On The Road - Day 3 - Litchfield to St Louis

8th May, 2012

Today its going to be an easy drive.    The Plains are lush and healthy grass wavering in the breeze.  unexpectedly up pops Henry's Rabbit Ranch at Staunton, so with a major slow down and a quick turn around we pull in.  There are masses of Volkswagen Rabbits.  There are 6 magnificent Harley's parked out front and inside are a bunch of tall, leathered bikers all geared up in their Route 66 shirts and jackets.  They are from Slovakia and are having fun in the gift shop.  There are real rabbits, there are rabbit statues, there are real rabbit grave sites and a massive rabbit statue in the yard next door. Cars everywhere!

We are very close to the Old Chain of Rocks Bridge, one of our priorities today.  Although the St Louis spaghetti roads look daunting to me, Nev assures me he has it all worked out.  A photo must is the Luna Cafe in Mitchell.  This is Al Capone territory. This cafe has quite a history of gangsters, gambling and ladies of the night.  Their presence was announced by the lighting of the cherry on the neon sign.  And there it was - right on cue, and there were a couple of guys trying to hang route 66 signs on the pole as we pulled in to take a photo.  All done and off. 

We are close to the Bridge.  We follow the directions easily, we are good.  Nev comments that it was strange that his instincts wanted to turn right when we had signs that said turn left, but we followed the signs.  Pleased with ourselves, but no bridge in sight we keep driving when suddenly the Luna Cafe pops up again - on the other side of the road.  Yes we had done a 4 mile scenic trip. So another photo of the Luna Cafe, now with her Route 66 signage almost completed and turn back to have another attempt. 

Eventually we followed Nev's original instincts and came to a parking area with more walking to get to the bridge with a bend.  Finally there it is in all its glory. The Chain of Rocks Ship Canal Bridge (1929)  One mile long with 22 degree bend.  the castle looking towers are intakes for St Louis water supply.  The Illinois/Missouri state line is marked in the centre of the bridge with a pair of US 66 state shields.

We run into the guys from Slovakia once again and take their photo on the vintage fire engine stationed on the bridge.

We have walked many miles now and need to try out Ted Drewe's Frozen Custard - next priority.  Its time to plug the address into the GPS - yes cheating again!  Well coincidently we find ourselves on Route 66 very quickly and proceed way over the other side of St Louis and now have to make an unffair choice of which concrete to order - way too many flavours to chose from.  So we take the easy way out and order one of their specials.  Its warm today so we sit out on the seats provided and tackle these monster delights.  Very good. We need more walking.

 Now to find out accommodation - another Hampton Inn but close to the Arch.  Checked in and off again - more walking, I am too old for all this!  Off down to the beautiful park, into the Arch and up we go.  Tucked into a little pod with two big guys. 4 minutes up and 3 minutes down - plenty long enough to give me the shivers. 

The views from the top were worth it however. I had done this on my own many years ago, but it was a first for Nev. 

The museum at the base was quite amazing - the usual detailed class we expect in America.

A very active but excellent day.....

On The Road - Day 2 - Joliet to Litchfield

 

 

7th May, 2012

A little earlier departure today - not a lot, and we have a lot of miles to cover to get to Litchfield.  As we depart Joliet we pass the Route 66 Raceway.

We are excited to recall the check points that we used when flying in the US - Joliet and Kankakee (the River we drove over) were both reporting points when Neville was doing his Instrument Rating.  

There are many GIANTS along Route 66 and we are going to try to capture them when possible. This is proving a little more difficult than it would seem. However our first one was the Gemini giant at the Launching Pad Drive In in Wilmington Il. This photo taking has required much clever car manouvreing and patience. 

One of the standouts for the day was lunch at the Polka Dot Drive In in Braidwood - spotlessly clean, the friendliest staff (and they asked us to sign their visitors book so they had to be special) and all the memorabilia that you would expect from the 50's. 



As the miles clicked slowly past we took many photos of old gas pumps and signs. From Dwight to Pontiac incredible displays from the past. It has been hard to imagine that a lot of Route 66'ers drive from Chicago to St Louis in one day.  We are running out of time as we want to get to the Ariston Cafe for dinner tonight. 

A collection of vintage petroliana displayed in Odell.

 ODell classic 1932 Standard Station restoration including a vintage gravity fed gasoline pump.   Next door a classic 1953 caravan restored in the same colours. 

On arrival in Pontiac we figured maybe half an hour to check out the museum there - we could have spent the entire day in the town.  There were so many murals that had been painted by the Wall Dogs and just magnificent pieces they were.  We took just a few photos of them but did collect a brochure that shows them all.

The day is getting on and I am getting worried that we have so far to go to get to our Litchfield destination in time for dinner.  We check our priorities - Funks Grove Maple Sirup is a must - due to the spelling of 'Sirup".  The lovely lady there advised that it was the original spelling of syrup and the Funks family had insisted on maintaining the spelling in the business name.  After a taste of the nectar from the local maples we just had to purchase a bottle.  The owner advised that she ships to Australia at considerable expense - well it is very heavy, especially in 1/2 gallon jugs!!

Trying our best to maintain the Route 66 roads, hopping on and off the freeway, turning back when lost (just a little off track not really lost) we fly past the Dixie Travel Plaza no time to stop for photos.  However we have to do a quick stop to take the Giant Paul Bunyan with the Giant Hot Dog in Atlanta - he was previously in Cicero.  This is grain country.  We can see the huge water tower with the Giant Smiley Face but no time to situate ourselves to capture a photo.  This town has a magnificent clock tower wound by hand every 8 days and this town too has many murals. 

Another Giant in Lincoln - yes who else Abe!  Missed it!  However once we arrived in Springfield (the capital of Illinois) much too late to see anything after 5pm however there was yet another Giant Abe and the pursuit to find Gate One at the Fairgrounds was pretty darn smart and there he was in all his skinny glory.  We even managed a couple of fleeting photos of the magnificent Capital Building.  Nerves are getting frayed, its late and many miles to go.  I desperately wanted to get the next Giant the Lauderbach Giant but he went flying past and I missed him.  I am getting addicted to Giants.  Too late to stop for the Giant Surfer Dude at Gillespie.

Ok its panic time onto Interstate 55 (we are cheating) to get to Litchfield before closing.  Signs now for Ariston Cafe appeared by roadside.  Really looking forward to this very much recommended Cafe.  Almost there .....  pull in, its 7.30pm and no cars out front.  Main lights out front not on either, but some lights on inside.  Sign says CLOSED ON MONDAYS!!!  Nooooooo!  So we venture down the road to Stacey's Route 66 Cafe and had dinner, checked into the Hampton Inn, very disappointed and very tired.  We did have a great day however.  Staying at Hampton Inn.  Gas $3.46 per gallon 
PS and we didn't even get a photo of the Ariston cafe!

Goodnight.

On The Road - Day 1 - Chicago to Joliet

 

6th May, 2012

Taxi to Lou Mitchells for breakfast, expecting to line up for a while but it was not too bad at 8.30am on a Sunday morning. After a great breakfast and taking photos we walked across the road to chat to the boys on the immaculate Gold Wings who were heading off to Pontiac for the day. Standing alongside were a group of Aussies visiting US - from?? Victoria - of course.

A brisk walk back to the hotel, collect our car and hit the road.  Down Adams, Ogden and onto Joliet.  Noting cost of gas over $4 per gallon.  Traffic reasonable.  Using the EZ guide, following the Route 66 signs and the GPS, no issues at all. We are not sure what we are going to see, how much of the old road, where it will be and the condition.   It took us a lot longer to get to Joliet than we had expected. However we were able to visit the museum and get some local advice.  We went out to the Joliet Prison - yes you can take photos there, however dont try to take photos at Stateville Prison  - you will lose your camera. We tried the Rich and Kreamy icecreamery, more photos of Jake and Elwood doing their stuff on the roof.  The Rialto Theatre is only available for tours on Tuesdays so we were very disappointed to miss seeing the interior of this gorgeous building.  See http://rialtosquare.com/ 

And so our first day on Route 66 comes to an end at the Hampton Inn in Joliet.

Week 1 - Catching up with US Friends

Our arrivial in US was normal, flight on time, luggage on time and were very tired on arrival in Chicago.  Nev had booked the Hilton at O'Hare airport which was an easy walk from the terminal.  It was midnight by the time we settled down to sleep.

An early morning collection of rental car was pretty easy also - well easy for me as Nev caught the rental car shuttle and collected the car - a Jeep Liberty - from Alamo and returned to the Hilton to collect me and the luggage. 

We considered it a reasonable deal at $2100 total for 30 day hire, which included one way drop off fee, insurance, road side assist, third party insurance and a full tank of gas (petrol) at $3.50 per gallon.  We soon discovered that was an excellent price as most gas stations were asking $4.00 plus as we left Chicago heading to Wisconsin.

Our first stop was with friends in Reedsburg, Patti and Bob, who ensured were we were comfortable and truly well fed. Plus we were well entertained by their gorgeous playful kitties - Yogi and Toby. One of the highlights when we visit this area is dinner at the Dell Bar in Wisconsin Dells where once again we enjoyed the company of our friends Patti and Bob and Marsha and Jim.  Shrimp De Jonge - my favourite, with spinach salad and hot bacon dressing - how could you not be in heaven with that menu.

An afternoon visit to our neighbours at Christmas Mountain was both wonderful and sad as we exchanged stories of our lives since we had last met.  Jean is lovingly looking after her beloved Grover who is suffering from dementia.  However he does look happy and she is looks as gorgeous as ever. 

The next visit was to Rome - Lake Arrowhead - moving north in Wisconsin to visit Steve. And there he was on our arrival at the entrance to his home with Linda (who we missed unfortunately due to her prior commitment) with a wonderful pot of BBQ and black bean soup, not to mention a very nice wine to boot.  We sat and chatted and ate and chatted and still had time to visit the Wisconsin Cheese Factory in the afternoon.

We left with a huge bag of cheeses and after finding Route 66 unexpectedly in Wisconsin we were so amazed we had to head back to Steve's for a glass of Argentinian Malbec. As the afternoon drew to an end we headed off to the Lure for a leisurely dinne by the Petenwell Lake - gorgeous as the pink/grey clouds refelcted over the water, the numerous bambi's watched over us from the wall as we enjoyed the local cuisine. Next morning we awoke (late) to incredible aromas wafting from the kitchen - Steve had cooked up an absolute treat - wonderful eggs, bacon, bagels, juice and coffee. So with bellies filled yet again to beyond the brim we departed for Oconomowoc.

Meeting up again with Mary in their new home and immaculately landscaped gardens was an immense pleasure for me especially as she had completed her Master Gardeners course after me and went on to become President of her group of over 600 members.  I was in absolute awe of the varieties of hosta - she had dozens - and her iris, day lillies, numerous perennials,  As always Mary had prepared the perfect luncheon for us, a delicious cheese and meat platter with the most incredible dip served with fresh veggies and followed by her very own rhubarb dessert and fresh fruit salad.  How spoilt are we!!  It was great to meet their son Mike but we were sorry to miss husband Tom who was flitting around the world on a business trip. 

Way too soon we were heading off towards Chicago where we we set to meet friends from Ohio who had driven over 600 miles to spend some time with us.  Janis and Tom. Angela and Doug, neighbours from Lexington had been celebrating A&D's anniversary the night before and were suffering flu effects (?? yeah us Aussies are pretty gullible!!).  Our hotel, the Palmer House Hilton was just superb - check it out here http://www.palmerhousehiltonhotel.com/ .  No, we are not going to mention the Carmichael's getting lost in their hotel earlier. Too many hotel rooms, too many numbers - enough said!   After enjoying a great dinner at The Luxbar we all headed off to Blue Chicago where we settled in for the evening. 

Ooooh scary eyes and we hadn't had a drink at that stage.
It seemed all too fast, not enough time to catch up on all the happenings over the last 8 years, but it seemed like yesterday that we were all partying in our neighbourhood.  The best neighbours!!

And next morning, Sunday May 6th, the big adventure begins........