Day Twenty-nine – October 7, 2018
Already in Illinois – hasn’t fully sunk in yet. We know the end of the road is in Chicago – too far to get to today if we want to see some things. We want to experience as much of the road as we can.
Our first destination for the day is Chain of Rocks Bridge just west of Granite City, IL.
We have a bit of trouble navigating through this area and had to turn around. This is coal country!
You have to be tenacious about finding this place; including a bridge that says it is closed but you really have to disregard that sign and cross it.
Chain of Rocks Bridge was built in 1929 and is a steel trestle design that is 5,350 feet long. The unusual 22-degree bend in the middle of the bridge sure is different but necessary to build on solid rock footings. The bridge is closed to cars and trucks but is used as a bike-way across the Mississippi River. We see a mother with two young daughters walking in front of us so we offer to take their photo. The youngest girl is clearly uncomfortable with walking on the bridge – something we share. We don’t venture as far as they do because there is a side road that curves back towards the bridge and we are anxious to see the whole thing from below.
Making our way on the main road is fun.
Our next stop is in Hamel, IL. There is a little restaurant, bar and grill called “Weezys” that has been open since the 40’s.
The Soulsby Service Station in Mount Olive was built in 1926. It has been fully restored but is no longer open; representative of the “house and canopy” style this is a great reminder of the old days.
In Illinois there are several options for the 66 – old, older, and oldest. We opt for the oldest whenever we can.
We are out in nowhere it seems. But we are looking for the Artisan Café when we get to Litchfield.
This Café is said to be the oldest café still serving on the 66! It sure looks old! This place has been moved or reinvented each time the 66 was reassigned. The last time the owner simply placed a large sign towards the back of the building. If we hadn’t taken the old route we probably would have missed this little gem.
There are more choices but we stick with the oldest route and are rewarded with an original portion of the road that is still bricks! We have to stop and put our feet on this road just to say we did! How cool can this possibly be!!!!!
We are on our way to Springfield, IL and all things Abraham Lincoln. Before we get to downtown Springfield we are looking for the Cozy Dog Drive-In. The Cozy Dog is where the hot dog on a stick was invented – imagine that. That hot dog was considered fast food back in the day!
The Lincoln Museum and Presidential Library are impressive. The docent says we should plan on a few hours here just for the Library and then several more hours for the Museum. We do not have that kind of time on this trip – we’ll have to save that for another time.
The little park outside the grounds has some interesting statuary.
Springfield Union Station was completed in 1898 and is now the Lincoln Visitor Library.
Heading out of Springfield we stumble across this old Sinclair Gas Station. What a find!
On the old road we are on our way to McClean when we whiz by The Mill. This place is not listed on the maps or literature we have but the sign says Route 66 Attraction. We turn around and go back.
A very interesting little place with Rt. 66 mementos and a little gift shop; this is being slowly restored and just opened a few years ago. There are a lot of quirky things here including a leg (that moves) in the ceiling and a spaceman robot.
Back on the road we pass through Lincoln, IL. Some of the train signs are disturbing – there has to be a reason they felt the signs needed to be posted. “Trains May Exceed 80 MPH”
In Atlanta, IL we find the Paul Bunyan Giant statue. Also, Palms Grill Café and the 1908 Octagonal Library and Clock Tower.
The days are getting shorter and we are starting to run low on daylight as we try to find Funks Grove Pure Maple Sirup. Wait – is that a word? Well that’s how they spell the syrup and they have been making sirup since 1891. Too bad they are closed for the season and only open March through August.
We travel through Bloomington and stop in Normal for the night. This is probably the only time we can say we we’re normal.
We get our stuff into the hotel as the rain begins. A strong storm is predicted and we feel fortunate to be in for the night. The Weather Channel nailed this forecast; frequent lightning, thunder and lots of rain. We opt to make use of Rosati’s Pizza delivery option and order a small pizza and an antipasta salad. We wait and wait and wait and call a few times to see where our order is – there is only one delivery person on tonight so we need to be patient. Okay – but we are hungry!
Finally, the food is delivered and is quite good! Hopefully tomorrow will be a better weather day.