Salt Lake City → Route 66 → Chicago

May 7–21, 2027

Yamaha Tenere 700

The Yamaha Tenere 700 is a rugged, lightweight adventure motorcycle built for riders who want to explore well beyond the pavement.

Core Distance

Approximately 2,900 to 3,000 miles

Daily Target

Approximately 220 to 295 miles

Road Preference

Historic Route 66 → scenic two-lane → secondary paved road → maintained gravel → Interstate only when necessary.

Typical Departure

Between 7:30 am and 8:00 am

Target Hotel Arrival

Between 4:30 pm and 6:00 pm

Day Date Route Miles Wheels Up Target Arrival
0 Fri May 7 Guatemala → Salt Lake City — — —
1 Sat May 8 Salt Lake City → Panguitch 280–290 07:30 17:00
2 Sun May 9 Panguitch → Zion → Valley of Fire → Las Vegas 270–290 07:30 18:00
3 Mon May 10 Las Vegas → Oatman → Seligman 260–280 07:30 17:30
4 Tue May 11 Seligman → Flagstaff → Winslow → Gallup 280–295 07:30 17:30
5 Wed May 12 Gallup → Albuquerque → Madrid → Santa Fe 245–265 08:00 17:00
6 Thu May 13 Santa Fe rest day 0 — —
7 Fri May 14 Santa Fe → Tucumcari → Amarillo 285–300 07:30 17:30
8 Sat May 15 Amarillo → Shamrock → Oklahoma City 270–285 07:30 17:00
9 Sun May 16 Oklahoma City → Tulsa → Miami → Joplin 255–275 07:30 17:30
10 Mon May 17 Joplin → Springfield → Devil's Elbow → Cuba 240–255 08:00 17:00
11 Tue May 18 Cuba → St. Louis → Springfield IL 230–250 08:00 17:00
12 Wed May 19 Springfield → Pontiac → Joliet → Chicago 205–220 08:00 16:30
13 Thu May 20 Floating weather/recovery day — — —
14 Fri May 21 Chicago / departure — — —

DAY 0 — MAY 7

Guatemala → Salt Lake City

Hotel:

DAY 1 — MAY 8

Salt Lake City → Panguitch
~285 miles

Must: US-89 south of Salina/Richfield.
Hotel:  Blue Pine Motel
Tip:  for breakfast the next morning, the Flying Goat.

Target Approx. time Purpose
Salt Lake City 07:30 Full tanks
Fairview/Ephraim 09:45 Fuel + coffee
Manti 10:30 15-min photo stop
Richfield 12:30 Lunch + fuel
Circleville 15:30 Short break
Panguitch 17:00 Hotel

DAY 2 — MAY 9

Panguitch → Zion → Valley of Fire → Las Vegas
~280 miles

Must: Zion-Mt Carmel Highway and Valley of Fire.
Hotel:  Excalibur Hotel & Casino
Tip:  skip lengthy Zion hikes, this is a riding day.

Target Time
Panguitch 07:30
Mt Carmel Junction 08:45
Zion East Entrance 09:10
Springdale 10:30
Hurricane 12:00
Lunch/fuel 12:15
Mesquite 14:15
Valley of Fire 15:15
Las Vegas ~18:00

DAY 3 — MAY 10

Las Vegas → Oatman → Kingman → Seligman
~270 miles

Must: now Route 66 begins properly.
Hotel:  The Aztec Motel & Creative Space
Tip:  This section has blind curves, steep drops, tourists and wildlife/burros near Oatman.

Target Arrival Leave
Las Vegas — 07:30
Searchlight 09:00 09:15
Oatman 10:45 11:30
Sitgreaves Pass 11:50 12:05
Kingman 12:45 14:00
Hackberry 14:35 14:55
Peach Springs 15:45 16:00
Seligman 17:15 —

DAY 4 — MAY 11

Seligman → Williams → Flagstaff → Winslow → Holbrook → Gallup
~290 miles

Must: Petrified Forest, only before 2:00 pm
Hotel:  Best Western Plus Gallup Inn & Suites
Tip:  Don't ride clay/dirt Historic 66 sections simply because you have Ténérés. When saturated, a road that is trivial dry can become miserable.

Target Time
Seligman departure 07:30
Williams 09:00
Flagstaff fuel 10:15
Winslow lunch 12:15
Holbrook 14:00
Petrified Forest decision point 14:20
Gallup 17:30

DAY 5 — MAY 12

Gallup → Albuquerque → Madrid → Santa Fe
~255 miles

Must: Petrified Forest, only before 2:00 pm
Hotel:  Drury Plaza Hotel in Santa Fe
Tip:  Once you've ridden Central Avenue in Albuquerque, I would stop obsessively tracing Route 66 for the afternoon and choose a better T7 road.

Target Time
Gallup 08:00 departure
Grants 09:20 fuel
Albuquerque 11:00
Central Avenue ride 11:00–12:00
Lunch 12:00–13:00
Tijeras 13:30
Madrid 14:30–15:15
Santa Fe 16:30–17:00

DAY 6 — MAY 13

SANTA FE — REST / MAINTENANCE
~100 miles

Must:  bikes get a complete inspection
Hotel:  Drury Plaza Hotel in Santa Fe
Tip:  cap the optional loop at ~100 miles.

Item Action
Tires pressure + damage + remaining tread
Chain slack + lubrication
Oil inspect
Coolant inspect
Spokes visual/tap check
Brake pads visual
Fasteners luggage/racks/crash bars
Electronics charge everything
Clothing laundry
Riders hydration + sleep

DAY 7 — MAY 14

Santa Fe → Santa Rosa → Tucumcari → Amarillo
~295 miles

Must: 
Hotel:  Drury Inn & Suites Amarillo
Tip:  Use the older Santa Fe routing as much as sensible.

Target Time
Santa Fe 07:30
Las Vegas NM 09:00
Santa Rosa 10:30
Tucumcari 11:30
Lunch 11:30–12:30
Glenrio 13:45
Adrian midpoint 14:30
Cadillac Ranch 16:15
Amarillo 17:00

DAY 8 — MAY 15

Amarillo → Shamrock → Elk City → Clinton → Oklahoma City
~280 miles

Must:
Hotel:  Omni Oklahoma City Hotel
Tip:  If NWS indicates meaningful afternoon severe-weather potential east of you, leave earlier, 6:00 am departure.

Target Time
Amarillo 07:30
Groom 08:15
Shamrock 09:45
Elk City 11:30
Lunch 11:30–12:30
Clinton museum 13:15–14:15
El Reno 15:30
Oklahoma City ~17:00

DAY 9 — MAY 16

Oklahoma City → Tulsa → Miami → Kansas → Joplin
~265 miles

Must:  Arcadia Round Barn, Tulsa lunch, Catoosa Blue Whale, Miami Ribbon Road and Kansas Route 66
Hotel:  Homewood Suites by Hilton Joplin, MO
Tip:  If NWS indicates meaningful afternoon severe-weather potential east of you, leave earlier, 6:00 am departure.

Target Approx.
OKC 07:30
Arcadia 08:15
Chandler 09:15
Tulsa 11:15
Lunch 11:30–12:30
Catoosa 13:00
Miami 15:00
Ribbon Road 15:20
Kansas 16:15
Joplin 17:15

DAY 10 — MAY 17

Joplin → Devil's Elbow → Cuba
~250 miles

Must: lush green Missouri
Hotel:  Wagon Wheel Motel
Tip:  This is precisely the sort of day for which you've chosen Route 66.

Target Time
Joplin 08:00
Carthage 08:45
Springfield 10:30
Lebanon lunch 12:30
Waynesville 14:00
Devil's Elbow 14:30
Rolla 15:45
Cuba 17:00

DAY 11 — MAY 18

Cuba → St. Louis → Springfield, Illinois
~240 miles

Must: lush green Missouri
Hotel: 
Tip:  Don't turn St. Louis into a four-hour sightseeing stop.

Target Time
Cuba 08:00
St. Louis Lunch 10:30
Litchfield 14:30
Springfield 16:30

DAY 12— MAY 19

Springfield IL → Pontiac → Joliet → Chicago
~215 miles

Must:
Hotel:
Tip:  Finish at the historic Route 66 eastern terminus area around Jackson Boulevard/Michigan Avenue.

Location Time
Springfield 08:00
Atlanta 09:15
Pontiac 11:00
Pontiac visit/lunch 11:00–13:00
Dwight 14:00
Wilmington 14:45
Joliet 15:30
Chicago 16:30–17:00

DAY 14— MAY 21

Chicago → Guatemala

Hotel:

 

Yamaha Tenere 700

Item Price
14 Day Rental $2,646
Unlimited Miles Free
Concession Recovery Fee $220
Environmental Surcharge $145
Drop Off Fee $750
Taxes & Fees $565
Insurance $546
Total $4,872

HOTELS

Item Price
Day 0 $
Day 1 $
Day 2 $
Day 3 $
Day 4 $
Day 5 $
Day 6 $
Day 7 $
Day 8 $
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Day 10 $
Day 11 $
Day 12 $
Day 13 $
Total $

Google Map Routes

Day Date Leg Miles Map
1 Sat May 8, 2027 Salt Lake City -> Panguitch, UT 280-290 Open route in Google Maps
2 Sun May 9, 2027 Panguitch -> Zion -> Valley of Fire -> Las Vegas 270-290 Open route in Google Maps
3 Mon May 10, 2027 Las Vegas -> Oatman -> Kingman -> Seligman 260-280 Open route in Google Maps
4 Tue May 11, 2027 Seligman -> Williams -> Flagstaff -> Winslow -> Gallup 280-295 Open route in Google Maps
5 Wed May 12, 2027 Gallup -> Albuquerque -> Madrid -> Santa Fe 245-265 Open route in Google Maps
7 Fri May 14, 2027 Santa Fe -> Santa Rosa -> Tucumcari -> Amarillo 285-300 Open route in Google Maps
8 Sat May 15, 2027 Amarillo -> Shamrock -> Clinton -> Oklahoma City 270-285 Open route in Google Maps
9 Sun May 16, 2027 Oklahoma City -> Tulsa -> Miami -> Joplin 255-275 Open route in Google Maps
10 Mon May 17, 2027 Joplin -> Springfield -> Devil's Elbow -> Cuba 240-255 Open route in Google Maps
11 Tue May 18, 2027 Cuba -> St. Louis -> Springfield, IL 230-250 Open route in Google Maps
12 Wed May 19, 2027 Springfield, IL -> Pontiac -> Joliet -> Chicago 205-220 Open route in Google Maps