When I was a wee lad, my family made several trips from Tennessee, where I was born, to California, where my father could earn more money.

We made this trip before I started to school, again when I was in 3rd grade, and again when I was in 6th grade. Of course, we made the corresponding return trips.

As these trips were all long before the Interstate Highway System, we traveled a lot on old Route 66, probably catching it somewhere in Oklahoma on our way to California.

I know that I40 has replaced much of the western part of the old route. My question for all you FTEers is this... How much of the old Route 66 is left in your state/area?

I have a dream of driving my old truck on as much as I can of Route 66 that has not been replaced by Interstate.

I've seen several books online about the highway (mainly history) but I don't know how up-to-date they are. Any recommendations on literature would be appreciated.

I seem to recall someone here building an old Richfield gas truck who had ties to Route 66. Anyone know who that is? He was deciding on the blue and yellow paint scheme.

Anyway, blah blah blah

 

This might help: Driving Directions and Maps

 

Thanks Topmoo. That did help. I found a book that I think is just what I'm looking for. It's called EZ66 Guide, in its 3rd edition for 2013.

 

It would be a great trip, I have been on small parts of it and there is a lot of nostalgia in the way of signs and gift shops everywhere.

 

I too would like to make the trip west and travel route 66, in my early years of truck driving I did travel alot of 66, well maybe next year in HOMADE of course.

 

Joe, you'll need to drive or ship Betsy to Chicago and start from the beginning of Route 66 for your epic journey! You can follow alot of the Mother Road here in IL. If you want any IL info on Route 66 I'd be happy to pick up some information for you and send your way. I drive Old Route 66 here in Central, IL most every day! That will be where one of my first legal road trips in my F3 will be.

The guy your thinking about is Ed (EAK69 I believe). He has a good Route 66 website @ www.route66world.com. He lives in AZ.

 

Thanks guys. Looks like there's tons of things to see along the route once you get past California, Arizona and New Mexico. While there are probably several things to do and see in those states, they appear to be a long ways apart on a very desolate road with long stretches of I40 instead of Route 66.

I'll have to have a lot more confidence in Betsy before I attempt any long trips. But as I said when I started this thread, we used to drive cross country, 2,100 miles in 50's vintage (new) cars. Rarely had any problems, although I do recall being stuck in Amboy, CA with a vapor lock. 120 in the shade and there wasn't any. I can't remember which car it was but I think it was the only Chevy my dad ever bought, a '60 Impala.

 

Driving back and forth to Chicago (which I did just this week) on US highways, there are lots of sections claimed to be "historic" US 66. Lots of places trying to capture travellers with the 66 aura. In NM, the only place it's fairly authentic is in Tucumcari, where there is a thriving hotel, a car museum, and some other original landmarks. Being along I-40 helps. Within ABQ, you could go in circles for hours following "historic" 66, at some intersections both the north-south and east-west roads are marked as 66. Central Avenue is the real 66, but it's old-days look has pretty much faded. There used to be a lot of motor courts still in business near the state fairgrounds, but they became overrun with dopers and *****s, and the city bulldozed them.

My favorite drive is actually US 56 from Springer NM thru Kansas. It's a long, long drive, but since there is no interstate option nearby, it has stayed pretty much the same over the years. US 36 in KS and MO is also very nice, although you have to get only Business Bypasses to actually go thru many of the small towns. The main problem with travelling these routes is that there are almost no motels left open, those that are are frequently run-down.

 

Ross, I knew you'd made that drive, but I just assumed it was on the Interstates.

It sounds like the Route 66 I'm looking for no longer exists except maybe in Illinois. I'd be hard put to drive Betsy all the way to Illinois on mostly Interstates just to drive that stretch in the Midwest. I guess this was a bad idea...

But thanks for all the information everyone. Better to know up front than to find out along the way... at 45 mph top speed.

 

Rte 66 gets all the attention, but almost all the US hwys were very similar back then, and many are still great drives. US 56 is called the Santa Fe Trail; there is the Lincoln Highway system (again much better back east); the Lewis and Clark Trail, and others. Most follow railroads thru farm country and there is plenty of stuff to see. Central KS is full of nice towns with beautiful brick and stone buildings. Here are some pictures: Road Trip 2011 Slideshow by rcollord | Photobucket

 

I see what you mean Ross. Those shots are exactly what I'm looking for. Guess I need to explore other possibilities. Other than just old Route 66 that is.

My wife came up with the idea of getting a bigger newer truck with a camper on it and pulling a trailer with Betsy on it so we could get on and off the Interstate whenever we found something worth driving through. She'd then drive the new truck with the trailer and I could drive Betsy and get some shots in the older sections. Just another idea for after I retire.

 

That would be me... I was actually on the route Sat (Ash Fork AZ) and will be heading up to Gallup NM to meet up with a few travelers who are driving the route and they are from the Netherlands...

80% of the route is still drivable in one form or another and I just drove it from Chicago to Flagstaff a month ago, and will drive Chicago to Flagstaff in Aug. I also plan on hitting Flagstaff to Needles CA in the next month or so to check on a few things.

So yes, get that book you mentioned (I have the 3rd edition and gave my 2nd edition to a couple from Canada we met in Joplin MO) and take your time and enjoy it!!

It will suck going thru CA this time of the year, so you might want to wait a bit...

Also, I am visiting the Richfield Gas Station I wanted to buy - but the deal fell thru, so I still move forward with restoring the truck...

 

Thanks Ed.

Just so I understand your meaning, did you drive from Chicago to Flagstaff on Route 66 or a combination of roads which included 66? I've been trying to follow it on Google Maps, and it looks like most of the southwest is now I40.

 

Joe, pm me, I'm on my mobile at work now, but the wife and I just drove 66 from la to stl this past christmas, and the book we used had all the routes and information mile by mile. I'll post the book when I get home, need the pm for a reminder.

 

PM sent. And now this is 10 characters long... geez