The Route 66 Association of Missouri is heading “Westward Ho!” on its 23rd Annual Motor tour. This year’s tour will be held September 7th, 8th, and 9th., starting east of Carlinville, IL and ending in Lebanon, MO. Tour registration begins on Friday, September 7, at 4:00 p.m. at the Magnuson Grand Hotel, located just off I-55 at Exit 60 (Carlinville exit) east of Carlinville, MO, where a block of rooms has been reserved for tour goers. Registration will be held from 4:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. in the lobby of the Hotel. Also, on Saturday night, there will be lots of activities, including a car show and complimentary Hors D’oeuvres for tour goers to enjoy. More information on activities will be available at registration.
On Saturday, September 8, tour registration will resume at 7:45 a.m., and the tour will depart at 8:00 a.m. from the Magnuson Grand Hotel. Tour goers will be provided a pamphlet at registration containing recommended but in no way mandatory stops between Carlinville and Lebanon. This will give you the opportunity to select your own stops and proceed at your own pace. Additional details on what to see on the way will be included in your Motor Tour Agenda Folder available at registration. In addition, tour goers will have the opportunity to cross the Chain of Rocks Bridge, at a cost of $5.00 (you must pay in cash at the bridge to cross). If you want to cross the Bridge, you must be at the Illinois entrance to the Bridge by 11:30 a.m. Tour goers will proceed from the Magnuson Grand Hotel, through St. Louis (passing Ted Drewes) to the Meramec Caverns Motel at Meramec Caverns (aka Jesse James’ hideout), located 3 miles south of Stanton, MO on CR W. We have arranged for a block of rooms to be held at the Meramec Caverns Motel, and Saturday night’s dinner will be held at the Caverns, where tour goers can chew the fat about the days events.
On Sunday there will be a nondenominational worship service at 8:00 a.m. At 8:30 a.m., tour goers will leave Meramec Caverns and proceed to Waynesville (recommended stops will be included in the pamphlet). Here we will tour the Pulaski County Historical Society Museum and possibly other locations, and otherwise congregate to proceed, caravan style, to D. C. Decker’s Cowboy Emporium, located in the former Wrink’s Market in Lebanon. There we will end the tour in true cowboy style with a chuck wagon lunch featuring cowboy stew and biscuits. The Caravan to Decker’s will commence from Waynesville at 12:00 p.m., and we will have lunch at Deckers at 1:30 p.m.
Additional information on any planned stops or activities along the way will be made available at registration. For more information contact Kip Welborn at (314-776-7385), rudkip@sbcglobal.net, Jane Dippel at 314-843-7132, vestaon66@cs.com, or visit our website (where you will find a registration form you can download) at www.missouri66.org. Here’s hoping that you can join us on our trek Westward Ho! on Route 66!
