Making a 3 day business trip this week. I have been on the roads between east of St Louis... But not on to Springfield. Any car related photo opportunities, museums, old drive ins, cool antique stores, or anything else worth seeing along the interstate between St Louis and Springfield?
I-44 follows most of the old RT 66. Lots of neat stuff in the old towns just off the interstate. When I have the time, I prefer taking the two lanes through the towns. Dennis D
Duh, I wasn't even thinking about that. Perfect opportunity to hit the parts that are still there. That would make a good way to travel back home!
This will be a good time for you to take some photos too without foilage in the way in overgrown abandoned areas. Have fun!
on old rt. 66 just west of rolla, mo. is the remains of "john's modern cabins". the old road is on the north side of rt.44 there. i think it was just a little west of the first or second exit off 44, west of rolla.
Yep, charging the camera batteries right now! It is always good to go on a road trip with no real time schedule no matter where you go. Sometimes there are hidden secrets though that are good to know about. I have business on Tue, but will be driving over and back on Mon and Wed. Those will be good days to poke around off the interstate a bit.
As you're heading toward Springfield, there is a place on your right that has some old cars and stuff. Can't remember the name. Seems like it may be generally in the Lebanon area. Of course you'd have to get over onto the outer road to get to it.
Check out the town of Cuba, about 2 hours from StL. There is a lot of Route 66 memorabilia including a number of buildings with period murals.
Just my faveriote aera of the country , drag racing times down there are some of my best times , and super cool people the old mar nostalgia event was the best and I been to lots of em!!!
Hi there, Redlinetoys... Here is some photos along Missouri's Old Route 66, taken recently. A lot to see. Cuba, MO is really interesting place with all the murals in town. I didn't get to photograph Lebanon to Springfield, due to running out of light, on my trip.. Had a funeral at Steelville, south of Cuba, so tried to shoot what I could enroute to Springfield and then on west the next day.. Have a great trip and enjoy...duane (NM Sandrail) Photos... http://www.pbase.com/nmsandrail/old_route_66missouri
Cuba is also the home of Highline Chrome Plating shop....which some have said does excellent work at a decent price.
BBQ buffet in Rolla. I know how to get there but can't tell you how. Just ask around. I think it used to be missouri classic but the name changed when it went back to the original owner which is a good thing. There used to be a place called Ikes chat and chew in leesburg but that was 20 years ago. I'm not telling where the cars are.
I think it's called Johnnys smoke stack in rolla. Cross town bbq in Springfield is great too. Unless your a vegan. Then never mind. Their salads suck.
Well, in case someone else is searching this thread, I guess I will post the results. I made a high speed run down and back, about 18 hours of driving in two days with a quick business meeting in Missouri near the Ozarks. Thanks to some of your suggestions, I jumped off and took what is left of Route 66 through several small towns and byways. It was a good chance to see a few things and the weather was nice enough to roll the windows down and catch some fresh air. Forgive the modern ride, but it was better than the company truck! Here are two links to photos. One is mostly Route 66 stuff and the other from a quick stop at the Corvette Museum in Effingham, IL. Packed a lot into two days! Click on the "Roll" feature at the top instead of thumbnails and you can breeze through them quickly. http://public.fotki.com/redlinetoys/route-66-side-trips/ http://public.fotki.com/redlinetoys/mid-america-motorwe/
About 12 miles West of Rolla, get off at route J. Turn left, after you cross over the interstate, turn right on route Z. Route Z is the old 4-lane through Devils Elbow. Continue west on route Z about 3 miles and turn left into Devils Elbow. There's a neat old steel bridge in Devils Elbow. You can still drive across it. This is on the old-old 66 (30's-40's) era. Continue west out of Devils Elbow on the old road and you'll pass an old pull-off/view point. If you continue west about 1 mile you'll come back onto Z and then about a mile you'll be back to I-44. Stop at Sweetwater BBQ. At the Buckhorn exit just past Waynesville, you can get on old 66 and drive all the way to Lebanon. It runs south of I-44. I just did that stretch this past Saturday. It's good road. Sam
My friend and fellow NSS racer, Clay Kossuth, has 42 acres of Mopars in Catawissa, just off 44 about 30 miles west of St. Louis. Plenty to see and buy. M.
Hillbilly hot rods north out of springfield nice guy turned us on to a good salvage yard.lots to see bout every exit
Just west of Carthage on 66 is the 66 Drive in theater, still operating today. Great photo op. Also, the court house in Carthage is an interesting structure. Bar b Que? Lumpy's right on old 66 in Joplin. Lip smakin good.
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