Hello Everyone,
After a great time in Wilmington, I get back on Route 66 and start heading down the road to Braidwood.
Braidwood has a very fun attraction,
The Polk-a-Dot Drive In.
I stopped by to get some pictures.
Here is the history I got from quartoknows.com.
“The primary Route 66–related attraction in Braidwood today is the Polk-A-Dot Drive In, established in 1956 by Chester Fife and a restaurant designated a “very special must stop” by the National Historic Route 66 Federation in the fifteenth edition of the Route 66 Dining & Lodging Guide. The first incarnation of this classic drive-in was a school bus covered with rainbow colored polka dots from which the owner took fast food orders.
Fife relocated the business to its current building in 1962. Enhancing the time capsule feel are life-sized fiberglass figures of Elvis Presley, the Blues Brothers, James Dean, Marilyn Monroe, and Betty Boop displayed along the outside wall. Another historic structure of note with a Route 66 connection would be the Lucenta Tire store housed in a service station built in 1939. This facility is located on Highway 113 across the railroad tracks.”
Polk-a-Dot was a great place to visit. A lot of fun stuff to look at and take picture of. I didn’t eat there, but at that time, it looks like it gets it’s fair share of visitors. Even helped a car of 4 people from England take a picture with some of the statues.
Geocaching wise, I only searched out, Route 66 Red Carpet Corridor - Braidwood, IL (GC4A50Y, placed by pam.monson4, 2 favorite points). This one was an easy find in front, if I remember correctly, the local Chamber of Commerce.
When I made my list of geocaches for my trip, I do so about 9 month ahead of time. It was a great way to plan, but I later discovered that two other Route-Related Geocaches were placed since I made my list. The caches I ended up missing were, both were placed by kiko101, U.S. Route 66 - Polk-A-Dot Drive In (GC6PCBZ) and U.S. Route 66 - Braidwood Zoo (6M9NW).
The first one is a Mystery Geocache that starts at the restaurant. The other cache is in a park not to far away from the restaurant and you can see below why it’s called a zoo.
According to the geocaching page, “These whimsical animals are the creation of the late Jack Barker from Essex, IL. After his death, his works were auctioned off and a group ended up here in Braidwood.”
After I was done in Braidwood, I drove to the next town called Godley. Godley is a small town and it only had one geocache, Rt 66 Red Carpet Corridor Godley (GC4B2QT, placed by Rt 66 RCC-Godley, 3 favorite points). It’s hidden by the Godley Mining Museum, the only place to stop and see anything in town.
According to il66redcarpetcorridor.org, “The Godley Mining Museum on Route 66 opened a few years ago with the assistance of many fabulous volunteers who helped to renovate and make it possible to keep our local history alive. With their support and the continued financial support of the Excelon Nuclear Plant, we have been able to accomplish much in the last few years.”
That’s it for now. In my next blog, I continue down Route 66 looking for geocaches, seeing the sites, and having the time of my life.
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