. There is so little traffic on Route 66 through here that grass is growing in the lanes of the highway. Only 14 families live in this town, as of the 2000 census.

TEXAS! Another new state for Trajan and Macey.

It was also very interesting to see the landscape change as you drive across Oklahoma and in to Texas. It goes from the green tree lined Ozarks, on to rolling green hills, and then in to the flat, flat prairie lands of western OK and eastern Texas.

We stopped in Shamrock to see the U-Drop In, a cafe and car repair shop that was the inspiration for Ramone's House of Body Art in Cars. It is a very cool Art Deco style building, in mint condition. It now serves as a museum. http://www.legendsofamerica.com/TX-Shamrock.html

After quick photo stop at the Leaning Tower of Texas in Groom - we finally arrived at The Big Texan in Amarillo. I think we have all really been looking forward to our visit here - home of the free 72 ounce steak - for those who eat it, as well as the rest of a full course meal in under one hour while sitting at a table on a stage in the middle of the restaurant! It is a very cool place. We had a fabulous dinner in the restaurant, served by a cowboy. We ended the meal by sharing a Texas-sized slice of chocolate cake and being serenaded by a string trio, who played Trajan's special request of "Your Cheatin' Heart".

We are staying two nights here at The Big Texan, for the purposes of a sanity break and laundry stop. Plus I think if Macey has to be in her car seat again, she will start a revolt! She has really been a good sport so far, and we don't want to infringe upon her good graces.

Tune in tomorrow to see swimming in a Texas shaped pool!

Day 7 - Carthage MO to Arcadia OK

* This entry was delayed because there was no WiFi internet connection or telephone in our room in Arcadia……
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Today we started off on the right foot by achieving our all-time family record of being in the van ready to go – 9:03am! Mark was very happy….

Our first stop was the tri-point of Missouri, Kansas, and Oklahoma. A cairn (a stack of rocks) was built as a monument to mark the meeting point. Of course, our navigator extraordinaire found this site – it is down an unmarked dirt country road, literally in the middle of nothing. In 2004, the site was resurveyed and a corrected cement plaque was placed on the ground marking the precise tri-point. The original was just a bit short of the actual Missouri line, pretty good for “way back then”. So, we all got to take turns being in three places (states) at once.

Route 66 takes you through the southeast tip of Kansas, so we drove on from the tri-point to Galena. The route takes a left as you get in to Galena, and below the official Route 66 sign was a handwritten poster which read “Look Across The Street”. There we saw a small gas station-type building, and guess who was parked along side of it? Mater! The real Tow Mater was sitting there, looking at all the cars passing by. We stopped and Mark and Trajan went over to take pictures and visit with the folks who own the place. Because of the popularity of the movie Cars, the owners of Mater bought the old station site and are converting it to a gift shop and tourist stop. They couldn’t have been more friendly. If you ever find yourself in Galena, do stop by.

We continued on Route 66 through the remainder of Kansas and in to Oklahoma – a new state to all of us, and Mark’s only new state on our trip. Our next stop was at the world’s largest McDonald’s – which is at a rest area on the Will Rogers Parkway. The building is so large is crosses over the parkway, so you can enter from either side.

In Catoosa, we stopped at the Blue Whale, an old Route 66 attraction which basically was a swimming hole with a (fiberglass?) blue whale as the entrance point to the water. You walk through his open mouth, there is a slide out of one of his sides, and you could climb up and dive off of his tail. Wacky fun!

We drove through Tulsa and out into the countryside once again. Then we arrived at our place for the evening – a very cool B & B in Arcadia. It is called Hillbillies, and we are staying in The Bunkhouse. It looks like a real bunkhouse, with four single beds, raw lumber walls, old time stove and ice box. The oddest thing is in the corner – a 60 inch screen TV – it looks so out of place here! This room is probably the coolest one we will stay in on our trip. Great idea, Dad! http://home.att.net/~nleebraxton/index.htm

We had dinner at a buffet/steakhouse – I had some killer greens and cabbage, cooked southern style (which means cooked with ham hocks and til they’ve died and gone to heaven).

We have completed 35% of our trip, and have seen 10 Waffle Houses.

Day 6 - St. Louis MO to Carthage MO

HAPPY BIRTHDAY UNCLE SCOTT!

Please note, I have changed the settings so you don't have to register to leave comments on the blog.

******

We had a big driving day today. Our first stop was at a Route 66 Park, which used to be the site of Times Beach, a city who's original inhabitants (mid-1920s) received a 6 month subscription to the St. Louis Times newspaper with the purchase of their building lot. In the early '70s, a contractor was hired to oil the roads, and unfortunately the oil was contaminated with dioxin. In the mid '80s, the town was evacuated and dubbed a Superfund site by the EPA. It was cleaned up and in 1999, a Route 66 park was opened at the site. Sounds like a nice place to visit, doesn't it?? http://www.legendsofamerica.com/MO-TimesBeach.html

Then we were on to the beautiful Ozarks and Meramec Caverns, the largest commercial cave in the world. Did you know that Missouri is also known as The Cave State? There are over 6,000 caves here (I wonder who counted all of them ;-) ). Mark and Trajan went on a cave tour (see above photo), while Macey and I waited in the gift shop, which is enclosed, along with a restaurant and information center, in the mouth of the cave. This cave also served as a hideout for Jesse James and his gang, as they could live inside of it, along with their horses, without detection. There are a few Jesse James themed stops in the immediate area. Trajan rated this cave stop a google thumbs up! http://www.americascave.com/

After the spelunking adventure, we stopped in Cuba for lunch and some mural viewing. The residents of the city have shown their pride in their place on Route 66 by painting murals of days gone by on many of the town's buildings. Cuba is also home of the Wagon Wheel Motel, which was the inspiration for the Wheel Well motel in the movie Cars.
http://www.theroadwanderer.net/66Missouri/cuba.htm

Onward, with a quick stop at the Russel Stover outlet for an ice cream cone for the boys, to a hot game of "Let's Find Devil's Elbow". Devil's Elbow is a bend in the Big Piney River, over which Route 66 runs. The river curves so sharply that several bridges had to be built in the area for the highway to cross over. The biggest problem with finding Devil's Elbow is that the sign for the turn off is only about 6 X 24, so if you blink, you'll miss it. Due to our having an excellent navigator, all was not lost. If Mark weren't here, we'd be stuck back in that cornfield in Illinois!

We drove through some gorgeous farm country on the way to Carthage, and had a wonderful sound and lights show courtesy of Mother Nature, along with the music of rain falling and windshield wipers swishing.

After arriving at our hotel, Trajan convinced Mark to go to Arby's for dinner. (Luckily, Mark was not that hungry, or it never would have worked!)

We have now completed 25% of our journey (570 miles of 2,250), and have seen 6 Waffle Houses along the way.

Tomorrow, we will be doing so much we will be in three places at once.......

Day 5 - Springfield, IL to St. Louis, MO

The first stop today was at Abraham Lincoln's home in Springfield. They have preserved his home, as well as the surrounding blocks, as part of a National Historic Site. It gives a very good idea of what the world looked like when he was elected and left for Washington DC. I think Abe was described best in the documentary shown at the site - steel and velvet. What a great human being.

Next we paid a visit to Lincoln's Tomb, also in Springfield. It is marked by a beautiful sculpture and tall stone obelisk. Trajan rubbed his sculpture's nose for good luck.

We are staying on the actual Route 66 as much as possible, but at times it actually is part of the interstate. Finding it once you exit can be tricky at times. We ended up on a farm road in the middle of someones cornfield today! Mark always gets us back on track quickly, though.

In Collinsville, we finally got to see the world's largest catsup bottle in person - Mark was shocked, as you can see from the photo above. :-) There is a catsup bottle society in Collinsville that are the custodians of the bottle, and they have held a festival each year for the past 8 years celebrating the bottle. This year, at the last minute city politics interfered, so they decided to cancel the festival. When we arrived at the site, they had set up a small table underneath it, offering postcards, T-Shirts, and other catsupy souvenirs. We had parked across the highway from the bottle so we could get pictures, and one of the society members actually crossed the highway to come over and visit with us about the bottle - ah the charms of small town life!

Following that excitement, Trajan, Macey and Mommy got to add a new state to our travel map by crossing the mighty Mississipi into the great State of Missouri. We met up with a co-worker of Mark's from the St. Louis office, along with his wife and daughter for a walk across the Chain of The Rocks Bridge. Chain of the Rocks was the original means of crossing the Mississippi from Illinois to Missouri on Route 66, and it is very unique because it actually has a bend in the middle of it. They had to construct it in that manner in order to maintain the stability of the footings for the bridge. Now it is closed to all but pedestrian and bike traffic. The views from it are stunning.

After our walk, we drove in to St Louis and went to see the beautiful Arch, which was built to commemorate Thomas Jefferson and the westward expansion on the United States. It is located right along the riverfront, and has a very nice grounds and visitors center. You can also ride up to the top of it on the inside, but since I am a bit claustrophobic, we stayed on the ground. :-)

Our final stop before reaching our hotel was a big hit with everyone - Ted Drewe's Frozen Custard, a Route 66 and St. Louis institution. If you aren't familiar with frozen custard, it is ice cream taken to it's highest form. I broke my dairy-free diet to enjoy, appropriately enough, a small Cardinal Sin (a sundae of vanilla custard topped with hot fudge and tart cherries). Mark and Trajan each got a "concrete", which is basically like a Blizzard or sundae with the toppings mixed in to the custard instead of poured on top. They are served in a cup and are so thick the server hands them to you upside down! Ted Drewe's custard was, by far, the very best frozen treat I've ever had.

At this point, we are approximately 13% completed with our travels. We have gone about 300 miles, so only 1,900 to go! Will we make it? Stay tuned.....

Day 4 - Chicago to Springfield

After a snafu with the rental van reservation, we began our Route 66 journey from the origination point on Jackson in Chicago. Our first stop was the famous
Launching Pad Cafe in Wilmington - home of the Gemini Giant statue. They had very cool tabletops printed with a map of Route 66 across them, though they need a new mapmaker since they put Albuquerque at about the level of White Sands, and Flagstaff had sagged down to Phoenix!

Next we stopped at an old Standard Oil Station in Odell - very charming, with a lot of Route 66 memorabilia and signage, as well as a 50's era travel trailer.

On to Funk's Grove, near Shirley, where the Funk family has been making maple sirup since the mid 1800s. (They spell sirup with an I as in the original English spelling). It is truly a grove - the store and a working maple sirup farm, along with their home. Unfortunately, because of our delayed start, we got there about an hour past closing time. We got out of the van anyway to take pictures. Pretty soon, a lady came out of the house and waved to us - asking if we'd like to buy something. She was Glada Funk (she is in the picture with us), and she opened the store back up for us so we could get some delicious maple sirup. She was a very friendly lady, and we had a nice conversation with her about Route 66 and the area. She came to the Shirley area during the Depression, and had lived there ever since. Thanks Glada for skipping your news watching time to come out and visit with us!

On to Atlanta (IL, not GA) for a quick picture with the Hot Dog Muffler Man, then on to Springfield!

We intended to get corn dogs from the Cozy Drive In - home of the Cozy Dog and the inventors of the corn dog, but got there too late. So we settled for a photo and then moved on to our motel.

We are staying in the Route 66 Hotel and Conference Center, which is a real hoot! It is a vintage motel (formerly Holiday Inn) that has been enclosed hotel-style. The full-front glass windows are still in place, so the entire front of the room is a window, complete with 50s style draperies to close it off completely from view of the hallway. The bathroom, while clean looks like it was decorated by the three blind mice - very cool deep red tile work, along with 80's mauve textured wallpaper and a flowery shower curtain straight from your grandmother's linen closet.

We ate at the Route 66 Grill, which is right downstairs. Surprisingly, they had some pretty good food - I had beef tips over penne with a side of mashed taters and gravy (don't ask) and Mark had a club sandwich (how can you mess that up, right?).

Tune in tomorrow for adventures with Abe Lincoln and a giant catsup bottle.

Day 3 – Chicago

We had another fabulous day in the Windy City – it wasn’t windy, but pleasantly breezy, sunny and gorgeous. Today we took the CTA (Chicago Transit Authority aka subway) to the Sears Tower – the tallest building in the US, and the 3rd tallest building in the world. Before you went up to the observation level, they played an interesting movie about the building of the tower and history of its ownership. Trajan thought it was cool to learn that Gramma once worked for Sears. Then up the express elevator to the 103rd Floor to the observation level. Mark stayed clear of the windows, so I was on video camera duty. They also have a cool historical timeline of Sears Tower and Chicago trivia on the inner walls of the observation floor – talking about such things as the Great Chicago Fire and the mythical culprit of Mrs. O’Leary’s cow, as well the origins of a Mickey Finn.


After the Tower visit, Trajan and Macey had a mini picnic lunch across the street in on the lawn of the office building facing the tower. There were lots of folks enjoying the sunshine on their lunch hour, and the building provided lots of Adirondack chairs for people to sit and enjoy the world going by.


Then it was a trip on the El (Elevated Train) to Michigan Avenue and a Taste of Chicago, an outdoor food festival. It was very crowded, even though it was mid-afternoon on a weekday. It’s going to be SRO this weekend! I had some mini crab cakes, Mark got a slice of Chicago–style pizza and some roasted Illinois corn on the cob, and Trajan enjoyed a cherry Italian Ice. After a visit to the children’s corner for a ride on the Merry-Go-Round and a visit to the giant Jumpy Thing, we caught the 146 bus to the CTA, and took another subway ride back to our neighborhood.


On the way back to the hotel we stopped at the Jewel Osco, which is a grocery store. It is strange for this West Coast girl to go in to an urban grocery – I’m used to the stand-alone supermarkets. Mark and Trajan waited for Macey and I at the Starbucks on the corner. Afterward, we came back to the hotel – the boys went swimming and the girls took a short snooze in the nursing chair. Then it was off to our picnic dinner!


We went back to Jewel Osco, picked up some sandwiches and other yummies, and headed to the Chicago Water Tower, were we enjoyed our dinner in front of the fountain and watched the horse-drawn carriages pass by. Chicago is such a clean and walkable city, it is truly amazing. Then back to the hotel, to get ready for our journey on Route 66 starting early tomorrow morning. Everyone is snoring now, except for me, sitting here pecking away on the laptop. We are all very excited to begin our Route 66 adventure tomorrow – we got a preview of our beginning point today as we were walking to Taste of Chicago – we passed the official beginning point of Route 66, which you will see a photo of in tomorrow’s entry - after I get my computer guru to help me figure out how to post them on this @#$% thing :-O

Day 2 - Chicago

Off to a running start this morning - we walked over to the Chicago River where we jumped on a Lake Michigan and Chicago River Architecture Tour boat. We even got to go through a lock between the river and the lake (the river is higher than the lake). The architecture of Chicago is truly breathtaking - so many different distinctive styles, all amalgamated into one beautiful city. The weather was very nice today - warm without a doubt, but not overly hot and sticky. Next we walked down to the Navy Pier Complex for lunch.

Then on, via water taxi, to the Field Museum to see Dinosaur Sue, the largest complete T-Rex ever discovered - www.fieldmuseum.org . The museum also has a small but nice Egyptian Exhibit, as well as other galleries with a nice mixture of items. Afterward, we amazingly hailed a cab (not easy at rush hour) and made our way back to the hotel.

M & T went for another swim, then we tried out the Italian Restaurant in the hotel for dinner. Trajan was a good sport and ate his chicken tenders despite the "green things" in the coating (parsley in the breadcrumbs) - and Mark had a bowl of spaghetti and meatballs that could have easily fed a family of four (he didn't clean his plate!) - and I had a nice dish of penne with Italian Sausage, mushrooms and sun-dried tomatoes - and no, I'll try not to turn this in to a food blog
:-) .....

Day 1 - Flying To Chicago

We had a very excellent travel day - hopefully it bodes well for the rest of our journey. The flight was smooth and on time. We arrived in Midway Airport, which was a lot larger than we expected, considering its big brother O'Hare on the other side of town. We took a taxi along the waterfront to our hotel - so it gave us a good taste of the city. We got settled in to the room and then went out for a walk to explore the neighborhood. We ended up at Johnny Rockets for dinner - but no milkshakes. We came back to the hotel and Mark and Trajan went for a swim. Then we went back out and explored some more - the best part was walking across the Chicago River near the Marina City complex. This is a unique complex - twin circular towers right on the river's edge, with a boat dock for the residents directly underneath. It has appeared in many movies and television commercials http://www.marina-city.com/ . We continued on to Michigan Avenue - past the Wrigley Building, Chicago Tribune Building, and then back to the hotel. Ready for day two - lots of walking and looking - hopefully it won't be terribly hot and humid!

Watch this space...

for more from our Route 66 trip! We will be flying from LA to Chicago and driving the entire length of Route 66. You can follow along from home or work!