Anyone up for a Rt.66 road trip this summer?
 

I'm planning on making a Rt.66 road trip from Chicago to LA and back this summer and wanted to send an open invitation to anyone who'd like to join in and caravan with me. The plan is to take six days or so to make the trip from Chicago to LA, then four or five days to return via a more northerly route along I-80 (with a dip into Colorado).

Along the way, I plan on stopping at many of the traditional Rt.66 sites, but I'm going to throw in quite a few car-related ones to make it interesting, including the old Shelby factory on Princeton Ave. in LA, the Kirkham factory in Salt Lake City, the Bonneville Salt Flats, and the Shelby American Collection museum in Boulder (hence the different route home).

It can certainly take two weeks or more to go just one way on the old road, since around 85% of it is still driveable, so my plan is to just drive selected portions, then use the Interstates to keep on-schedule. I don't plan on staying in chain hotels or eating at McDonald's, instead it will be vintage motels and small town diners the whole way (at least on the way out).

I'm really looking forward to some great sections of the old road, especially those in the Ozarks and between Seligman and Oatman, AZ.

For those who are musically inclined, I'm planning on hitting the Fender guitar factory in Corona, CA and taking a factory tour and checking out their "design experience," where visitors can select all the parts for a guitar that they then assemble and ship to your home - what a cool souvenir that will make!!!

The plan is to do this sometime between late-June and mid-August, likely departing on a Thursday and returning to Chicago 10 - 12 days later. No pressure to stay together or do the same thing each day - having our own cars will allow everyone to make whatever side trips they're interested in. It would be nice, though, if we could all meet for dinner and lodging in the same town each evening, though, but those who want to straggle behind or jump ahead can always do so while catching up with the caravan the next day.

This sort of trip will give everyone some flexibility, while at the same time offering the safety of numbers and the security of having others around in case of car trouble. I'm sure many will consider taking this trip in their Cobra, but I'm leaving the FFR home for this one (if it's even done by then) and taking either my diesel Passat daily driver or the replacement track car I'm hoping to buy in the spring.

Reply here or PM if you're intersted in joining the clan on their great migration along the mother road to the promised land of California (sorry, a little to "Grapes of Wrath" there). Hope to hear from some of you soon!

The trip is something I have been wanting to do for a long time and I think it may be the time. I live in NY so it would be coast to coast. I am seriously considering it. Thanks for the invite.
Mike

Keep in mind that the Shelby American Collection is open for a few hours on Saturdays only.

Also, Pikes Peak is paved all the way to the top now. It's an easy drive in a Cobra.

Bob - Roger that on the Shelby American Collection; I've factored that into my route plans and timing. The goal is to arrive in Boulder on Friday evening and then hit the museum when they open in the morning on Saturday. I was there three years ago, just a few months before I picked-up my FFR kit - I have so much more that I want to see this time around!

Thanks, too, for the tip on Pikes Peak - that may be an addition to the trip as I'm planning on being in Grand Junction Thursday night, so the trip from Grand Junction to Boulder on Friday could use a side-trip to make it a full day.

We were on a similar road trip Chicago area to California and back in 2010----took 28 days and we drove past a lot of things that we didn't get to see----However, we had some places we had to make at a certain time, and this did not allow us to dilly-dally as long in some places as we would have liked!!!!!!

We left Chicago area on Labor Day and the road part was delightful---not all the summer time traffic and crowds weren't too back anywhere---probably biggest crowd was at Mt Rushmore

I really think that the pioneers in covered wagons had the right timing for the trip---most of a year?????????

You cannot imagine how much I would love to do this trip! Ed and I have been talking about making the Rte 66 trek all the way to LA. And I still have friends in the Boulder area from when I lived there in high school (I won't say how long ago that was!). Most of the travel I used to do through the mountains was 4-wheeling, definitely not Cobra roads.

However, I don't get true vacation time and probably can't find coverage for that long. And Ed only has a few days that haven't been spoken for for other trips. Also, a couple years ago, we made a Cobra caravan from Chicago to Peoria in the summer and I thought I was going to melt into a gooey puddle. Without AC, or going later in the season, I doubt I'd make it without some serious sunburn and windburn. :-) But very envious of anyone who goes!

Keep is in mind. My wife has a trip on route 66 on her bucket list. We would drive out to Chicago on 80 and join you for the trip to LA on 66. We won't be in the Kirkham. We would probably turn right before LA and drive home via the east side of the
Sierras.

I've done this trip many times, and it takes 8-10 days to get out there, and 2.5 days to get back (on the interstate). You can go about 250 miles per day in the more populated states, maybe 400 a day in the desert states. This is providing you stop for lunch and see the usual attractions. Some things (Meramac Caverns, Fantastic Caverns, etc.) take a while to get through. I would recommend a good guidebook, as the route isn't marked very well outside of Illinois.

You need to stop in a hotel NO later than 6 PM if you want anything resembling decent parking. Otherwise, you'll have to leave your Cobra way out in some side lot (no thanks!). If you are taking a Passat, this won't be an issue, and you can drive until dusk every day.

The vintage hotels sound quaint, but aside from the better ones (Wagon Wheel, Munger Moss, Blue Swallow) they tend to be filled with the kind of people that stay in $30 hotels (think meth making operations). For security reasons, I usually stay in Hampton Inns.

Bring tools, fix a flat, and a firearm... I've needed the tools and firearm a few times.