Escape from LA - Escape to New York

[Tosh]

I told swmbo about this thread this morning and she said "there you go, when you bu your Porsche, do the same thing"

I love swmbo although I did comment that if I could wait a few years our (currently 7 yo) son could come with me...

Great thread, thanks ms Low.

[easy]

I'm looking forward to the film!

Specially now with the romantic twist

Don't even joke about it....

[J-Low]

Just a quick update..... I back in the UK, with access to my laptop & pictures in a couple of days.... Il give you an update then..... Thankyou for hanging on....

[J-Low]

Fat fingers on iPhone for now.....

[Marco @ TLG]

Update time?

[dean1057]

Come on J-Low you've teased us long enough, lets have some more please.

[J-Low]

My apologies once again everyone, but I was away trying to damage myself (fairly successfully) on my snowboard...

So.... I left you at Joplin, Missouri.... The following morning, having loaded up on the free coffee again in reception at another nameless, but cheap motel; I left Gloria to do her morning warm up exercises & had a quick scan of the map. It’s great, isn’t it.... when you are sitting in your car, & the early morning lumpiness, followed by pops & bangs evening out to a pretty melodic rhythm. That’s when I know she is ready to go, & the coffee has just about started to work its magic.

My map of Missouri was even more basic.



I’d pulled over at a service plaza just around the crossing point for the state line between Oklahoma & Missouri. The two ladies in the shop were really nice, & kept plying me with homemade taffy, so of course, how could I say no....? They didn’t seem to know too much about anywhere to go off the main highway, but one place that stood out, simply by its name, was Devils Elbow. It just sounded like somewhere that deserved to be dropped in on; so that’s where we headed for next.



The road was almost European, very agricultural, like driving a non-toll road across central France. The sunlight was turning from autumnal to almost wintery, the further east I headed. These roads are nice for driving, they aren’t ‘rip it up’ fast roads, but if you are happy to potter along at about 65mph, it makes for a really pleasant drive.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TqOkSHzZRz4

I had an interesting encounter with a guy & his pickup truck.... I’d pulled over to change the cameras over, & saw that a pickup truck was screaming towards me on the dirt road that was perpendicular to me. I didn’t really want to hang about to find out what the driver wanted, so I hopped back in Gloria, & headed off again, only to be followed by this guy for a couple of miles. I had to pull over anyway to get the cameras in, lo & behold, he pulls in behind me for a chat. This guy was big, huge, the man was a walking bear; now I’m fairly short, & he towered over me, & being on my own in the middle of nowhere, I wanted to make the conversation was brief as possible. It just turned out he was a curious type & “wuzzz jusss wun-drin’ ’bout theee equip-ment....” I’m just amazed he spotted it from so far away.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P6JwjrpuY3E

We carried on, dropping in on another small settlement, that isn’t even listed on the map. I’d stopped to pick up some supplies at a fuel station & got chatting to the guy behind the counter:

“Are there any of those Route 66 ghost towns I should take a look at eastbound?”

“Well, there’s X-ville. You come off the highway, & take a right, go under the bridge, there’s a right, but take the left, it bends round a little, & goes up a hill, don’t go up the hill, take a left, then there’s a right turn, now go up that hill & take a right & carry on down”.

Yep, it was one of those sets of instructions that left you scratching your head & desperately trying not to look like you weren’t able to understand what on earth he was going on about.... or maybe that’s just me....

I’m calling it X-ville, because I have forgotten the name of it, & to be honest, I wouldn’t recommend it as a stop off anyway... I found myself driving down a single track road, past a few wooden houses heading further downhill towards a river. It seemed to disturb the locals somewhat, that a stranger in a white coloured Porsche dared enter their neighbourhood, as they one by one popped out of their shacks for a look. Fair’s fair I guess, I mean, I’d gone to take a look at their environment, but let’s just say, when I got to the dead end at the bottom I turned around, & continued with the original plan of Devils Elbow, before I could make out the strains of duelling banjos.

The next section of road wasn’t very well marked on my map, so I winged it a bit, & found myself bending off down a little road through some trees



Carried on down the road to a fantastic iron bridge crossing a creek



And found myself at a bar in Devils Elbow.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_HhtKu0wv2c

[fryardds]

Oh my gosh, are the 'decorations' hanging from the ceiling what I think they are? To funny! You sure picked some interesting spots along the way Jude.

[neilbardsley]

Oh my gosh, are the 'decorations' hanging from the ceiling what I think they are? To funny! You sure picked some interesting spots along the way Jude.

That is funny and just a bit scary at the same time!!

[Codfather]

Definitely something a bit 'silence of the lambs' in those trophies! Not many skimpy frilly ones, do they save their Gray washed out ones for a Saturday night?? I'd be out of there like a shot!!
Great trip all the same!
Cheers
Dave

[Ant22]

Dyslexic sign writer. Bra.

[J-Low]

This is a really cool little stop off, a great bar, good company & excellent chicken wings.... Weirdly, I got chatting to a guy who used to work in Canary Wharf, I mean, I was in the middle of nowhere, & he knew my neck of the woods?

The heavily pregnant barmaid was good for a chat as well; in between her puffing on cigarettes, we swapped cottage pie recipes. Unbelievably, she was shocked that mine contained red wine.....doesn't everybody's?



It was Thursday when I was at Devils Elbow, & if you are into bikes, they have a meet there each week, which I was invited to, but sadly, had to pass on as I had to get on the road again. I'd read somewhere that there was a replica of Stonehenge in the next college town along, called Rolla. Now, considering I used to live not 5 miles from the real thing, I had to go & check it out...

Before you ask.... No, I didn't leave a souvenir on the ceiling...




Apparently, they used 160 tons of granite..... I guess I've been spoiled by living round the corner from the real deal, but if you are into kitsch replica stuff, it's worth the 5 minute detour....

Time was getting on, I'd been, to it it politely... dicking about for most of the day, so I had to press on. I figured St Louis would be a good place to stay the night, so after a refuel in Rolla, I headed to the outskirts of town to another cheap motel around the airport perimeter.

Day 6 was Joplin - Devils Elbow- Rolla- St Louis, Missouri.


325 miles & about 5hrs 30 in the seat.....

[J-Low]

Day 7......

Had a bit of a different feel to it... I was heading into more open country again, & felt like I had to scratch around a bit for places to go, things to see. I guess this comes with having no plan, no guide books, & relying on free wifi & intuition.



There were a couple of things I wanted to check out before moving on from St Louis.... Frozen Custard. Ever heard of that? I was intrigued... Now, I'm a girl who likes her food, all food. As long as it isn't so off the wall that it's completely weird, I'll give just about anything a go. So, I headed to Ted Drewes frozen custard shop, only to find it closed. Hmm, shame; a cup of frozen custard was just what I needed on a cold November morning. Still, I'd also read about another Route 66 icon, the giant Catsup bottle. I'd seen the giant milk bottle, so why not a ....Catsup bottle.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntdLpnRGUcc

I headed up I-55, tracing the old Route 66 as much as possible. Don't ask me why, but I realised I hadn't seen many trains since the tail end of New Mexico, so, I decided to go & find some. Now, before the rumours start flying about me hanging out on train platforms with a notebook, that just ain't my scene.... But, in the UK, we just don't have those great long freight trains that go on for infinity. They have a great radio station round the St Louis area, called Bob FM. Bob was on the dial all day, keeping me company, & the Bob-a-thon in the afternoon, was just an awesome mash up of classic tunes. The highlight of my afternoon was when they played Duran Duran's Girls on Film, & New Order's Blue Monday.

It looked like the section of road between Livingston & Mount Olive, would be a good place to find trains. Old Route 66 towns, with loads of rail crossings to sit by; & sit, I did. Not one bloody train. I sat, & waited, & waited some more, until someone must have reported me as suspicious because the local sheriff swung by to see what I was up to. Fortunately, he didn't mention my lack of licence plate, but I had that story so well rehearsed, I'm sure I could bore anybody into submission with the finer details...







Still, I had time to look at a map & think about where to go next. Chicago was my aim for a night stop, with a stop off at Springfield to eat a Cozy Dog. Apparently, an American icon, a real taste sensation. Let me just remind you that I enjoy my food, & I love to sample any local fayre, but I have to warn you Cozy Dogs, Corn Dogs, whatever they are called, avoid, avoid, avoid!!!!! They are horrific, but that is just my personal opinion.... It is quite simply, a battered, deep fried lips & noses paste sausage on a lollipop stick.



I did my usual of finding a MacD's for some free wifi, so I could get a heads up on places to stay. Chicago is one city I fancied getting acquainted with. A quick scan through trusty Tripadvisor, & I realised, not only were hotels in Chicago quite expensive, but there was a lack of parking facilities, unless you were willing to pay top dollar. Factor into that, I didn't want to draw attention to my lack of licence plate, I opted for out of town.

I noticed down the left side of the screen an option that said 'Inns & Other', so, having had enough of identikit motels, I thought I'd give it a go. The only option was The Inn At Smokey Row. It had 5 stars, so I thought "yep, that's the place, it's got my name written all over it." A quick phone call to secure the room; unusual for me, I know; I mean, so far I have just rolled up & asked for a room, but I was tired, & didn't want the hassle of hunting around any further once I got there.

Springfield is about a 90 minute drive from Lemont, the suburb where the Inn was, & I set off, my head filled with feather duvets & beer. Honestly, I couldn't wait to get there. The only flaw in the plan was the massive pile up on the interstate about 20 miles before I got there.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=waDa9XISMq0

Three & a half hours later, shattered, I met the lady who owned the place. A quick tour & my room was awesome; a huge deep bed, jacuzzi & the fluffiest towels. A couple of girls had a room down the hall, I was going to ask them if they fancied popping out for a beer, but they took one look at me & shut themselves away in their room. Lets just say, I don't think me & those two girls rode the same bus, if you catch my drift.... Still...... There was always the bar downstairs.

Toms bar, it's one of those places that the locals hang out, I walked in, & they were all singing along to something on the jukebox & cracking jokes. Awesome. Now, remember I said I enjoy sampling the local fayre...? I took up a space at the bar & asked for a local beer.

"You want some Greenline, honey?"
"Ooh, yes please..."



I'm telling you,it did not touch the sides.

"Another one?"
"Ooh, yes please...?"
"You want some popcorn, sweetie?"
An even bigger "ooooohh, yesss please, thank you,"
They had their own popping machine, it was awesome.

I was sinking my third pint; I'm telling you, this Greenline stuff was good; & the lady next to me turns round & says

"Hi!"
"Hello." ......Best British accent...
"Are you British?"
"Yes..."
"Well, what are you doin' here, & how the hell did you end up in Lemont?"

This was my introduction to Ruthie from Wisconsin. A brief rundown of the events so far, & she stands up in front of everyone & yells over the noise:

"She's British & she's driving a Porsche across America!!!"

It only took me a couple of moments to work out, all these guys are Harley Davidson bikers, but they turned round raised a glass, & carried on drinking; as did I, with my new pal Ruthie.

All I can tell you of that evening is, I remember feeding dollar bills into a jukebox, then I woke up with the mother of all hangovers past lunchtime the next day.

That Greenline stuff was good beer.

Day 7 was St Louis - Colinsville - Staunton - Mount Olive - Springfield - Lemont

340 miles 7.5 hours in the seat.........

[Bewildebeest]

Poetry. Love the pic of the cars shadow, side on.

[fryardds]

Hi Jude,

You are now close to my part of the country on your journey. Wish we could have met up as you came through northern Indiana. I could have found plenty of long and short trains for you to watch. I deal with them almost every time I am out on my road bike.