Harley-Davidson
Motorcycle Tours USA / Route 66
Reuthers Anniversary - 16 Days
Route:
Chicago - Lake Geneva - Springfield / Illinois -
St. Louis -
Springfield / Missouri - Oklahoma City -
Amarillo - Santa Fe - Gallup - Chinle -
Flagstaff - Seligman - Las Vegas - Barstow -
Coronado - Santa Monica
Sunday, Day 1
Chicago
Welcome to Chicago. After the individual arrivals and the transfer from the airport to the hotel we will start off with a welcome drink and dinner and set the mood for our shared motorcycle tour.
Monday, Day 2
Lake Geneva
Early in the morning we will pick up our Harley-Davidson motorcycles at the rental station. A few safety tips and then we’ll head off towards the „Motorcycle Capital” Milwaukee, where a V.I.P. tour of the Harley-Davidson museum awaits us. After lunch we will continue on to Lake Geneva for a boat trip on the famous lake. We will spend the night in a hotel with a lake view.
Tuesday, Day 3
Chicago - Springfield/Il.
After a few miles on the Interstate and Highway we will see the first Route 66 street signs near Joliet. Around midday we will reach the Launching Pad in Wilmington, one of the last original Route 66 restaurants. After an obligatory stop at the Dixie Truckers Home, we will end our first day in Spingfield/Illinois which was for many years the chosen home city of Abraham Lincoln, the president of the United States during the civil war.
Wednesday, Day 4
Springfield/Il. - St. Louis
Today we want to dedicate our day to the "Gateway to the West": the pioneer town St. Louis. The town's landmark is the more than 190 m high steel Gateway Arch. Inside, we will take trams to an observation platform to the top of the highest monument of the nation. The afternoon in St. Louis is free to your disposal, however for dinner we will meet at the "Hannegan's", a replica of the U.S. Senate dining-room in Washington D.C.
Thursday, Day 5
St. Louis - Springfield/Mo.
We deliberately want to do without the unnecessary challenges of confusing streets in the city, bad road conditions and misleading signs to the "Mother Road". We will travel some distances of the tour on the Route 66 and others on the Interstate. Today's highlight and absolute must are the Meramec Caverns. The famous limestone caves have been a tourist classic since the beginning of the Route 66 and served the outlaw Jesse James as a welcome hiding place from his pursuers.
Friday, Day 6
Springfield/Mo. - Oklahoma City
The motto of the day today is: ride, ride and ride namely through three states: Missouri, Kansas and Oklahoma. The latter is known through countless thunderstorms, the particularly striking red earth and for all Route 66 fans the probably longest continuous route on the Highway 66.
Saturday, Day 7
Oklahoma City - Amarillo
We will start our day with a real photo highlight: A bridge with 38(!) huge arches spanning the Canadian River. And the Route 66 museum in Clinton that we will visit is a memorial that is different to all others in a double sense: each room is dedicated to a decade of the "Main Street of America" and one of America’s the best Route 66 experts Michael Wallis, is the narrator on the audios that are handed out for us to listen to. A further highlight on our tour is the next stop and overnight stay at the Big Texan Steak Ranch in Amarillo.
Sunday, Day 8
Amarillo - Santa Fe
We continue our adventure tour on the Route 66 to the legendary Cadillac Ranch. As a reminder of the golden days of the Route 66 ten Cadillac’s are buried vertically into the ground. Next stop is the Midpoint Cafe in Adrian. Say "Howdy“while strolling in. Adrian is the geo-mathematical center of the old Route 66. This is as important as crossing the equator. At the end of our eventful day, we will spend the night in historic Santa Fe.
Monday, Day 9
Santa Fe - Gallup
This morning we want to check out the original film location of Maggie's Diner from the cult movie "Wild Hogs" with John Travolta in Madrid. After taking a group picture our tour takes us past Mesas, cottonwood trees and continues on the gentle winding road to Laguna Pueblo where the Spaniards built the mission church, which we will visit. Just in time for dinner, we will reach the hotel El Rancho in Gallup after riding several more beautiful miles through Indian Territory. The heydays are gone, but there once was a time when famous Hollywood stars met up here. Ronald Reagan slept in room 103; Humphrey Bogart in room 213, Doris Day in room 109, Kirk Douglas stayed in 105, Gregory Peck in 111. The Marx brothers resided in room 118, John Wayne recovered in room 100 after a long days ride and for Hermann the German room 101 is regularly reserved for the night.
Tuesday, Day 10
Gallup - Chinle
After a hearty breakfast in the "El Rancho" we will drive the former Route 666 to the North, straight through Navajo country. After some 95 appealing miles, we will arrive after passing through Shiprock and Teec Nos Pos to the four corners, the single point in the United States, where the boundaries of four states come together: Colorado, Utah, New Mexico and Arizona. Another highlight on this motorcycle tour is Monument Valley. We will spend the night appropriately in the Navajo reservation near the Canyon de Chelly in Chinle.
Wednesday, Day 11
Chinle - Flagstaff
Starting off in Chinle the first stage leads us to the Petrified Forest National Park and the Painted Desert. The more interesting of the two natural wonders is the „Petrified Forest", which was formed millions of years ago by a freak of nature. The northern part of the park, the Painted Desert, consists of sedimentary rocks that change color depending on the exposure to the sun going from red to orange to purple. On our journey towards the west ("Go West", is our phrase of the day!), we will have a lunch break in Holbrook, a typical Route 66 city. Secret tip is a visit to Joe & Aggies Cafe with the Mexican specialty of the house "Cheese Enchilada ´s". Greatly strengthened we will cruise on to Winslow, Arizona to Winslow Corner, known from the song by the Eagles. Today’s destination is Flagstaff which is located between the two Indian reservations of the Navajo and Hopi on the legendary Route 66. We will end the evening at the Museum Club that the locals call The Zoo which is probably the best dance club between Oklahoma City and Los Angeles.
Thursday, Day 12
Flagstaff - Seligman
Today’s highlight is the gigantic Grand Canyon, which we will head for early in the morning. Of course if you book early with us it is possible to schedule a helicopter flight. After lunch we will cruise over Williams to Seligman. Here the long loop of the old Route 66 begins right up to the Californian border. Even the very old street layout is navigable along this beautiful section. Arriving in Seligman, we will first visit the founder of the „Historic Route 66 Association" at the Route 66 Visitors Center. We will certainly have the opportunity to meet the "Guardian Angel", Angel Delgadillo and perhaps somebody might be in the mood to receive one of his famous barber shaves. By the way, in his barber shop, you can find many Route 66 souvenirs - a true paradise for bargain hunters. In the evening we will set up our sleeping quarters at a typical Route 66 motel in order to get to know something very simple and rustic.
Friday, Day 13
Seligman - Las Vegas
We will have breakfast today at Westside Lilo's Café, an original 66 restaurant owned by an expatriate German, who ensures that all the guests in Seligman are well fed. Through Kingman we continue on to Las Vegas / Nevada and directly on to the Las Vegas Boulevard. The accommodation is booked in the legendary The Mirage which is an ideal starting point for a stroll right on the Strip. Do whatever your heart desires: dine in the Harley-Davidson Cafe, visit one of the many world-class shows or dive into the nightlife of the city, the afternoon and evening are of course at your disposal.
Saturday, Day 14
Las Vegas - Barstow
After a long night, we will start today our "Desert Tour". We will roll past exclusive hotels on the last leg of the Las Vegas Boulevard, and then head off to our day trip in the direction of Barstow. From Needles, California we head back to our Route 66, many refer to this as being the most beautiful part of the route. Other stops are the Sahara Oasis and Roy ´s Cafe in Amboy. Before we arrive in Barstow we will turn a few miles north - if time allows it - to visit an old silver mine in the Mojave Desert in the ghost town of Calico. In the still inhabited and lovingly renovated original Western town over a thousand adventurers once sought their fortune. If you want to you can pick up your very own personal Western photo. A beautiful day and a beautiful trip ends in Barstow. By the way in 1886, the town was named after the president of the Santa Fe railroad company. Barstow also managed to end up in the refrain of the Route 66 classic "Get your kicks".
Sunday, Day 15
Barstow - Coronado
This is one of the most beautiful detours on our Harley road trip. From Barstow we will cruise the last miles on the Route 66 to Victorville and then further south to San Diego to the peninsula of Coronado with the breathtaking Coronado Bridge and the famous Hotel del Coronado (among other things the film „Some like it hot" with Marilyn Monroe was shot here). You deserve a relaxing afternoon at this world class hotel directly on the Pacific Ocean and in addition to our anniversary dinner you will spend an unforgettable night here too.
Monday, Day 16
Coronado - Santa Monica
The last day "on the road" starts today. Past picturesque coastal towns we continue along the Highway 1 and see the Pacific with its white sandy beaches on the legendary Pacific coast and continue towards Los Angeles. From Oceanside on we will take the Interstate straight to Los Angeles. After we have dropped off our Harleys at the rental station, we will be transferred to Santa Monica Boulevard. Our Route 66 motorcycle tour ends here at the pier of Santa Monica, where we will spend our last night directly on the promenade. During our final dinner we will reminisce about our dream journey.
Please note: Due to the character of this unique Anniversary Tour, program is subject to change.
