Joliet, Il to Chicago, Il - Sept 16 - Day 16 - End of Journey!!

We made it!!!  A few sights on the way in and then we are there!! We made it all the way from the Santa Monica Pier to Michigan Ave and Jackson Blvd in Chicago.  This was capped off with a terrific breakfast at the highly recommended Route 66 Lou Mitchell's Restaurant.  At the End sign we ran into a group of about 40 people from Sweden and Norway who had traveled the same route on motorcycles. They were a really neat group and as a side note they were deaf. We had great weather the whole trip and once we arrived in Chicago it started raining so even though we are a little wet in our last picture it didn't dampen our spirits!  Thanks so much for following our journey!!

Henry's Restaurant - Chicago, Il

Great murals at the fire station - Chicago, Il

The now closed Castle car wash  - Chicago, Il



Neon sign driving into the city - Chicago, Il





The motorcycle group from Norway and Sweden celebrating the completion of their trip from Santa Monica to Chicago



WE MADE IT!!  Route 66 - Santa Monica to Chicago!!!

Celebration meal at the historical Lou Mitchell's restaurant

Jay's delicious breakfast!!

Chicago style Reuben sandwich!!

Two happy people celebrating a safe and fun journey across America's historical and memorable Route 66!!!

Springfield, Il to Joliet, Il - Sept 15 - Day 15

We should reach our final destination of Chicago early tomorrow so this will be our last day to just drive and enjoy the sights.  Jay decided to start out with a power breakfast at a local Springfield, Il restaruant, Jungle Jim's, and ordered the "Ponyshoe".  We then headed out to enjoy the small towns between Springfield and Joliet.  We really dodged a bullet today in Williamsvilee, Il. We thought we were going slowly through the town but then the Police pulled us over for speeding!  Fortunately, he was nice and gave us a warning but I was really nervous that we were going to end up in the "Mayberry" court. 

Sonrise Donuts since 1932 - Springfield, Il

Jungle Jim's restaurant, our stop for breakfast - Springfield, Il

Jay had the local dish called "Ponyshoe" - layered toast, sausage, fried eggs, and hashbrowns covered in gravy

The beautiful State Capitol building - Springfield, Il

A Smiley Face water tower for the town of Atlanta, Il - How Fun!



Atlanta, Il - City Hall and Police Station - 1912



Now this is one BIG Hot Dog Man!! - Atlanta,  Il

Now this is called traveling in Style!

Restored 1932 Standard Station - Odell, Il



Great mural !



Jay and the Blues Brothers - Braidwood, Il

Polka Dot Drive-In - Braidwood, Il

Carol and the Blues Brothers at the Polka Dot Drive-In

Gemini Giant - Launching Pad Drive-In - Wilmington, Il

Rialto Theatre - Joliet, Il

Great mural on the side of a downtown building - Joliet, Il

Meramac State Park, MO to Springfield, IL - Sept 14 - Day 14

Today took us from the quite serenity of Meramac State Park through the busy traffic of St Louis, Mo and then into Illinois.  All along the way we continued to enjoy all of the sites along the way with so many old interesting motels, gas stations, and other advertising signs from the days when Route 66 was the main road to travel on.  One thing that we have been surprised to learn is how many people from other countries travel to America to travel along Route 66.  It's great to see that many of the businesses are still operating and many are being revived.

Gardenway Motel - Villa Ridge, Mo

Sunset Motel - Villa Ridge, Mo

Ted Drewes Frozen Custard since 1929 - St Louis, Mo - Delicious!!

The St Louis Arch

Motel Greenway - Mitchell, Il

Phillips 66 Station - Staunton, Il

Russell Soulsby's Shell Station - 1926-1999 - Mt Olive, Il

Sky View Drive-In - 1950 with a 400 car capacity - Litchfield, Il

Ariston Cafe - serving great food since 1936 - Litchfield, Il

Sugar Creek Covered Bridge - 1880 - Outside Springfield, IL

Lebanon, MO to Meramac State Park, MO - Sept 13 - Day 13

From Lebanon we headed out with the goal of ending up at Meramac State Park for some camping and fishing on the river in the beautiful wooded countryside of Missouri.  We drove by some great neon signs and through the "mural city" of Cuba, Missouri.  We took way too many pictures of the murals in the town to post but it was quite impressive.  Even though we didn't catch any fish on our camping expedition it was still fun to try.

Starting out the day with a "couple" of pancakes at Faye's Diner - Yikes they were huge!!

The former Stony Dell Resort - Arlington, MO

It's fun to see what the prices were - cigarettes 45 cents!

One of many old bridges that we drove across along the way

Large signs were so typical - Rolla, MO

Giant Hillbilly sign - Rolla, MO

Mobilgas station - Rolla, MO

Derby Gas Station - St. James, MO

One of many many wonderful murals in Cuba, MO

Wagon Wheel Motel - Cuba, MO

Fishing at Meramac State Park, MO

Camping at Meramac State Park, MO

Afton, OK to Lebanon, MO - Sept 12 - Day 12

Today we started out in Oklahoma then crossed through Kansas and ended up in Missouri.  Route 66 only crosses through 13 miles of Kansas. It was an interesting day with interesting places and even more interesting people.  We were able to cruise around Mickey Mantle's hometown of Commerce, Oklahoma and see his home and the ball field named after his father. We also met two ladies from Galena, Kansas who actually own the original truck "Tow-Tater" which was the true inspiration for Mater from the movie Cars.  We also met Gary Turner in Paris Springs, Missouri who is such a great character.  He welcomes everyone and can talk and talk and make you laugh for sure! We ended up spending the night at the Munger Moss Motel in Lebanon, Missouri where Bob and Ramona have been running the motel for 39 years.

1925 Dairy King - Commerce, OK

Cottage style gas station - Commerce, OK

Mutt Mantle Field - Commerce, OK

Mickey Mantle's home - Commerce, OK

Entering Kansas Route 66

Original Route 66 Soda Fountain - Baxter Springs, KS

The Original "Tow Tater" aka Mater from Cars - Galena, KS

Having fun with Gary Turner at his Sinclair station - Paris Springs, MO

Jay and Gary in his Sinclair station - Paris Springs, MO

Traveling the Mother Road - Paris Springs, MO

The Munger Moss Motel - Lebanon, MO