One of the better stops on this trip - for sure

Not just another roadside attraction, a photo by PatMinNYC on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
This very large very pink elephant draws a lot of attention from anyone driving along I-55 in Livingston Illinois. It turned out to be one of the better stops made on this trip …..

Twistee Treat, a photo by PatMinNYC on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
The Twistee Treat stand in front of the Pink Elephant antiques mall was doing very well on this 105 degree day. Now if I could just get people to stand perfectly still when I do a panorama shot ;-)

Big Beach Guy, a photo by PatMinNYC on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
He stands about 24 feet tall in front of the old Livingston HS gymnasium building that is now the antiques mall. we could have easily spent the day there looking at what they had on display but after a Twistee Treat we hit the interstate and drove well into Missouri before calling it a day ...

The Mural - a Pink Elephant and a UFO

Mural at the Wild Hare Cafe - Elkhart Illinois, a photo by PatMinNYC (back in NYC & catching up slowly) on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
A few hours down the road from the grain elevators (prior image in this set) off I-55 on Route 66 is the small town of Elkhart.  We stopped there to take a break from the driving and found ourselves pleasantly surprised to find a funky little cafe/antique/gift shop housed in what was once a former bank building .  The mural above was on one wall of the old vault room that now serves as one of the single table dinning rooms. More from this stop are in the Picasa album…..

The Pink Elephant Antique Mall - Livingston IL (off I-55 Route66), a photo by PatMinNYC (back in NYC & catching up slowly) on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
A must stop if you’re in the neighborhood - a total legal mind trip back to your youth. Not so much an antique store - more of a memory jogging collection of toys and memorabilia from yesteryear ;-)
Yes, that is a UFO in the background and did I mention the Twisstee Treat ….

A UFO on the Highway, a photo by PatMinNYC (back in NYC & catching up slowly) on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
If you are in the market for a UFO “fixer-upper” home they have one at the Pink Elephant ;-)

Skyline in the Prairie

Skyline in the Prairie, a photo by PatMinNYC (back in NYC) on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
A group of grain elevators in Central Illinois

Greetings everyone - hope your summer is going well - This frame is one of my favorites from the larger full document, that I’m still editing and posting to, of a cross country road trip (my wife & i) made to Boulder, CO and back - some fun adventures along the way as we followed portions of the historic Route 66 Bi-Way. The first few days were not all that interesting but thankfully we had some great tunes to sing along to on the SAT radio like this one by Willie and his son - have a listen :-)
Willie Nelson - Just Breathe (Featuring Lukas Nelson) by Legacy Recordings
Above this post is a looping thumbnail slideshow linked out to a Picasa album where all the shots will be housed as I go along…. more are on the way just need some time to edit etc…