My PagodaFest Road Trip Plan ~ Route 66 all the way :)

[Rolf-Dieter ✝︎]

I needed some distraction since returning last month from a wonderful Euro 2018 Event so well planned by the Euro Team. So what better way to get one's mind off reality, kill some time and do some fun stuff then planning for the 2019 PagodaFest Event. Now I am not so naive to believe that all plans will come true, never the less planning it and making changes, later on, will be so much fun. And now that I made the plan and write this interdictory to my Mother of all Road Trips along Route 66 I must admit it was fun and will be fun to look forward to and make it actually come true. In am a firm believer of planning ahead and this is my plan for September ~ October 2019.

I do plan to visit Members along the way (if not too far off my route), however, my plan is to drive solo unless Dan C, (Benz Dr), plans to come along with his Red Rocket. I know he has this item on his bucket list we talked about it a few years back. If he decides not to come along then I will be searching for shops along the way just in case. I will carry some tools, a spare fuel pump and an assortment of belts and fuses.

My Pagoda behaved well over the last 5 years mechanically having driven her more than 12,000 miles. I hope this to be so for this trip as well.

I will make accommodation arrangements near the points I’ve listed if anyone plans to drive also then you are welcome to join me, however, you need to make your own accommodation arrangements. Feel free to PM me if you should like to meet along the way, or know of a good repair shop near the points I’ve listed below.

Anyway, this is the plan to drive the Mother Road of America (as much as it still exists).


Mon. Sept. 16 - (Day 1) London. On. to Chicago IL.

400 Miles (644 KM). Visit a friend just west of Chicago.

Tue. Sept. 17 - (Day 2) Chicago, IL TO Springfield, IL.

201 Miles (324 KM).  Stop at the EagleRider location then south along the Pontiac Trail, passing through Joliet, checking out the Launching Pad Giant and stopping at the Route 66 Museum.

Wed. Sept. 18 - (Day 3) Springfield, IL to St. Louis, MO.

98 Miles (158 KM). On my way to St. Louis I will pass cornfields and small towns, on entering St. Lois I will drive over the Chain of Rocks Bridge, it is the original bridge where Route 66 crossed the Mississippi River. St. Louis is also known as the Gateway to the West.

Thru. Sept. 19 - (Day 4) St. Louis, MO. to Joplin, MO.

284 Miles (457 KM). Getting up early to enjoy the morning view of the St. Louis Arch perhaps at sunrise. I shall then take my Pagoda along the rolling Missouri hills. I plan to stop in Fanning, there is the largest rocking chair in the world (stopped there in 2011 with my then BMW Z4 3.5si and purchased a baseball cap). Then along the twisted roads of the so-called Devil's Elbow (cant be more curves then what we encountered in France last September). Stop at other points of interest along the route as I continue to Joplin for the night.

Fri. Sept. 20 - (Day 5) Joplin, MO. to Oklahoma City, OK.

217 Miles (349 KM). On the way to Oklahoma, I shall pass through Miami, Claremore and Catoosa, home of the legendary Blue Whale (got to check that out). Then on to Tulsa it will take me through serious reservations, some of them going back as far as the 1830’s This evening I shall celebrate my 82 years on this planet and celebrate it in Oklahoma City also known as “the heart and soul of Route 66” I shall visit Bricktown in the heart of the city for dinner.

Sat. Sept. 21 - (Day 6) Oklahoma City, OK. to Amarillo, TX.

258 Miles (415 KM). This will now take me along the oldest stretch of Route 66. This part of the south has seen some of the oldest cattle drive westward from Texas to Kansas in the mid-1800’s. Today's trip will further take me through Yukon, and El Reno up to the Route 66 Museum in Clinton. Dinner is planned in Amarillo in one of what locals claim is the best steakhouse in Texas.

Sun. and Mon. Sept. 22 and 23 (Day 7 and Amarillo, TX. to Santa Fe, NM

279 Miles (449 KM). Today's drive will take me into New Mexico what is referred to as the “The Land of Enchantment” it will take me through the world-famous Cadillac Ranch, then stopping at the midway point of Route 66 in Adrian, Texas. On the final stretch to Santa Fe I shall pass through Glen Rio, referred to as a Ghost Town, after that mountains, cactus, and pines will define the landscape as I make my way into the high planes of Santa Fe, NM. The 400-year-old city of Santa Fe is one of the oldest cities found in America and often referred to as one of the most beautiful cities so I shall stay 2 nights here to check it out.

Tue. Sept. 24 (Day 9) Santa Fe, NM to Gallup, NM.

199 Miles (320 KM). The trip continues today to Albuquerque, NM its is New Mexicos largest city it will take me across the Rio Grande, then continue west into the open country. Along the Cibola National Forest and finally into the famous Route 66 town of Gallup, NM.

Wed. Sept. 25 (Day 10) Gallup, NM. Grand Canyon, AZ

200 Miles (322 KM). It promises to be another spectacular day of scenery and stops along the old Route 66. Some of it will be the Petrified Frost National Park, ten on to Holbrook. Perhaps I’ll fine a B&B not too far from the edge of the Grand Canyon where I can enjoy a cool beer or two that evening watching the sunset over the south rim of the Grand Canyon.

Thur. Sept. 26 (Day 11) Grand Canyon, AZ. to Laughlin, AZ.

262 Miles (322 KM). Last time I was at the Grand Canyon (2011) I never took the helicopter tour, I will try to do it this time early on the morning before picking up route 66 again in Williams, AZ. It goes without saying to stop in renown Route 66 towns like Seligman, Hackberry, Kingman, and Oatman before getting to Laughlin on the shores of the Colorado River.

Fri. and Sat. Sept. 27 and 28 (Day 12 and 13) Laughlin, AZ. to Las Vegas, NV

97 Miles 156 KM). Being this close to Fun City I cannot resist to go a bit off track here and visit this city again like I’ve done many times when I had projects in Nevada. I’ve done the Dover Dam tour in 2011 so I won't stop there on the way up to Vegas except for lunch I guess. Then on Day 14 will pick up Route 66 again.

Sun. Sept. 29 (Day 14) Las Vegas, NV to Victorville, CA.

188 Miles (303 KM). Crossing the border today into sunny California the last state with Route 66. Driving will be on the slow side as the Pagoda has to make its way through the section of the Mojave Desert (we all had some overheating issues, I like to avoid it, plenty of cold water will be on hand [for me not the car hehe).

Mon. Sept. 30 (Day 15) Victorville, CA. to Los Angelis, CA

85 Miles (137 KM). This will be the last stretch of the “Mother Road” and once in LA, I can cross off this item from my bucket list. It will be nice to revisit some of the nice restaurants I’ve visited here in the past when in a local machine shop to have verious machine parts repaired and refurbished. 

Tue. Oct 1 (Day 15) Los Angelis, CA

A spare day is set aside to enjoy the sounds and sites around Los Angelis and perhaps visit some Pagoda Members as well before heading further south.

Wed. Oct 2 (Day 16) Los Angelis, CA to Irvine, CA then on to San Diego, CA

40 + 88 Miles (206 KM). Today is planned for a visit to the Classic Centre, then a slow ride along the coastline down to San Diego for the 2019 PagodaFest

Thur. to Sat. Oct 3 to 5 (Day 17, 18 & 19) San Diego, California

2019 PagodaFest

Sun. Oct 6 (Day 20)  San Diego to Palm Springs, California

139 Miles (224 KM). To visit Robert my best Friend and business partner for over 25 years and best Friend since 1979.

Mon. to Wed. Oct 6 to 9 (Day 21 to 23) Palm Springs, California

Based on mileage given by Google Maps my Pagoda should have added some 3,035 miles at this point. Robert has all the tools needed in his garage to handle what needs to be done he is one of the best Millwrights and Automotive mechanics I’ve ever come across it will be great fun to spend some time under the hood with him of the old Blue Tornado for a few days before I take a flight back home to London, Ontario. Robert is a kind of silent member here you might have seen one or two of his posts his handle is (The Coquihalla Kid). My Pagoda will stay behind for a year or so, so I can fly out to California and make a few trips up and down the renown California coastal highway 1 and 101 before taking the car back to Canada via the Okanagan British Columbia Vally were Robert has his summer home in 2020 that is the plan anyway. I know one thing my Pagoda loves to be driven and this will be The Mother of all Road Trips

The trip back home in 2020 will be another story. Naturally, this thread will be updated with photographs once the trip gets underway.


What are your plans for PagodaFest 2019, care to share?

Dieter
Ontario Canada

[mbzse]

.../... I made the plan and write this interdictory to my Mother of all Road Trips along Route 66 I must admit it was fun and will be fun to look forward to and make it actually come true.../...

Wow, Dieter, impressive plan and certainly something to look forward to! Thank you for sharing.

I can mention, I do have a similar trip (in an older Mercedes) in my own mind! I will however travel the other direction though, aquire a car in California and drive it across to Chicago and then the East coast, and perhaps ship the car to Europe from there.
So, I take note of the tips and points of interest you write about in your plan here  (for my planning purposes)

[49er]

 I have to hand it to you Dieter, that will be quite a trip. I have been on many parts of the old Hwy here in the southwest and when my Dad moved the family back to California from Massachusetts in the summer of '56, he pretty much drove it all the way in a '48 Buick Roadmaster. Looking forward to meeting you in person at the PagodaFest.

John.
 
PS The La Fonda is a great old Hotel in Santa Fe but finding a B&B near the Grand Canyon might be hard to do. The El Tovar right on the rim would be a great choice but you would probably have to reserve it now.

[Rolf-Dieter ✝︎]

When. I made those plans I knew something was wrong with my health, I only did not know how severe it was. As we all know plans are made to be changed and so it will be with my plan here. I most likely will have to put this trip across the USA on the back burner for another time in the future.

I secured my “Single Ticket to attend PagodaFest and made an upscale AirBnB reservations near the Event Hotel.

So my priorities to attend PagodaFest in October have changed as follows;

Option 1

Fly to LA and rent a car (along the way stop over and visit my best friend in British Columbia).

Option 2

Try to share a drive and the expenses with another Member if I can find a free passenger seat.

Option 3

Drive all the way to the event in my DailyDriver and enjoy the sounds and sights of the country along the way (this of course depends how I feel as we get closer to the event).

I will get back to this thread (once I’ve been to the event), for now I will open another thread to see if there is a remote possibility that some Member somewhere is traveling solo to the event and is willing to share the passenger seat with me, as well as the travel expenses.

See you in San Diego, CA.

Cheers,

Dieter