Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Welcome to a special episode of Exploring America, State by State and past the Broccoli. Normally we cover one state at a time, but today we're doing something different, because this year Route 66 turns 100 years old. Established back in 1926, Route 66 became the road that connected Chicago to Los Angeles, stitching together small towns, roadside diners and neon motel signs into what author John Steinbeck famously called the the Mother Road. It carried Dust bowl families west during the Great Depression, carried soldiers and their families during the post war boom, and eventually carried an entire generation of road trippers chasing the exact kind of freedom this podcast is built around.
[00:00:42] Route 66 was officially decommissioned back in 1985, replaced by the interstate system, but the road never actually disappeared. Locals kept sections alive, states rebuilt the signage, and today you can still drive nearly the entire original alignment from downtown Chicago all the way to the Santa Monica Pier, a journey of roughly 2400 miles across eight states.
[00:01:06] So today, in honor of its hundredth birthday, we're driving the whole thing state by state, chapter by chapter, hitting the highlights no road tripper should miss along the way. Route 66 officially begins right in downtown Chicago, marked by a sign near Grant park that thousands of travelers photograph before setting out on their own version of this legendary drive heading southwest out of the city. The Gemini Giant, a towering fiberglass spaceman holding a rocket, still stands outside a former diner in Wilmington, one of the most photographed roadside oddities on the entire route. Del Ria's Chicken Basket in Willowbrook has served fried chicken to Route 66 travelers since the 1940s and remains a genuine must stop for anyone driving this opening stretch.
[00:01:53] Funk's Grove, a family run maple syrup farm, has been sweetening the roots since long before Route 66 even existed, run by the same family for generations, The Ariston Cafe in Litchfield, one of the oldest continuously operating restaurants on the entire road, still serves up classic comfort food in a genuinely historic dining room. And as you cross into the southern part of the state, small towns like Springfield offer a chance to combine Route 66 Nostalgia with Lincoln era history before continuing west. Crossing into Missouri, the route rolls through St. Louis, where the Gateway Arch rises dramatically over the Mississippi river, marking the historic gateway to the American West. The old Chain of Rocks Bridge, with its distinctive bend partway across the river, once carried Route 66 traffic and now stands as a pedestrian and cyclist crossing with genuinely striking river views. Meramek Caverns, heavily advertised on barns across the entire Midwest for decades, offers an underground cave tour that generations of road trippers have stopped for on their way through the Ozarks.
[00:03:02] Route 66 State Park Preserves a stretch of the original road along with a small museum housed in a former roadhouse right along the river. Devil's Elbow, a tiny river town with a genuinely scenic Route 66 bridge, remains one of the most photogenic stops in the entire state, and the winding stretch of the old road through the Ozark Hills near Springfield, Missouri, offers some of the most genuinely scenic curves found anywhere on the entire route. Kansas holds the shortest stretch of Route 66 in the entire country, just 13 miles, but it packs real character into the short distance.
[00:03:40] The town of Galena helped inspire the look of Radiator Springs from the animated movie cars, and a restored tow truck sits parked downtown as a genuine tribute to that connection. The Route 66 Visitor center in Galena offers a friendly small town welcome and a good overview of the route's history before you cross into Oklahoma. Nearby Baxter Springs, another small stop along this brief stretch, adds a bit more historic charm to the shortest state segment on the map. Even at just 13 miles, this little stretch of Kansas earns its spot on the itinerary and is genuinely worth slowing down for rather than rushing through. Oklahoma holds the longest stretch of original Route 66 of any state on the entire route, and it delivers roadside attractions at nearly every turn. The Blue Whale of Catoosa, a giant smiling whale built beside a swimming hole, remains one of the most beloved and photographed stops on the entire road. The Round Barn in Arcadia, a genuinely unique piece of architecture built entirely without straight walls, has welcomed travelers for over a century and somehow still stands strong.
[00:04:49] Pops 66 in Arcadia serves hundreds of flavors of soda beneath a genuinely massive 66 foot tall soda bottle sculpture lit up in neon at night. The Route 66 Interpretive center in Chandler traces the entire history of the road through interactive exhibits worth a genuine hour of your time. Tulsa's Golden Driller, a towering oil worker statue, stands as a genuine monument to the state's oil heritage right along the route. And the Oklahoma stretch also passes through Oklahoma City itself, where a growing Route 66 theme district celebrates the road's ongoing legacy. Texas delivers one of the most photographed stops on the entire route, Cadillac Ranch outside Amarillo, where 10 vintage Cadillacs are buried nose first into the ground and covered in decades of visitor graffiti that changes by the week. The Big Texan Steak Ranch in Amarillo challenges travelers to finish a 72 ounce steak dinner in one hour, completely free, a genuinely legendary Route 66 experience that draws competitors from around the world. The Devil's rope museum in McLean traces the surprisingly fascinating history of barbed wire. The Alongside, genuine Route 66 memorabilia housed in the same building. And the Udrop Inn in Shamrock, a beautifully restored Art Deco gas station and cafe, remains one of the most photogenic buildings on the entire route, especially once its neon lights up after dark. New Mexico's stretch of Route 66 carries genuine desert beauty and neon nostalgia in equal measure. The Blue Swallow Motel in Tucumkari, with its perfectly restored vintage neon sign, remains one of the most iconic and lovingly reserve motels on the entire route, run with real personal care by its owners. Santa Fe sits along the original pre1937 alignment of Route 66, a scenic detour worth taking for travelers wanting the full historic experience and some of the best regional food on the trip. The Route 66 Auto Museum in Santa Rosa displays a genuinely impressive collection of vintage cars connected to the road's history.
[00:07:02] And Laguna Pueblo, one of several Native American communities the route passes directly through, offers a genuinely important cultural perspective on this stretch of the country that road trippers should approach with real respect.
[00:07:15] Arizona holds some of the most beloved and best preserved stretches of Route 66 anywhere on the map. The Wigwam Motel in Holbrook lets you actually sleep inside a concrete teepee, a genuinely unique and beloved piece of roadside Americana that photographs beautifully at sunset. The Petrified Forest national park, sitting right along the historic route, protects ancient fossilized logs and colorful badlands scenery worth a full afternoon detour. Meteor Crater, a massive impact crater visible from space, offers a genuinely humbling detour just off the main road.
[00:07:53] Seligman is widely credited as the birthplace of the modern Route 66 revival movement, and its historic downtown still buzzes with classic roadside energy and barbershop humor. Oatman, a former mining town now roamed by wild, friendly burrows right in the middle of the street, remains one of the quirkiest stops on the entire route, And Grand Canyon Caverns offers an underground detour genuinely worth the stop, complete with a room you can actually spend the night in. Far below the surface, California carries Route 66 across the brutal beauty of the Mojave Desert before delivering travelers to the Pacific at last. Amboise Roy's Motel and Cafe, with its towering, perfectly restored mid century sign, stands as one of the most photographed stops in the entire Mojave Stretch, glowing bright against the empty desert around it. The Baghdad Cafe in Newberry Springs, made famous by the film of the same name, still serves travelers in a genuinely quirky, beloved roadside diner that has barely changed in decades Passing through San Bernardino and into greater Los Angeles, the route weaves through increasingly urban scenery before finally reaching the coast. And finally the route ends at the Santa Monica Pier, marked by an official End of the Trail sign, where countless road trippers pose for their final Route 66 photo, closing out a journey that started more than 2,000 miles earlier in downtown Chicago. Beyond the individual state highlights, a few stretches of Route 66 deserve special mention purely for the driving experience itself. The desert crossing through the Mojave and California, especially the stretch through Amboy, delivers some of the starkest, most beautiful open road scenery on the entire trip. Oklahoma's rolling stretch between Tulsa and Oklahoma City winds through genuinely pretty farmland and small towns barely touched by time. And the New Mexico high desert near Tucumcari offers wide open mesas and dramatic sunset light that road trippers consistently rank among their favorite parts of the entire drive. A few lesser known stops reward travelers willing to wander slightly off the main alignment. The ghost town of Glen Rio, straddling the Texas and New Mexico border, sits almost entirely abandoned, its faded signs and empty buildings offering a genuinely haunted, haunting glimpse into the road's decline after the interstate bypassed it. Elk City, Oklahoma's National Route 66 museum, goes deeper into the road's history than most travelers expect from a small town stop. And the tiny town of Adrian, Texas, marks the exact geographic midpoint of the entire route, a fun, easy photo stop most travelers don't realize even exists until they're standing right on top of it.
[00:10:42] A few things worth knowing before you go Some of the most heavily marketed roadside attractions, especially those advertised for miles on barns and billboards, charge more for the actual stop than the advertising might suggest, so treat those as fun curiosities rather than must do experiences. If budget is tight, souvenir shops clustered around the most famous stops like Cadillac Ranch sometimes charge a premium simply for convenience, so a little comparison shopping in the next town over often saves real money and some restored motels charging nostalgia premium rates are genuinely worth it for one night, but don't feel obligated to book every single one along the entire route. Route 66 runs largely parallel to Interstate 40 for most of its length west of St. Louis, which means RV travelers have a genuine safety net nearby if a stretch of the historic road gets too rough or narrow for a larger rig.
[00:11:38] Many of the most famous stops, including Cadillac Ranch, the Blue Whale and Wigwam Motel, have ample parking suitable for RVs. The trickiest stretches for larger vehicles tend to be through small town downtowns with narrower streets, so a little advance route planning through each town center helps avoid tight squeezes along the way for paid camping. Route 66 State park in Missouri and numerous KOA locations scattered along the entire corridor offer full hookup convenience close to the historic alignment for free or low cost. Camping BLM land throughout New Mexico, Arizona and the Mojave stretch of California offers genuinely generous dispersed camping options, especially once you're west of Albuquerque, though checking current BLM regulations before setting up is always worth the extra few minutes of research. The restored motor courts along Route 66, including the Blue Swallow in Tucumcari and the Wigwam Motel in Holbrook, offer a genuinely unique overnight experience unlike anything found on the interstate system. Amarillo and Flagstaff both offer a wide range of modern hotels for travelers who want reliability alongside the nostalgia stops. And smaller towns along the entire route often have locally owned motels that, while simple, carry genuine character and history behind every single room.
[00:13:01] Amtrak's Southwest Chief roughly parallels much of the western half of Route 66, offering a scenic rail alternative for portions of the journey if you want to experience part of the route without driving. Most of the historic road, however, is genuinely built for driving, and a personal vehicle or RV remains by far the best way to experience the full alignment end to end. Route 66 delivers a genuine cross section of American road food from coast to coast.
[00:13:30] Illinois and Missouri serve up classic diner fare and fried chicken at decades old family restaurants still run by the same families. Texas brings serious barbecue, and the legendary 72 ounce steak challenge in Amarillo, New Mexico, introduces green chile into everything from burgers to breakfast, a genuinely essential regional flavor you'll want to try at every stop, and Arizona and California close out the trip with classic roadside diner fare, including the beloved Baghdad Cafe experience out in the Mojave, sleep inside a concrete teepee at the Wigwam Motel, watch the sunset, paint Cadillac Ranch's buried cars in shifting light and shadow. Take on the 72 ounce steak challenge in Amarillo, pet a friendly wild burrow wandering the streets of Oatman and stand at the official end of the trail sign on the Santa Monica Pier, completing a journey that generations of Americans have made before you.
[00:14:25] Summer is genuinely the classic Route 66 road trip season, with long daylight hours perfect for covering ground and nearly every roadside attraction open and fully operating. The Mojave Desert stretch in California and Arizona gets genuinely, brutally hot in summer, so early morning driving and plenty of water are essential through that section specifically, and small town festivals celebrating the road's heritage pop up throughout the summer months. In towns along the entire corridor. Especially this year, given the road's hundredth anniversary celebrations, Route 66 remains a genuinely affordable road trip overall, with small town diners, budget motels and free or low cost roadside attractions keeping daily costs reasonable across most of the route. The bigger cities along the way, Chicago, St. Louis and the Los Angeles area at the very end run noticeably higher for lodging and dining than the small towns in between. Budgeting a little extra for the handful of paid iconic attractions and one or two nostalgia motel stays keeps the rest of the trip genuinely affordable from coast to coast. Cell coverage is strong through the bigger cities and along the interstate adjacent stretches of the route. Coverage drops noticeably through the more remote desert stretches of New Mexico, Arizona and the Mojave in California, so download offline maps well before those sections since you may go significant stretches without signal at all. That's Route 66, America's mother road, celebrating a full century of connecting Chicago to the Pacific through small towns, roadside oddities and genuine American character found nowhere else. Before we go, here's a quick countdown of the top ten attractions road trippers consistently name as unmissable along the entire Route.
[00:16:15] Number 10, the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri. Number 9, the Blue Whale of Catoosa in Oklahoma. Number 8, the Big Texan Steak Ranch's 72 Ounce Challenge in Amarillo 7 the Blue Swallow Motel in Tucumcari, New Mexico. Number 6, the Wigwam Motel in Holbrook, Arizona. Number 5, Petrified Forest National park in Arizona.
[00:16:43] Number 4, the Wild Burrows of Oatman, Arizona. Number 3, Cadillac Ranch outside Amarillo, Texas. Number 2, Roy's Motel and Cafe in Amboy, California, out in the heart of the Mojave. And number 1, the end of the Trail sign at the Santa Monica Pier, the finish line for a journey that has captured American imaginations for a full hundred years.
[00:17:08] Whatever state by state adventure you take next, we hope this special centennial episode inspires you to put Route 66 on your own road trip list. Pack the cooler and I'll see you on the next stretch of highway.
