Route 66 Roadtrip: Leg 1 – IL to OK | Episode 13

Welcome to Episode 13 – Route 66. The Mother Road. America’s Highway. Although it may no longer be an unbroken stretch of road, the history, vibe and pop culture status of Route 66 remains very much unbroken. That’s why we were so excited to make sure our first, epic, cross-continental challenge as RVers should be along this storied route.

So, we’re calling this our Route 66 trip, because, naturally that was the point, however instead of driving the entire thing west to east on the way home, we decided to loop around and knock a few more states off our list.

Planning

Of course, I used Roadtrippers to plan the route and I began the process in February, for a June 28th departure.

The entire goal of the trip was to see some of the low-hanging fruit of the Route, you know, the most iconic things you think of (Cadillac Ranch, Wigwam Motel, Midpoint, and the End of the Road in Santa Monica) but the true inspiration came from our Disney Cars DVD. In one of the post-reel bonuses, there was a mini-documentary that detailed all of the real-life places which inspired the movie, which is a family favourite. How cool would it be, we thought, to take a trip, see the sights and end it at Cars Land at Disney’s California Adventure Park! And that friends, is how the best adventures begin – on your couch, in your jammies with a bowl of popcorn on your lap.

Leg One

Leg one took us from Illinois to Elk City, Oklahoma in 3 days. Not too bad given we were towing our 29′ travel trailer and had to come from Canada. Have a listen to the podcast to find out why we didn’t get to begin our trip at the official beginning of the route sign in Chicago.

Route 66 RV Canucks Adventure on Roadtrippers

Day1

We left home on the last day of school. The girls wanted to say goodbye to their friends, so they went for a half day. We picked them up, washed their lunch dishes and hit the road just after noon (note to anyone reading this: Don’t leave your kids lunch pails sitting for 3 weeks while you’re off on a grand adventure. Your nose will thank you when you get home – been there.

By the end of our first travel day we had made it to Lake Station Indiana where we boondocked at the Flying J. There are only 2 spots for RVs there so call ahead 🙂

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Day 2

Day 2 started after hearty Denny’s breakfast, which gave us the gusto we needed to get all the way to Marshfield, MO.

One of our favourite stops this day was at the Illinois State Rest Area at Funk’s Corners which had fantastic historical info about Route 66, Pioneers and a small walking trail through the woods. We stopped there for lunch which Melina had packed the night before after hitting the grocery store in Michigan.

We weren’t sure where we would be stopping for the night, but a few hours before marshfield, we used the RV Parky app to find the RV Express 66 RV Park. We called ahead and they let us know that the office would be closed when we got there, but they had saved us a spot (in the form of a traffc cone with our name on it) and told us to settle up in the morning. This place was right on the Interstate and the perfect place to gas up before hitting the road the next day.

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Day 3

Day 3 was a really fun day, and the day that made it feel like we were on vacation. One of our planned Roadtrippers stops was to take the small jog into Kansas and visit Galena, home to ‘Cars on the Route’ which contains the very tow truck that was the inspiration for Mater in the Cars movie. It did not disappoint our Disney family. Aside from the display and lovely volunteers at the vintage gas station, the town was a fascinating look into the past.

From there, we decided to follow old Route 66 through Baxter Springs where we had the MOST delicious ice cream at the Monarch Pharmacy and Soda Fountain. There was plenty of RV parking at the lot next door.

We hopped back onto the Interstate and ended the day in Elk City OK for the night. Another RV Parky find – we stayed at the Elk Creek RV Park, which is wedged between the interstate and an industrial area. It was clean enough, if a bit dated, but was fine for the night, because we had power – and with power comes Air Conditioning!!

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Roadtrippers

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