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12 Highway Highlights of Route 66

Posted on by Posted in Arizona, Illinois, Missouri, Oklahoma, Route 66, Texas .

One of the joys of a Route 66 trip is the multitude of quirky road side attractions. Those slightly crazy oddities along the way that add so much to your trip.

There are way too many to feature in one post, so here are some of our favourites (from East to West).

1. The Gemini Giant, Wilmington IL


Originally an advertising gimmick, this big guy stands tall and proud outside the now closed Launching Pad Restaurant. He is probably the most famous of all the original ‘Muffler Men’ who now reside on Route 66 (others are in Atlanta IL and Springfield IL, although there are many more dotted around the US). You can’t miss him as you drive through Wilmington. As you can see from the picture, he is pretty tall!

2. The Murals in Pontiac IL

There are more than 20 murals in this charming town in Illinois, and the Route 66 shield is one of the oldest. The murals vary in subject from vintage signage to a shark on the street (yup, I’m not kidding – check it out here.) Pontiac is a great town to stop off, grab a coffee and stretch your legs with a mural tour. Murals are really common on Route 66. Another notable example is Cuba, Missouri – which has a ‘mural city’ of its own.

3. The World’s Largest Rocking Chair, Fanning MO

This wondrous giant is situated at the Fanning Route 66 Outpost in Missouri and stands over 42ft tall. Its one drawback is that it doesn’t rock (!), but you can’t deny that it’s pretty big (it holds the Guinness Record!). Of course, it is for one purpose only, to make you stop and buy stuff at the (brilliant) store that sits next to it – but the old road specialises in the unusual and it has become one of the greats of Route 66.

4. Gary’s ‘Gay Parita’, Paris Springs MO

Now I’ll be honest, I have no idea why it is called that! But Gary, the owner, who has kept this gas station alive (although it no longer sells gas) was brilliant. Full of great conversation, interesting stories and a fascinating place that he showed us around, this was one of the best stops on the whole trip for us. A true taste of what Route 66 is all about. Unfortunately, Gary passed away a few weeks ago (early 2015) so I’m not sure what will happen to his place now. If you come across it on your trips, let us know. Rest in Peace Gary…one of the world’s gems.

5. The Blue Whale of Catoosa, Catoosa OK

Originally intended as an anniversary gift, it became a rest spot for families whose children would slide down into the water and jump off his tail. This incredible giant sits by a still lake in a shady spot moments off the hot highway. It is such a restful place and well worth stopping by to catch your breath. It has become one of Route 66’s most famous icons, and rightly so.

6. 190ft Cross, Groom TX

This incredible structure is located in Groom, one of the first towns you come to in Texas on Route 66, in the middle of the Bible Belt. Standing at 190ft tall, this cross (not quite the tallest in the world) is surrounded by stations of the cross telling the story of the Crucifixion. Whatever your faith stance, this is an incredibly peaceful place. We thought it would be tacky and awkward, but somehow, they have pulled off a reflective environment which came at a welcome time after a long day on the road.

7. The Big Texan, Amarillo TX

If you’re looking for tacky, you got it! In an awesome kind of way. The Big Texan , a restaurant and motel (which we stayed in – and it was great) offers the famous 72oz steak, which you get free if you can eat it and all the trimmings in 1 hour (the record is just under 5 minutes…HOW???). It’s great fun here, with live music, fun decor and a massive cowboy boot. What more do you want?

8. Cadillac Ranch, Amarillo TX

Ok, so Cadillac Ranch is not technically on Route 66. So I’ve cheated a little bit, but it’s so worth seeing. This unusual piece of art (which doesn’t look the same in any photo you find of it as people are encouraged to spray paint the cars!) was created in 1974 by an art group called ‘Ant Farm’, and consists of various models of Cadillac, nose down in the earth at the same angle as the Pyramids. Obviously. It’s the angle I would have gone for too.

9. Giant 66 Shield, Winslow AZ

This little town in Arizona is a real find. Set off the I-40, it offers the usual mix of gift shop tack, coffee shops and Route 66 icons – here, they offer a tribute to the Eagle’s song ‘Standing on the Corner’, and some murals creating the illusion of a shop front – but the best in my opinion is the massive Route 66 shield smack bang in the centre of the town. Totally worth risking getting run over to get a photo in the road for!

10. Meteor Crater, Winslow AZ

Just along the road from Winslow lies this incredible wonder. It’s just under a mile in diameter and 570ft deep, and was created around 50,000 years ago by a meteorite. The scale of the thing is almost impossible to comprehend when you’re there, and it is definitely worth seeing. In the centre, there is a 6ft American flag, which you need binocluars to see. Seriously, this is enormous!

11. Angel’s Barber Shop, Seligman AZ

This is THE stop on the route. Located beyond Flagstaff and Williams at the start of a glorious isolated loop of original Route 66 that takes you far from the Interstate, the little town of Seligman is the home of Angel Delgadillo. If it wasn’t for this humble barber, there probably wouldn’t be much left of Route 66 at all.  After the road was decommisioned in 1985, Angel started the Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona. Since then, all 8 States that the route passes through have their own association. We didn’t meet Angel the day we visited. It’s best to aim for the morning, then you may get a chance to meet him. Now in his 80s, he goes home at lunchtime, but still cuts hair! What a winner!

12. Oatman, AZ

This whole town is the epitome of Route 66. Once a thriving mining town, it suffered terribly when the Interstate came along, became run down and deserted, then began to come alive again in a completely different way. Famous for its wild burros who roam the streets (and are very friendly), a gun fight is staged at noon and the hotel (no longer a place to stay) serves up huge lunches with a smile. No one lives here anymore – they simply come to serve the tourists every day. And yet there is a great atmosphere, good food, and it makes for a really fun stop off before you cross into California.

So there we have it. These were our favourite roadside stops along the road. There are hundreds more, and I haven’t even started on the cafes and restaurants that adorn the highway…that is for a separate post. For now, we’d love to hear what your favourite places were…or where you dream of visiting one day!

A journey into Cowboy Country on Route 66

Posted on by Posted in Oklahoma, Route 66, Texas .

Texas has a reputation amongst us Brits as being huge – it is 3 times the size of our entire country (yet the UK has nearly 2.5 times more people living there!). It’s the 2nd biggest US State (Alaska is even bigger) and has the 2nd largest population (after California). I guess the notoriety of Texas was aided by countless Western movies and, of course, the TV series ‘Dallas’.

So you can imagine our excitement as we woke up in Oklahoma (which, by the way, we did not do justice due to our late arrival and the fact that it was our wedding anniversary), knowing that we were heading towards the Lone Star State.

We set off from our hotel and promptly got utterly and horribly lost. Turns out finding our way to Amarillo wasn’t going to as easy as we first thought!

We headed in what seemed like a sensible direction (West), but to no avail. We went round and round the same section of Interstate 40 trying to figure out where on earth we had to get off to join 66 again but no joy. In the end, we pulled off at any old junction where we could park in a side road to check the map and figure things out. We had been on the road for an hour already!

We parked up, read all our documents, checked the sat nav, turned the maps this way and that way. We could NOT make sense of it. AT ALL! We sat back in the car, exasperated. I looked up to check out our surroundings. The street sign ahead said NW 23rd Street – hang on a minute – I’m sure the EZ66 said that we needed to be on that street! I rustled through the pages of the guidebook and sure enough: ‘Stay on NW 23rd Street for 2mi to May Avenue’. Whoop Whoop! We had accidentally found ourselves exactly where we needed to be. Thank goodness.

Relieved, we set off and were back on track. By now, though, we really needed a toilet stop. But we were out of the city now and there was nowhere around. As I was looking around for possible ‘restroom options’, I glanced over at a big lake – and spied a portaloo! Oh, praise be! We pulled over by what turned out to be Lake Overholser (actually a reservoir) and took advantage of the rudimentary facilities…and the peaceful view over the lake.

Relieved (in a slightly different way this time), we set off through the towns of El Reno, Weatherford and Elk City with a brief stop at the Route 66 Museum in desperate need of a coffee. They didn’t sell coffee.

We continued on through Oklahoma passing many a derelict motel and cafe that in days gone by would have warmly greeted us with hot coffee and friendly atmosphere.

Still caffeine and sugar deprived, we arrived in Texola, the last town in Oklahoma before you cross into Texas. Now this town really is empty. Not quite a ghost town – apparently in the 2010 census there were 36 residents. On the main street through the town, there is very little by way of attractions. However, we were people in need of coffee and in all honesty, pie – and Texola had it. So we stopped at a little place (actually called the ‘Tumbleweed Grill and Country Store‘) in the ‘Water Hole #2 building.

There was a lady and her dog (Licker – or Liquor – we weren’t sure which). The lady didn’t say much but gladly sold us a cup of coffee and some beautiful American Apple Pie. We were so ready for it. The shop is a fascinating little place. You should definitely stop by. Full of little knick knacks, Americana, souvenirs and pieces of art that the lady there had made herself.

There really is no place like Texola, even if it is a little sad that this once thriving Route 66 town has been reduced to what it is today. I guess it is this same fact that lends it its charm.

Revived once more, we left Oklahoma and crossed the state line into Texas – the Lone Star State. We were staying at the Big Texan Motel in Amarillo, and it was at this point that we realised with great disappointment that we were utterly unprepared musically for this section of our trip.

Before we left, I had downloaded every Route 66 album known to man, and with song titles like, ‘Gallop to Gallup’, ‘Hoppin in Joplin’, ‘Tucumcari Tonite’ and ‘A-L-B-U-Q-U-E-R-Q-U-E’ (we will NEVER forget how to spell that particular New Mexico town), we were set with quality tunes covering all possibilities. How could I have neglected to purchase ‘Is this the way to Amarillo?’ The song was much more popular in Europe than it ever was in America – of course made universally known in the UK by Peter Kay et al for Comic Relief. Here we were in Texas, on our way to Amarillo – and no Tony Christie. What a waste!

The first thing we came across in Texas was The Devil’s Rope Museum. A entire museum dedicated to that most fascinating of topics: Barbed Wire. Yup, it’s true. As you can imagine, we were gutted that it was closed.

Next up, Groom. Here they have a 190 foot high cross, surrounded by 14 life size statues depicting the stations of the cross. We were expecting this to be tacky, but in fact it was incredibly reflective and serene. There was a scene of the Last Supper, along with a hill complete with 3 crosses, Christ in the middle of the 2 thieves.

We moved on to what we knew would be the opposite of here. The Big Texan Motel, famous for its 72oz steak – gluttony and excess – yet fun and typically (or perhaps stereotypically) Texan! If you can eat the 72oz steak plus all the trimmings and a drink in an hour, you get it for free. Needless to say, we left this challenge to those more greedy – I mean – adventurous – than us and settled in to our more than ample meal of quesadillas and a myriad of sides.

Our motel room was suitably tacky with suede shower curtains complete with tassels and saloon doors into the bathroom. Our meal was suitably beige and enormous, and the music was suitably western in style. We loved it. And I have never experienced such a powerful shower – it felt like four million little tiny needles jabbing into your skin – not necessarily pleasant, but impressive water pressure. Texas knows how to do it BIG!

We’d made it to Amarillo – without asking the way a single time, even if we did get lost for well over and hour. There are worse places to get lost than Route 66. Never a dull moment!

 

3 States. 1 Day. Route 66 at its best.

Posted on by Posted in Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Route 66 .

We woke up in Missouri, lunched in Kansas and went to bed in Oklahoma. Such is the joy and variety of a Route 66 trip!

The Route 66 Railway Haven in Springfield, MO felt suitably retro, with old gas pumps in the courtyard and vintage cars in the forecourt.

We were eager to get on the road today – we had a lot to see. We set off, and not half an hour later we arrived at a Sinclair garage where we pulled over in the spur of the moment to take some pictures.

To our surprise, we were met by an older man who introduced himself as Gary – he was such a character – full of life and passionate in a big way about the Mother Road. He brought out a flag and took pictures of us by his garage – he is SO proud of his garage which he built up and restored himself.

For the next 30 minutes, Gary took the time to show us around his incredible space, complete with vintage cars, Old Road memorabilia and Bonny and Clyde statues (yup – he had all sorts!). He told us stories from his life (an incredibly rich and varied tale) and from his time on the road. He spoke of the people that he meets from all over the world – his whole life now is all about meeting Route 66 travellers.

He gave us some Route 66 soda to keep and encouraged us to pose in one of his old vehicles:

He gave us a signed image of his garage and introduced us to Lena, his wife, in the little office which was crammed to the rafters with memorabilia and Route 66 artifacts.

We loved the old cars at the place – they really do have a funny kind of beauty now that they are past their useful life.

This little place was pure magic. Gary is a true legend of the Road – welcoming us with open arms, spending time telling stories and listening to ours. He is so proud of his little patch on this earth and delights in meeting those who happen across it. He is genuinely passionate about his life, his family and the people that he meets. This is what a Route 66 trip is all about. If you do this trip – stop here. It is one of the highlights of our journey. You can check out Gary’s website here and maybe you’ll even spot some of our other pictures on his site (our pics are here on the second page of the photo section on the bottom 2 rows).

Despite the fact that we could have stayed here all day chatting with Gary and learning about the road (he really is a wealth of information!), we had a lot of travelling left to do so had to move on.

The road in Missouri is a real mixture of the old and rusty:

And the old and grand:

This is the Jasper County Courthouse in Carthage, MO, which was built in 1894 and is a beautiful (if somewhat unexpected)structure in a sweet little town of otherwise squat and very ordinary looking buildings.

Before long, we found ourselves driving through Joplin, MO and crossing the State line into Kansas. Route 66 runs a mere 13 miles across the south-east corner of Kansas, through Galena, Riverton and Baxter Springs – all towns with lots of closed down businesses and shops. We passed through on a Sunday, and so had little hope of finding anything open. We thought we may have to stop for lunch in a worldwide chain (such as the dreaded McDonald’s, which we really didn’t want to do!).

However, in Galena sits a little gem: Cars on the Route.

We were delighted to find that the little shop and restaurant was open and serving food. It was lunchtime by now and were more than a little peckish. Formerly known as 4 Women on the Route, the place is now under new management (and open on Sundays), and is one of the most friendly places we stopped at along the whole route. They even let us use their Wifi so that I could FaceTime my sister back in the UK (she loves the Wizard of Oz and all things Kansas).

The old tow truck outside (now complete with cartoon eyes) served as the original inspiration for the character ‘Tow Mater’ in Disney Pixar’s ‘Cars’- and the owners of Cars on the Route are maximising that famous link. And why not? We had a simple but delicious burger lunch here, and then reluctantly had to head off. It was good to support this little business in what was otherwise almost a ghost town (although things are picking up, thanks in no small part to the ambition of 4 women who restored this old garage with the aim of breathing life into their town once more – a job well done!).

Our very brief sojourn in Kansas was over, and we departed towards Oklahoma, our 3rd state of the day.

The first highlight we hit in Oklahoma was the 9ft highway, or the ribbon road, just outside Miami, OK. This section of the road was built  in 1922 when the costs of paving the Route were piling up – someone had a brainwave that paving half the road should cost half as much – you can’t fault the logic, even if it is a crazy idea. You can still drive this section of the road, even though it was decommissioned many years ago.

And then came one of the most famous and possibly most kitschy icons of Route 66: The Blue Whale of Catoosa. The whale was the brainchild of Hugh Davis, who built it in the 1970s as an anniversary present to his wife. It took 2 years to build and is now owned by Hugh’s daughter and it’s still open to the public.

We love this unique roadside attraction. It’s such a peaceful place, a true respite from the road. We sat by the still water for a while, walked inside and climbed up the whale, and took a welcome breather. Although the pond itself is no longer in use, we could imagine the water full of children playing, sliding off the whale and jumping off his tail. What a fun thing. And of course, it’s HUGE!

Once again, time was against us, and we had to go back onto the Interstate once we had got through Tulsa. It was our first wedding anniversary after all, and we had a nice hotel and a lovely meal waiting for us in Oklahoma City. We’d had a great day – in a very different way from the same day the year before – when we said ‘I will’ on a sunny autumn day in Nottingham.

After being welcomed to the Oklahoma City hotel by a group of Oklahoman guests, singing a complete rendition of the title song from the musical ‘Oklahoma’ (I so wish I had that on video – it was priceless), we settled in to our beautiful Anniversary Meal, tired but very happy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

10 great reasons why a Route 66 Roadtrip is a fabulous idea!

Posted on by Posted in Arizona, California, Illinois, Kansas, Missouri, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Route 66, Texas .

When we decided to drive Route 66, we didn’t really know much about it – only that it was a long drive, and Billy Connolly had done it on TV (check out his DVD here). Having done it (and we would do it again!) we can see why people want to drive this iconic American road. So here are our 10 reasons why it’s so worth driving the whole of Route 66.

  1. It’s EPIC! The road spans 2451 miles (give or take) and crosses 8 States from Illinois in the Midwest to California on the Pacific coast.

 

2. It mostly skips the Interstate. Leave the monotony behind and venture out into lesser seen, small town America – the well trodden paths of the past. Sometimes, you find yourself in between the Interstate and Railroad being overtaken by trucks and trains whilst you sit back and cruise the open road!

 

3. You follow in the footsteps of American history. As westward expansion has taken place, thousands of people have trodden the path – from the Native Americans in the 1830s along the Trail of Tears when they were displaced from their lands, to the Dust Bowl migration of the 1930s where families up and left their homes seeking a better life in golden California – the promised land of jobs and prosperity. From the road’s heyday in the 1950s and 60s where American families took to the road to holiday in the west, to the decline of the route (and a large proportion of the towns along the way) in the 1970s as the Interstate was born and people wanted a more direct route across America.

 

4. There are ghost towns! Along the way you find deserted towns that once thrived with travellers – now left as merely a reminder of the ‘good old days’.

 

5. There are thriving small towns too! Don’t worry – it’s not all death and decay of small town America. There are so many superb, friendly and vibrant places to stop and grab a coffee or a bite to eat. Small town America is in many ways the best of America! This picture is Darren and I in Winslow, AZ – a little town with an active population, small businesses and bit of tourism thrown in for good measure.

 

6. There are awesome diners all over the place! You don’t have to drive far to experience that most iconic of American ideas – the roadside diner. There are so many good ones along the route – trouble is you can’t stop at all of them for a coffee or it would take you a year to travel the road (plus the toilet stops would get incredibly tiresome after a while!). Our favourite diner was in Albuquerque – a proper 1950s affair complete with 1950s music and Route 66 memorabilia. The food was great too!

 

7. You meet fascinating people. There are so many people we met along the way who enriched our journey – there was Bob the Mayor of Pontiac, Gary and his wife Lena at their restored gas station in Missouri and Pete on the train to Santa Fe to name but a few. Each of them had great stories to tell of their lives that are so far removed from our own. The picture below is of me with Gary and Lena. They’re in their late 80s and are passionate about Route 66. Rather worryingly, Lena and I had matching shoes! You can check out their website here (and you may just spy some of our other photos from our visit with Gary there too!).

 

8. You get a taste of the diversity of America. This trip has it all. You have the metropolis of Chicago, the plains of the Ozarks through Missouri and Oklahoma, the Texas Panhandle, the joining Native American, Spanish and Western cultures of New Mexico, the deserts of Arizona and California and the beachfront city of Santa Monica. The sheer size of the country is staggering and each State is like a different country with different laws and landscape, culture and character. Travelling across the US from East to West is a constant journey of discovery.

 

9. There are so many quirky roadside attractions! From the Gemini Giant in Illinois to the Largest Rocking Chair in Missouri. From the Blue Whale of Catoosa in Oklahoma to the countless murals all along the route – there’s always something to make you jump out of the car for a break to gaze in wonder at the craziness of it all! This is a picture of the Largest Rocking chair – you can just about spot Darren at the bottom left!

 

10. It’s about the journey, not the destination. Yeah, I know it’s a cheesy line – but isn’t that the spirit of all the best road trips? Route 66 is made for road tripping – even though each day’s destination town is great in itself, the best bits are more often than not along the way. That little town. This coffee shop. That roadside attraction. This meal. It’s those moments that leave a lasting impression on you, those small surprises that you weren’t expecting, the people that you meet. It truly is the journey that makes travelling Route 66 from Chicago to LA the trip of a lifetime! I’m so glad we did it. Add it to your bucket list today!

A huge thanks go out to Complete North America who helped us arrange our trip, and featured this post on their website here.

You can buy Billy Connolly’s Route 66 DVD and check out our inspiration for the trip!