Route 66 on the 4th of July

[WTSHNN]

Hi guys,

I woke up on the morning of the 4th of July with the best of intentions to paint a fence and a deck. However, that plan quickly changed into me deciding to go for a short drive in my truck.

I drove south from the southside of Chicago to Joliet, IL and stopped at the old Joliet Prison.



If it looks familiar, you've probably seen this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYdsl...ature=youtu.be

I made it into Joliet and decided to jump on Route 66 and continue south.

I visited the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery, over 25,000 veterans are buried there with space for 400,000.





There are a lot of places along the way where the old decommissioned road is still present.



An old Texaco station sits on the outskirts of Dwight IL.







I just kept going and got to Odell IL and this old Standard Oil station, originally built in 1932 and restored 10 or so years ago.





This place has a wall that is filled with foreign currency that international travelers have left to show the various countries around the world that seek out the Mother Road.



While I was wandering around inside there were two couples from Barcelona Spain that had flown to California and had driven Route 66 from LA to Chicago.

They waited 30 minutes for me to leave the gas station and then pulled out after me and followed me for about an hour I could see them taking pictures and videos through their windshield the whole time.



I jumped off the main drag for a bit to show the Spaniards some good old fashioned Illinois gravel.

[WTSHNN]

I made it to Pontiac IL and visited the Route 66 Association of IL's museum.

I parked in the lot and went across the street into the museum and wandered around. A bit later I was upstairs and looked out the window and I had company.



The back wall of the building has this giant mural on it. I pulled up and jumped out to snap a picture, then, like moths to a flame, the tourists descended on my truck. What I was hoping would be a 30-45 second stop turned into nearly 30 minutes as people kept asking to take pictures of my truck.



Corn and Soybeans as far as the eye can see.



Some communities have taken the old decommissioned roadways and turned them into bike paths.



But not all...



A lot of people who live there along the road get into the significance of Rt 66.





I stopped to look at this '38 Tudor for sale and three other people stopped to talk about my truck.





Route 66 License Plates on a modern vette





I've done the trip before, even made a youtube video of it about six years ago.
http://youtu.be/LKg8A0OpeME

What I thought would be a short trip turned into a 205 mile roundtrip and just over 7 hours long. I hadn't planned on it, didn't do much prep work on the truck or the owner, just decided to jump in and drive, see the heartland of America on its birthday.

Just me and my truck on a beautiful summer day...


-Tim

[bogdonj]

awesome pictures and experience... love seeing the old gas pumps and stations.. oh yeah, your truck looks nice also!

[1931 flamingo]

WOW ! ! ! ! Thanks for sharing. This is one beautiful country.
Paul in CT

[spdway1]

AH, the deck and the fence can wait! Good trip! Thanks for sharing.

[Randy in Illinois]

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That's a great ride in in a model A or on a motorcycle. Thanks, enjoyed the pictures.

[Mitch//pa]

i also really enjoyed that and thanks for taking the time to share it with us

[Bill in Al]

Thank you,I also enjoyed your trip.

[Tom Wesenberg]

Super! Looks like there is a lot to see in Illinois. I hope I can soon start travelling more.

[Pinstripe]

That was excellent Thank you Nice looking truck, by the way. What is it's story.

[hotrodalley]

Thanks for sharing and encouraging us to get our cars out and drive ! Sometimes the spontaneous trips are the best. Unfortunately, our 4th was a monsoon - no fun in an old car.

[Ross/Kzoo]

Thanks for sharing. Your story is one of "stopping to smell the roses". You may not have had the time but you took the time.

[Elcastor]

Great story and pictures. We can always use more of these types of stories as it encourages us all to get out more and enjoy our hobby. Others enjoy it too!

Thanks for sharing!

[modeleh]

Thank you very much for taking the time to post your photographs and captions. I'm sure you have provided inspiration to many to add the trip to their bucket lists.

[TDO]

Wish I could have been there. Absolutely beautiful.

[Rusty Karz]

Thanks for the ride. :-)

[WTSHNN]

It was a blast guys, if you're thinking about doing it, do it. What are you waiting for?

-Tim

[Napa Skip]

Excellent! Reinforces the adage that 'Model A owners belong in their Model A's; Model A's belong on the road.'

Thanks for posting your July 4th trip.