TODAY IS/WAS THE DAY!!!! We finally reached the beginning — or our end — of ROUTE 66! Thanks for coming on this journey with me! Especially Krystal and Steph who were physically next to me and endured all the long driving, car singing, and overall craziness of each day.

Without further ado...

Day eleven itinerary: 

• Shaw Nature Reserve (mentioned it in previous, and not technically in ideal itinerary, but we did it this day anyways) {Gray Summit, MO}
• Cahokia Mounds {Collinsville, IL}
• World's Largest Catsup Bottle {Collinsville, IL}
• Abraham Lincoln's tomb {Springfield, IL}
• Cozy Dog Drive In {Springfield, IL}
• Dana-Thomas House {Springfield, IL}
• Drive-in Theater {Springfield, IL}
• Funks Grove (Maple Syrup!) {Funks Grove, IL}
• Route 66 Museum {Pontiac, IL}
• Rocket Man Statue/ Gemini Giant {Wilmington, IL}
• BEGIN Route 66 Sign (in front of Art Institute) {Chicago, IL}
• drive to friend Madeline's in Evanston, IL for the night

*Because we backtracked a bit this day to go to Shaw's Nature Reserve and spend some time there, and because I always seem to schedule too many things into one day and forget that places close around 5pm, we did not get to see Abe's tomb, the Dana-Thomas House, the Drive-in Theater (is only open select dates of the year and wasn't showing any more movies), Funks Grove, or the Route 66 Museum.

Approximate mileage: 382

Approximate driving time: 6 hours

Approximate expenses: $49.39

• Gas: $29.39 @ $2.199/gallon, 13.367 g
• Food: $15 
• Experience: $5 Shaw Nature Reserve

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Every day just gets better. Especially when that day starts with a sunrise in a field of sunflowers. But I'm getting ahead.

Day ten itinerary:

• Grinter's Sunflower Farm {Lawrence, KS}
• The Corner Restaurant {Kansas City, MO}
• Mini Stonehenge {Rolla, MO}
• Great Wall of China Restaurant {Rolla, MO}
• World's Largest Rocker {Cuba, MO}
• Meramec Caverns {Sullivan, MO}
• Shaw Nature Preserve {Gray Summit, MO}
• Purina Farms {Gray Summit, MO}
• Chain of Rocks Bridge {St. Louis, MO}
• arrive on the Illinois side for sleep

*the sunflower farm and Corner Restaurant were not in our original plans, but worth the sacrifice of not going to Mini Stonehenge, the Great Wall of China Restaurant, Purina Farms and saving Shaw Nature Preserve for the next day. We initially intended to stay the night in St. Louis but canceled our reservation because we found out our place was in a bad area and we wouldn't get there until after dark. So we stayed on the Illinois side instead for that night.

Approximate mileage: 389

Approximate driving time: 6.2 hours

Approximate expenses: $172.98

• Gas: $25.58 @ $2.039/gallon, 12.544 g
• Food: $25 
• Experiences: $21 Meramec Caverns 
• Stay: $101.40 Comfort Inn & Suites

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Yay for Flashback Fridays! 

Well, I'm going to take a momentary break from the road trip, in light of the road trip and the day we spent with Whit in Kansas City, to share with you some adventures from a couple years ago — 2014 (technically landing in 2013 and then ringing in the new year there) — when I visited Whitney in Kansas City, MO for the first time. 

It was winter, so the weather was a little different than what I experienced when I visited her in the fall on the Route 66 trip, but funny enough, the time that I came to visit her was a result of changed plans from the original Route 66 trip we were going to go on. 

Looking back, I'm glad that I went on the Route 66 trip in the summer/fall and not at the end of December when it's cold in most places, and that I got to visit Whitney in her hometown instead.

In addition to what I showed in the previous post, here's a breakdown of some of my other favorite things I did in Kansas City the first time around.

Starting with food. Because, as I realized the first time I visited, they have some of the best food I've ever tasted.

Places we ate:

• Jackstack BBQ {Overland Park, KS}
• Jerusalem Cafe {Kansas City, MO}
• Blanc Burgers and Bottles {Kansas City, MO}
• Stroud's {Kansas City, MO}
• Aviary {Springfield, MO}

Things we experienced:

• Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art (unlike in this post, we went inside) {Kansas City, MO}
• Historic Downtown Parkville {Kansas City, MO}
• Built a Snowman (because there was snow! :D )

Short trips we took from KC:

• Liberty Jail {Liberty, MO} 
• LDS Temple {Kansas City, MO}
• Butterfly Palace {Branson, MO}

Read more for photos and details...

Yay for one whole day where we stayed in one city! We slept in, and then we got going. We didn't really have an itinerary, except to spend time with Whitney. But this is what we collectively decided/did:

• River Market Antiques
• Liberty Memorial
• Star Wall
• The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art
• Char Bar 
• Uptown Theater

Approximate expenses: $40

• Food: $10 
• Experiences: $30 Ratatat Concert 

See below for all the deets, snap video, and photos... 

Passing the seven day point felt amazing. Being on a road trip sometimes feels like being in a marathon. At the beginning it's super exciting and you have a bunch of energy and so many miles and the journey to look forward to and then you have a final destination that you know will also be an exciting moment. But the journey can be tiring. The landscape can blur together. And it seems like you might have been running or driving your whole life.

Just for complete clarification, I have never ran a marathon. But I can pretend I know what it might feel like ;) 

Day eight itinerary:

• Oklahoma City National Memorial {Oklahoma City, OK}
• Pops Soda {Arcadia, OK}
• Arcadia Round Barn {Arcadia, OK}
• The Blue Whale {Catoosa, OK}
• Totem Pole Park {Foyil, OK}
• Clanton's Cafe (calf fries)  {Vinita, OK}
• Coleman Theater {Miami, OK}
• Old Riverton Store {Riverton, KS}
• arrive in Kansas City, MO

*we did not go to Coleman Theater because it was closed by the time we got to that point.

Approximate mileage: 375

Approximate driving time: 6.3 hours

Approximate expenses: $63.54

• Gas: $29.54 @ $2.149/gallon, 10.022g
• Food: $30 
• Misc: $4 Turner Turnpike 

Read more for map, trip details and photos...

DAY SEVEN!!! The trip has officially been one week! And it was so so SO good to have a complete non-driving day in Albuquerque. I felt way better and more excited about all the upcoming stops on this long driving day. We were going to be in three states in one day: New Mexico, Texas, and Oklahoma! 

Day seven itinerary:

• Indian Pueblo Cultural Center
• Tinkertown Museum
• Route 66 Auto Museum
• Santa Rosa Blue Hole
• Tee Pee Curios
• Midpoint Cafe
• Dot's Mini Museum
• Cadillac Ranch
• Huge Pair of Legs
• Palo Duro Canyon State Park
• VW Slug Bug Ranch
• Groom Cross
• 100th Meridian Museum
• Jigs Smokehouse Diner
• arrive in Oklahoma City, OK

*Did not stop at the VW Slug Bug Ranch on this trip, but on the way back with Matt I did, so I included that as a bonus at the end, but is not included in the mileage or map. I did not go to the Palo Duro Canyon State Park, 100th Meridian Museum, or Jigs Smokehouse Diner.

Approximate mileage: 559

Approximate driving time: 8.5 hours

Approximate expenses: $139.26

• Gas: $29.89 @ $2.479/gallon, 12.058g | $29.22 @ $2.299/gallon, 12.709g
• Food: $16.86 
• Experience: $6 Pueblo Cultural Center
• Stay: $57.29 Tower Hotel OKC** 

**booked through Hotwire on one of those mystery deals — they gave me enough information that I was able to deduce the hotel though so it wasn’t really a surprise, just a good deal

Read more for map, video, details, and photo journal...

Day Six was the first day I got to stay in one place and really explore it. I had heard good things about Albuquerque and just thought it was a solid rest point almost a week into the trip.

Krystal and I barely saw even the most touristy things Albuquerque has to offer in this one day, but the things we did see were fun and interesting, including:

• Old Town (which also has tours if you're interested}
• Dog House for lunch (recommended by Nancy & John)
• Rattlesnake Museum ("Slither on in")
• brief stop at the Botanic Garden (because Krystal's obsessed haha)
• Sandia Peak Tramway (so awesome)

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That first night being by myself was kind of weird. It was nice to have the time to be alone and gather my thoughts and to let my choice to make this trip and move to Nashville sink in more. Cell phone service was dismal, but wi-fi was good enough that I could watch the "Cars" movie — fitting since there were so many references in that movie to Route 66. 

Day five was a more designated relaxing day. And I needed it. Apart from the lack of sleep that I had gotten before going on the trip in trying to spend as much time with friends and family and getting all the projects I wanted to finished, as I think you've caught on — the driving was tiring. I was so thankful for this particular Sunday, the Sabbath Day, to have the time to rest. I was able to find a church near Holbrook and then started driving on to Albuquerque.

It was fun to see that — what felt like — in the middle of nowhere Holbrook, that looked like it had one grocery store and a lot of run down buildings, that amidst that there was a beautiful LDS church building with a massive organ that looked out on top of a hill over the land below. 

I had more plans to stop at various places along the way to Albuquerque but the time jump ahead one hour threw me off and my detours onto the actual Route 66 where possible became a not-so-good choice when the road turned into a speed-bumpy road that I couldn't go more than 5-7 MPH on. It extended the time a lot.

Day five itinerary:

• Petrified Forest National Park 
• Indian Kachina Statue {Gallup, NM}
• Continental Divide {Continental Divide, NM}
• El Morro National Monument {Ramah, NM}
• Ice Cave & Bandera Volcano {Grants, NM} 
• El Mapais National Monument {Grants, NM}
• end in Albuquerque, NM

*Did not originally make it to El Morro National Monument, Ice Cave & Bandera Volcano, or El Mapais National Monument so it's not included in the mileage, or drive time but I was able to go to the Ice Cave & Bandera Volcano with Matt, so that's included as a "bonus" at the end.

Approximate mileage: 239

Approximate driving time: 3.5 hours

Approximate expenses: $0 (seriously, nothing)

Read more for map, video, details, and photo journal...

The next morning was a 6:45am wake up call. Yep. It was a struggle. I was so grateful for Charity who made me a nice breakfast and helped me repack my car before saying goodbye. She is the definition of her name, and I wished I could have stayed longer. But it was time to head north again. 

Day four itinerary:

• Tonto Natural Bridge State Park {Payson, AZ}
• Pine Strawberry Arts & Crafts Fair {Pine, AZ} — only around certain dates of the year
• Twin Arrows Trading Post {Twin Arrows, AZ}
• Meteor Crater {Winslow, AZ}
• Standin' on the Corner Statue {Winslow, AZ}
• Jack Rabbit Trading Post {Joseph City, AZ}
• World's Largest Petrified Tree/Geronimo Trading Post {Holbrook, AZ}
• Navajo County Museum {Holbrook, AZ}
• Wigwam Motel {Holbrook, AZ}

*Did not go to Twin Arrows Trading Post, Meteor Crater, or the Navajo County Museum so it is not included in mileage or drive time.

Approximate mileage: 218

Approximate driving time: 4 hours

Approximate expenses: $119.28

• Gas: $31.28 @ $2.699/gallon, 11.589g
• Experience: $10 Tonto Natural Bridge State Park
• Food: $15
• Stay: $63 at Wigwam Motel

Read more for map, video, details, and photos...

Day three didn't include many stops — but it did include a deadline of making sure Stephanie got to the airport in Pheonix by 4:30/5pm. With a drive time from Grand Canyon to Pheonix of about 4 hours, and a mule ride that ended around 11am, we chose to stop at one location on the way to the airport and drive straight through to Pheonix the rest of the way.  

Our day three itinerary:

• Grand Canyon South Rim Mule Ride {Grand Canyon, AZ}
• Montezuma Castle National Monument {Camp Verde, AZ}
• Gilbert Arizona LDS Temple {Gilbert, AZ}

Approximate mileage: 262

Approximate driving time: 4 hours

Approximate expenses: $191.16

• Gas: $32.49 @ $2.699/gallon, 11.589g
• Food: $20 
• Experiences: 
  • $128.67 Grand Canyon Mule Ride
  • $10 Montezuma Castle National Monument
• Stay: $0 (staying with a friend is priceless)

Read more for map, video, details, and photo journal...