Chicago is not the best place to navigate especially in rush hour traffic. Unfortunately, we did not get to the starting gate at Lou Mitchell’s restaurant in downtown. So we missed the free Milk Duds and doughnut holes. The good news is that we made it out of the city to begin the adventure on the Mother Road.

It wasn’t until we were in Joliet, Illinois that the Road felt like a reality. When this sign appeared, we all knew that Route 66 awaited us ahead.

Joliet is about 40 miles SouthWest of Chicago and is famous for steel, stone and a canal. But what most remember about Joliet is Joliet Prison which was closed in 2002. It was here that the Blues Brothers served time for their iniquities. Of course we had to stop at the Joliet museum and catch the history of this All American town.

From here we were on our way to see muffler men and renovated gas stations.

And the Polk-a-Dot Drive In Restaurant below located in Braidwood, Illinois.

These are only a few of the sites we visited. Wish we could post more pictures but not enough time to post, sightsee, eat and sleep. I’ll try to cover some more as we progress down the Road. John, Van, Jere and I are holding up pretty well and are still good friends!! Looking forward to Springfield and possibly St Louis tomorrow.

Here’s to the Mother Road!

Merle