Route 66. Chicago end.
Discussion
Next year I intend to drive as much of Route 66 as is left.
In 1996 I got half-way (from California)
but the incessant moaning from the passenger seat meant that I turned right just after Oklahoma and went to New Orleans to prevent further damage to my right ear.
I love ramshackle motels, lunch-counters, diners, blues and pre-seventies Americana in general.
Ideally I want to do it in something appropriate (50s) which I may bring back.
What shouldn't I miss?
In 1996 I got half-way (from California)
but the incessant moaning from the passenger seat meant that I turned right just after Oklahoma and went to New Orleans to prevent further damage to my right ear.
I love ramshackle motels, lunch-counters, diners, blues and pre-seventies Americana in general.
Ideally I want to do it in something appropriate (50s) which I may bring back.
What shouldn't I miss?
Thanks a lot to you both.
Captain Cadillac's mention of Ted Drewes Frozen Custard had me reaching for Michael Wallis's "Route66 The Mother Road" In 1996 I stopped at virtually every diner/cafe I came to (much to my wife's delight...she was none to thrilled that I'd only book in to motels that looked condemned either) and took the book in with me.
Somewhere near Flagstaff, one of Ted's relatives Margie Drewes(can't read her married name but it's definitely got "uss" in it) came over and signed the book to the effect that any Frozen Custard I might consume would not be followed by a bill. I look forward to establishing whether there's a time-limit.
Howard and Mary Nichols of Pop Hicks' restaurant in Clinton, Oklahoma were also driving Route 66 "because it's in your blood and doesn't let go" They phoned Michael Wallis who cheerfully gave up an afternoon to show me stuff I would otherwise have missed.
At risk of sounding mawkish,I have never been more moved or enchanted by something as prosaic as a road but there is something tangibly magical that I can't begin to explain. I even brought back a 6 square inch block laboriously liberated from a section that was closed in the 60's.
You can rest assured that I'll take enormous pleasure of hitting all the recommended spots while avoiding the less savoury areas.
Thanks again, I'll send you a postcard!
Captain Cadillac's mention of Ted Drewes Frozen Custard had me reaching for Michael Wallis's "Route66 The Mother Road" In 1996 I stopped at virtually every diner/cafe I came to (much to my wife's delight...she was none to thrilled that I'd only book in to motels that looked condemned either) and took the book in with me.
Somewhere near Flagstaff, one of Ted's relatives Margie Drewes(can't read her married name but it's definitely got "uss" in it) came over and signed the book to the effect that any Frozen Custard I might consume would not be followed by a bill. I look forward to establishing whether there's a time-limit.
Howard and Mary Nichols of Pop Hicks' restaurant in Clinton, Oklahoma were also driving Route 66 "because it's in your blood and doesn't let go" They phoned Michael Wallis who cheerfully gave up an afternoon to show me stuff I would otherwise have missed.
At risk of sounding mawkish,I have never been more moved or enchanted by something as prosaic as a road but there is something tangibly magical that I can't begin to explain. I even brought back a 6 square inch block laboriously liberated from a section that was closed in the 60's.
You can rest assured that I'll take enormous pleasure of hitting all the recommended spots while avoiding the less savoury areas.
Thanks again, I'll send you a postcard!
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