A rendezvous with Route 66 is as classic as it gets. Far from the madding crowd and those soulless six-lane interstate highways, it's all about small-town main streets and quiet country byways on Route 66.
Bookended by Chicago's big shoulders and the sun-kissed palm trees of Santa Monica, you'll need weeks to traverse the full-length of this 92-year-old, 3800km cross-country route.
But I got my proverbial kicks on the first 500km of the route, cutting a path from Chicago to St Louis, studded with retro American delights aplenty.
True to the spirit of the full Route 66 experience, the diagonal course of the highway was purposefully designed to stitch together rural towns, uniting them with a shared national highway system. In 1926, the Illinois stretch of US 66 was already paved in concrete: it was the first state to claim it was ``slab all the way''. A plethora of roadside services soon sprouted. Food, lodging, auto services, souvenir shops, roadside attractions; the travel industry was born.
After making our way out of the suburbs of Chicago's southern flank, we followed the old route southwest from Joliet through a series of sweet little towns, popping up between the infinite sprawl of cornfields stretching as far as the eye could see across the pancake-flat expanse of the Midwest. It's now officially designated as Highway 53, but the Historic Route 66 signs are ever present. Our first stop was Wilmington, where a 10m bright-green roadside statue soon captivated proceedings.
Further up the road, we popped into Nelly's Cafe, ablaze in retro memorabilia and buzzing with happy diners. Their Angus beef burgers are irresistible. Once again, we were urged to sign their guest book, as we did in every Route 66 attraction; and a quick flick through the pages revealed a regular supply of passing Kiwis. The guest books are like a thumbs-up throwback to the pre-Facebook and Trip Advisor era.
Few sights encapsulate the romance of the historic highway in more stirring fashion than the pint-sized roadside service stations. Two great specimens, which have been lovingly preserved and restored, can be found in the neighbouring towns of quaint and leafy Dwight and Odell. A short hop led us to Pontiac, which instantly seduced me as a heart-stealing Route 66 town. Bright, colourful and charismatic, Pontiac plays up its Mother Road credentials with irresistible panache. Nineteen giant wall murals evoking the glory days driving on Route 66 carpet the streetscape in the historic district.
Parked up outside the Route 66 Hall of Fame and Museum is Bob Waldmire's 1966 Chevrolet school bus. Bob was one of the leading preservationists of the historic highway, celebrating the history and richness of Route 66 through art.
Another of his road-touring vehicles, a 1972 VW Microbus, was immortalised in Pixar's Cars movie, serving as the inspiration for the character Fillmore. Bob's last commissioned artwork is the 21m-long map of the highway adorning the side of the museum on Main St. He was too sick to paint the mural himself, so his family and 500 friends from all along Route 66 gathered in Pontiac in 2011 to paint it in his memory.
We then ventured to the only town named for Honest Abe during his lifetime: Lincoln. He supposedly baptised the place by spitting out a mouthful of watermelon seeds, hence the plaster watermelon and historical plaque honouring the event. Lincoln also proudly boasts the world's largest covered wagon, as certified by Guinness, suitably being driven by Honest Abe. Add that one to your selfie stops.
Further down the road, the state capital of Springfield holds huge pull among Abraham Lincoln aficionados. He lived and worked here from 1837 to 1861, leaving Springfield upon his election to the presidency. The holy trinity sights comprise his presidential library, his home and Lincoln's Tomb. Before departing town, make tracks to a celebrated Route 66 diner, the Cozy Dog Drive-In. Founded in 1949 by the father of Bob Waldmire, Ed is lauded as giving birth to that cherished Mid-West staple, the corn dog. In these parts, the snack is simply called a ``Cozy''.
Leave room in the tummy for one more roadside stop en-route to St Louis, in Lichfield. The Ariston Cafe is reputedly the oldest operating cafe on Route 66, as old as the Mother Road and still run by the family descendants of Peter Adam, who first opened it. The menu is a step up from the usual roadside fare and white linens, refined decor and hearty hospitality complete the picture. Our effervescent waiter, Logan, enthralled us with his humour, grace and sparkle. He was straight out of Disney central casting.
Illinois' Route 66 encounter climaxes on the banks of the Mississippi River, where the state line rubs shoulders with Missouri. Spanning the river is the historic old Chain of Rocks Bridge, built in 1929 to spirit Route 66ers across the mighty Miss. This marvellous 1.6km bridge has a 30-degree angled bend mid-way, the cause of many a crash. As the lights of St Louis flickered on the horizon, our riveting rendezvous with Route 66 from Chicago left us with a warm, satisfying and lingering glow.
