The Long Haul from Columbus to Carthage - 06/18/2021 (Day 2)

Late Thursday on my drive to Columbus, I got word that President Biden made Friday, July 18th an observed Federal holiday.  In one way this was a pain as I had about 6 hours of work I really needed to get done from my hotel before heading out on the road.  However, with it being a holiday, I now was able to leave as early as I wanted for St. Louis.  So I gassed up the car and headed out on the road at 6:30am EDT.  

My first stop was Casey, Indiana.  I had originally wanted to go here to go to the World's Largest Mailbox and World's Largest Windchime.  However there was a ton of "worlds largest" or "giant" things there.  Very cool place to visit.  I highly recommend it.  

Here's the Worlds Largest Mailbox.  I got to climb up there.  

This is was the view from the mailbox.  It was fun being up there.  

I didn't realize they had a huge rocking chair there too.  It was enormous.

And that's the World's Largest Wind Chime.  

There were also a very large pencil, see saw, spinning top, wooden shoes, barbershop pole, bird cage, and car keys.  

After visiting Carey, I got in the car and drove to St. Louis.  My first stop there was the Old Chain of Rocks Bridge.  This was the original crossing from Illinois into Missouri, over the Mississippi River, on Route 66.  

It was hot as hell there at the bridge.   The temperature was 105 degrees F, so I didn't spend much time there.  However, it was a fun bridge to walk across.

Here I am, about ready to cross the Old Chain of Rocks Bridge.

Here's the view from the middle of the bridge over the Mississippi River.  

After that I needed some chow, so I headed down to Fitz's Delmar.  It's in a really neat neighborhood with lots of restaurants and shops.  I didn't have much time to explore.  However, my lunch was amazing.  It was a brisket sandwich with cheese and onion strings with a side of onion rings.  It was amazing!!!

Then it was off to Ted Drewes Frozen Custard for a Concrete.  I've heard great things about these Concretes.  Mine was good, not great.  Might have been cause it was so messy.  As I mentioned, it was hot...real hot and it melted fast.  So it was more like a soup than a concrete.  Still, I got the Oreo one and it was good.  

After getting my ice cream, I was off to Cuba, Missouri.  They are a town on Route 66 with a bunch of murals.  I wanted to see what it was all about.  The murals were cool.  There was about 20 of them all over town and I saw most of them.  Here's a few of my favorites.  

On a side note, I was supposed to stay here in Cuba originally, but with the new holiday, I got there way earlier than originally expected, so I made a decision to put on some more miles.  

My next stop was going to be the World's Second Largest Rocking Chair.  This was next to the Fanning Outpost General Store.  Both were well worth the stop.  The woman working in the General Store was very friendly.  I picked up some postcards, a Route 66 passport, some magnets, and a Frostie's Grape Soda.  

After this stop, I wanted to travel on the old Devil's Elbow Bridge.  This was a cool old bridge that was part of the old Route 66.  Here's a video of me driving over the bridge.  

After Devil's Elbow, it was off to Uranus Fudge Factory.  I love quirky, strange things and this one fit the bill.  It is a tourist trap and they totally play up on the whole Uranus and Fudge packing aspect.  Still it was fun.  

I got to see my first Giant of the trip.  This one was looking like Macho Man and holding a golf ball.  

They have all sorts of random stuff to look at.  

Even a place to get your family's picture taken.  

Finally, a double cavity check special for only $25.  What a deal!!!

After leaving there, I drove on Route 66 for a while and stopped in a cool town called Waynesville.  I wish I had some more time to spend there as it looked like a fun downtown area.  

This is where I saw my first Route 66 emblem spray painted on the ground.  

After Waynesville, I drove all the way to Carthage, MO.  I had not originally planned on staying in Carthage, just driving through it, but I found a hotel called the Best Budget Inn that had great ratings online, had a pool, and was on my way.  So I booked a night there and called it a day after a relaxing dip in the pool.  

Carthage is a beautiful town with some amazing houses.  It seemed very quiet for a Friday night though.  I tried to go to a local pizza and beer joint that Google said was open, but it was closed.  So I had to settle for Boulevard Wheat and Little Caesars pizza.  It was still fun.  

Beginning Location:  Columbus, Ohio

Ending Location:  Carthage, Missouri

Total Driving Miles:  697 miles

Favorite Things I Did Today:  

• Visited Casey, IN and saw all the amazing "worlds largest" or "giant" items
• Walked the Old Chain of Rocks Bridge
• At that amazing brisket sandwich at Fitz's