Route 66 - Northern Illinois Road Trip

As you leave Bloomington on the flat, two-lane road dotted with occasional farmhouses, you’ll pass towns like Towanda, which still hosts an annual Boy Scout pancake breakfast. Stop at “Wayside Exhibits” and “Experience Hubs” that can be found in Bloomington, Wilmington and the towns of Pontiac and Dwight to learn more about the stories behind the road.

You’ll soon start to leave the rural towns behind and break into suburban Chicagoland. Though the road is often marked SR 53, attractions like the Route 66 Raceway remind you of the road’s origin. By now, the two-lane thoroughfare has become a divided highway, and before you know it, greenways give way to the train yard near Ogden Avenue and the busy city.