2026 National Tour

 June 9 to 13, 2026 

By Russ Miller

This year’s tour will take place around Springfield, Missouri, the birthplace of Route 66. This year is the 100th anniversary of mother road so what better place to celebrate?    

Wednesday June 10th

Our first stop will be the Route 66 Car Museum. The museum does not open until 9:00 am and it is a short drive from the hotel so you will have time to sleep in and have a good breakfast before we head.  The History Museum in downtown Springfield will be our next stop. We will learn about Springfields past with a variety of exhibits on three floors with an entire gallery devoted to Route 66.  The main galleries consist of Native Crossroads at the Spring, Trains, Trolleys and Transportation, Pioneers & Founders at the Crossroads, the Civil War in Springfield, Wild Bill Hickok and the American West and the Birthplace of Route 66. After we finish our visit to the History Museum we will break for lunch. Downtown Springfield has wide variety of restaurants to choose from.  Bass Pro Shops Wonders of wildlife and Aquarium will be our final stop for the day. If you have never been there you are in for a mind-blowing treat! First, this is not just an outdoor sports store. The store is full of dioramas of animals and fish scattered around the store. It includes a small rifle museum, a knife museum and a NASCAR museum all free. We have arranged a package deal with Bass Pro putting together a pass to the World of Wildlife and the Aquarium Museum with dinner at Hemmingway’s Restaurant included. Our meal at Hemingway’s is tentatively set up to be in a room with a wall viewing one of the fish tanks. 

Thursday June 11th

We are heading for Branson, Missouri. Our drive down will be mostly two-lane road avoiding the main interstate highway. Our first stop will be the Branson Auto and Farm Museum. On display there are over 150 classic/collectable automobiles plus another 100+ tractors and farm implements. Lunch will follow at Billie Gayles BBQ in Branson. From there it is a short drive to the College of the Ozarks. Originally founded as a high school by a minister the school has since became a junior college in 1956 and is now a four-year college. It is a hands-on school where the students do all the work. The hotel is run by students, the restaurant is run by students, the stores are run by students. The grain sold in the mill is ground by students which you can buy in Edwards Mill.  Next to Edwards Mill is a stained-glass shop also supplied, staffed and run by students. There are two museums on campus. One is free and the other has a very small fee. The car that the Beverly Hills hillbillies moved out to California in is featured at the Ralph Foster Museum which houses thousands of artifacts ranging from firearms to fine arts. In addition, Gaetz Tractor Museum contains antique tractors and farm equipment including a 1918 Wallis tractor. We will finish our day with a cruise on Table Rock Lake aboard The Branson Belle. The paddle wheeler will cruise the lake as we enjoy a show and dinner.  Then we head back to the hotel. There is an Andy’s Frozen Custard next to the hotel. Anyone game? 

Friday June 12th On the outskirts of Springfield the second battle of the Civil War took place at Wilson Creek. We will tour the battlefield and stop at the visitors center. I hope to be able to arrange a guided tour by one of the rangers. Afterwards we will head to Finley Farms and Ozark Mill. The mill dates back to the early 1800’s. There is a museum on the grounds as well as a workshop, makers space and  restaurants. You will be on your own for lunch. Our next stop is VL Classic outside of Strafford, Missouri. They are in the business of selling classic and special  interest vehicles and have a large inventory of vehicles on display. The showroom features a backdrop of old store fronts. The owner told me he would roll out the red carpet for us with a table of refreshments’. The final stop of the day is Fantastic Caverns where we will ride a Jeep drawn tram through a cave and learn all about this underground wonder.

Time to head back to the hotel and relax a little before the banquet. Make plans to attend! I will see you in Springfield.