A Cruise Along Route 66-- Part 2

From Gardner, we drove through small towns along the route and through Braidwood where we saw the old railroad depot which will soon be moved to a new site, the old tire company, the Braidwood Motel which was featured in the John Candy/ Steve Martin movie "Planes, Trains, and Automobiles." Of course, then there is the Polka Dot with its great food and statues of Elvis, Betty Boop, and Blues Brothers outside.

A short distance away, we entered Wilmington and passed the Blue Star Memorial Highway marker in front of the VFW that Liz and I had been at its dedication a few years back. The river was right at flood stage because of all the run-off from the thaw a short time ago.

North of town stood the green old Gemini Giant holding that rocker next to the famous Launching Pad restaurant.

Then, it was onto a favorite part of old Route 66, the four lane stretch to Joliet and past the old Joliet Arsenal Ammunition Depot, which is now being turned into the Midewin Tall Grass Prairie National Park and the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery.

This stretch of divided four lane brings back memories of what Route 66 was like in its bypassing glory days of the 50s and sixties.

We also drove by the two race tracks, one of which is the Route 66 raceway. There were also several businesses with Route 66 in their name.

Once in Joliet, we took I-80 north and east to the Indiana line.

Cruising Down That Great Old Road. --RoadDog