Day -3 · Thu Jun 18
Kane to Chicago/O’Hare South
Kane, PA → Country Inn & Suites, Bensenville, IL
≈540 mi≈10 hr driveHotel confirmed
🌡️
Loading Chicago/O’Hare forecast…
High/low + rain chance
The big pre-trip haul. Start early, keep stops simple, and get everyone to the Chicago hotel with as little cleverness as possible.
👀 From the car
Allegheny Plateau, Ohio Turnpike, Indiana wind farms, then Chicago-suburb approach.
🧠 Kid fact
You cross four states in one day: PA, OH, IN, IL.
Evening
Arrive Country Inn & Suites
Tonight’s stay: Country Inn & Suites Chicago O’Hare South
Check-in / out
3:00 PM / noon
Room
2 Queen Beds · Non Smoking
Itinerary
Expedia 72075169388328
Total
$540.61 due at property
Day -2 · Fri Jun 19
Brookfield Zoo Day
Chicago area · pangolin mission
≈30 local miFamily dayZoo 9:30 AM-6:00 PM
🌡️
Loading Brookfield forecast…
High/low + rain chance
Confirmed zoo day. Priority mission: get Henry to the white-bellied pangolin at Habitat Africa! The Forest.
👀 From the car
O’Hare flight traffic, older Chicago suburbs, Salt Creek, and forest preserve pockets.
🧠 Kid fact
Pangolin scales are made of keratin, the same stuff as fingernails and rhino horn.
Morning
Arrive / park / enter zoo
Priority
White-bellied pangolin
Habitat Africa! The Forest.
Zoo costs, links, and add-ons
Tonight’s stay: Country Inn & Suites Chicago O’Hare South
Check-in / out
3:00 PM / noon
Room
2 Queen Beds · Non Smoking
Itinerary
Expedia 72075169388328
Total
$540.61 due at property
Day -1 · Sat Jun 20
Split Day: Green Bay + Andrea O’Hare
Joe + boys: Chicago → Green Bay · Andrea: O’Hare buffer day
≈200 mi≈4 hr driveFamily splits
🌡️
Loading Green Bay forecast…
Joe + boys
🌡️
Loading O’Hare forecast…
Andrea
Joe, Ollie, and Henry head to the Roverball start point. Andrea stays near O’Hare before flying home Sunday.
👀 From the car
Lake Michigan corridor, Milwaukee skyline area, and Wisconsin dairy-country vibes.
🧠 Kid fact
Lambeau Field opened in 1957, making it one of the NFL’s oldest continuously used stadiums.
Joe + Ollie + Henry
- Drive Chicago area → Green Bay.
- Hotel: Aloft Green Bay, 465 Pilgrim Way.
- Get settled for Sunday 7:30 AM drivers meeting at Lambeau Field.
Joe + boys tonight: Aloft Green Bay
Itinerary
Expedia 72072620963153
Andrea
- Stay based at Country Inn & Suites near O’Hare.
- Low-stress solo day: rest, Oakbrook/Rosemont, food, or spa/nails.
- Flight home is Sunday: ORD → PIT → BFD.
Andrea tonight: Country Inn & Suites
Itinerary
Expedia 72075169388328
Andrea Saturday options
- Oakbrook Center: shopping, food, coffee, easy wandering.
- Spa/nails/massage block near Oakbrook, Rosemont, or Elk Grove.
- Terminal spa option at O’Hare if airport timing is tight.
- Fullersburg Woods / Graue Mill area for a calm walk.
- Quiet hotel morning is a perfectly valid recovery day.
Andrea Flight Day · Sun Jun 21
Andrea Heads Home
Chicago O’Hare → Pittsburgh → Bradford
Flights confirmed12:40 PM ORD departure
🌡️
Loading O’Hare forecast…
Departure morning
Andrea checks out and flies home while Roverball Day 1 starts from Green Bay.
Morning
Checkout / get to O’Hare
Build in airport buffer. Terminal/check-in details still need confirmation.
12:40 PM
United UA3432
ORD → PIT, arrives 3:23 PM. Confirmation ELNTK5.
5:25 PM
Southern Airways 9X308
PIT → BFD, arrives 6:24 PM. Confirmation 00T4JB.
Day 1 · Sun Jun 21
Official Kickoff
Green Bay → Madison → Cedar Rapids → Clive
≈435 mi≈9 hr rolling dayHotel confirmed
🌡️
Loading Clive forecast…
Arrival area
Official Roverball kickoff. Drivers meeting at Lambeau, then Wisconsin to Iowa with coffee, lunch, and evening arrival in Clive.
👀 From the car
Wisconsin farms, Madison/lake area, Mississippi River crossing, and Iowa cornfields.
🧠 Kid fact
Madison sits on an isthmus, a skinny strip of land between two lakes.
7:30 AM
Drivers meeting + group photo
10:20 AM
Coffee stop
Food stopColectivo Coffee
Madison · coffee stop
Fast caffeine and bathroom reset after the drivers meeting.
2:20 PM
Lunch
Food stopLP Street Food
Cedar Rapids · lunch
Planned Day 1 lunch stop. Check current hours before counting on it.
5:30 PM
Arrive hotel
Food stopChili’s
Clive / Des Moines · dinner
Low-friction group dinner after a long first day.
Tonight’s stay: Courtyard Des Moines West / Clive
Check-in / out
3:00 PM / noon
Itinerary
Expedia 72072621346175
Day 2 · Mon Jun 22
Flint Hills Day
Clive → Kansas City → Cottonwood Falls → Wichita
≈390 mi≈7.5 hr driveHotel confirmed
🌡️
Loading Wichita forecast…
Arrival area
Iowa to Kansas, with Messenger Coffee, lunch in Cottonwood Falls, courthouse stop, and a light Flint Hills dirt-road section.
👀 From the car
Kansas City skyline, tallgrass prairie, limestone hills, and Flint Hills dirt-road section.
🧠 Kid fact
The Flint Hills preserve one of the largest remaining tallgrass prairie landscapes on Earth.
Morning
Messenger Coffee
Food stopMessenger Coffee Co.
Kansas City · coffee/snack stop
Good quick reset before the Flint Hills stretch.
Lunch
Grand Central Grill
Food stopGrand Central Grill
Cottonwood Falls · lunch
Flint Hills lunch stop. Check hours before committing.
Afternoon
Courthouse + Flint Hills dirt road
Chase County Courthouse,
300 Pearl St, then scenic dirt section.
Evening
Wichita Old Town
Hotel:
820 E 2nd St N. Dinner: Old Chicago,
300 N Mead St.
Food stopOld Chicago Pizza + Taproom
Wichita · dinner
Easy kid-friendly dinner near the hotel after arrival.
Tonight’s stay: Courtyard Wichita at Old Town
Check-in / out
4:00 PM / noon
Itinerary
Expedia 72072740430738
Day 3 · Tue Jun 23
Route 66 Day
Wichita → Pratt → Woodward → Elk City → Shamrock → Amarillo
≈380 miLongest official legHotel mismatch note
🌡️
Loading Amarillo forecast…
Arrival area
Historic Route 66 day with N’Cahoots breakfast, tentative BBQ lunch, the Elk City museum, U-Drop Inn photo stop, and Saltgrass dinner.
👀 From the car
Great Plains, Route 66 history, red dirt, and Texas Panhandle big-sky country.
🧠 Kid fact
The U-Drop Inn in Shamrock inspired Ramone’s body shop in
Cars.
8:00 AM
Morning
N’Cahoots breakfast
Food stopN’Cahoots Coffee + Shoppe
Pratt · breakfast
Organizer-listed breakfast stop. Existing menu notes are below this day card.
Lunch
Wagg’s Bar-B-Q, tentative
Food stopWagg’s Bar-B-Q
Woodward · tentative lunch
Tentative BBQ stop. Verify hours and reviews day-of.
Afternoon
Route 66 Museum + U-Drop Inn
7:30 PM
Dinner at Saltgrass
Food stopSaltgrass Steak House
Amarillo · dinner
Reliable dinner after the longest official leg.
Breakfast menu and Amarillo hotel note
- N’Cahoots food: Early Bird sandwich, avocado toast, breakfast wrap, quiche, biscuits & gravy, N’Cahoots bowl, yogurt/acai, bagel with butter.
- Drinks: drip, americano, latte, cappuccino, cold brew, mocha, macchiato, flat white, dirty chai, frappe, chai latte, matcha, hot chocolate, tea, London fog.
- Organizer hotel: SpringHill Suites Amarillo, 2301 Cinema Dr.
- Confirmed booking: My Place Hotel, 2208 Cinema Drive, nearby.
Tonight’s stay: My Place Hotel Amarillo West / Medical Center
Check-in / out
3:00 PM / 11:00 AM
Itinerary
Expedia 72072745889534
Organizer hotel is SpringHill Suites nearby, not this confirmed booking.
Day 4 · Wed Jun 24
Cadillac Ranch to Marfa
Amarillo → Plainview → Odessa → Marfa
Long seat day7:30 AM sharpThunderbird confirmed
🌡️
Loading Marfa forecast…
Arrival area
Long day in the seat, but the payoff is worth it: Cadillac Ranch, a Plainview coffee stop, the big southbound push to Odessa, burgers at Whitehouse Meat Market, then high-desert Marfa and the Thunderbird.
👀 From the car
Cadillac Ranch, flat Panhandle, the Plainview → Odessa long haul, Permian Basin country, and the high-desert approach into Marfa.
🧠 Kid fact
Cadillac Ranch has been half-buried in an Amarillo field since 1974, and visitors are expected to add paint. Bring a can.
6:30 AM
Hot breakfast opens
Start early at SpringHill Suites Amarillo,
2301 Cinema Dr. Joe’s confirmed booking is still the nearby My Place, so account for the hotel hop if needed.
7:30 AM
Wheels up sharp
Do not make this clever. Be ready early.
Stop 2
Broadway Brew
108 E 7th St, Plainview, TX. Local coffee spot. They know about the group of about 20.
CoffeeBroadway Brew
Plainview · morning coffee
Good people, local stop, expected group.
Long stretch
Plainview → Odessa
This is the big run south. Fuel and restroom as needed. Lost cause Joe: watch your tank.
~2:00 PM
Lunch at Whitehouse Meat Market
Early evening
Arrive Marfa / Thunderbird
Dinner
Jett’s Grill at Hotel Paisano
207 N Highland Ave, Marfa, TX.
DinnerJett’s Grill
Hotel Paisano · Marfa
Built in 1930, later home base for the 300-person cast and crew of Giant, James Dean’s last film.
Hotel Paisano / Jett’s Grill note
Hotel Paisano was built in 1930 as the finest hotel between El Paso and San Antonio. It survived the Depression by hosting cattle ranchers who came to town to cut livestock deals. In 1955 it housed the cast and crew of Giant, including Elizabeth Taylor, Rock Hudson, and James Dean.
Tonight’s stay: Thunderbird Marfa
Rate
15% Roverball discount
Current organizer note: so far the Thunderbird appears to be all Roverball.
Day 5 · Thu Jun 25
Big Bend / Terlingua
Marfa → Terlingua Ranch Lodge cabin
≈105 mi≈3 hr driveCabin confirmed
🌡️
Loading Terlingua forecast…
Lodging area
Cabin booked at Terlingua Ranch Lodge. This replaces the group-camping assumption and lets you leave the camping gear home, which is absolutely the right move for heat and load.
👀 From the car
Alpine/Marfa high desert, Chihuahuan Desert plants, and mountains starting to dominate the horizon.
🧠 Kid fact
Big Bend is named for the huge bend the Rio Grande makes along the Texas-Mexico border.
Tonight’s stay: Terlingua Ranch Lodge cabin
Room
Cabin unit · 2 queen beds · max occupancy 4
Total
$361.58 estimated · first night deposit $169.49
Do not rely on GPS for the final approach. Terlingua Ranch says fuel up in Alpine or Study Butte, then follow Hwy 118 to Terlingua Ranch Road; last three miles are maintained dirt/gravel. Lodge has Wi-Fi but no cell service.
Day 6 · Fri Jun 26
Big Bend Day
Terlingua Ranch Lodge / Big Bend
≈90+ park miCabin night 2
🌡️
Loading Big Bend forecast…
General park/lodge area
Big Bend exploring and cabin reset day. Exact route depends on organizer plan and heat/weather, but nights are indoors now, thank god.
👀 From the car
Desert mountains, ocotillo/cactus, Sotol Vista, Santa Elena Canyon / Rio Grande views if routed that way.
🧠 Kid fact
Big Bend has dinosaur fossils, volcanic rock, desert, river canyon, and mountains all in one park.
Tonight’s stay: Terlingua Ranch Lodge cabin
Room
Cabin unit · 2 queen beds · max occupancy 4
Total
$361.58 estimated · first night deposit $169.49
Do not rely on GPS for the final approach. Terlingua Ranch says fuel up in Alpine or Study Butte, then follow Hwy 118 to Terlingua Ranch Road; last three miles are maintained dirt/gravel. Lodge has Wi-Fi but no cell service.
Return Route · Sat Jun 27-Fri Jul 3
Return Route: Weatherford → Memphis → Mammoth Cave Lodging → New River Gorge Lodging
Terlingua Ranch → Weatherford → Memphis/Pyramid → Mammoth Cave lodging → New River Gorge lodging → Kane
Reservation-ready draftBook hotels/cabins + cave tourHome Fri Jul 3
This version skips the Gulf, uses beds the whole way back, adds Bass Pro Pyramid as the fun Memphis stop, and protects actual time at Mammoth Cave and New River Gorge without hauling camping gear.
Reservation checklist
- Weatherford hotel: book Sat Jun 27, 1 night. Pick easy highway access, breakfast, parking, and late arrival tolerance.
- Memphis hotel: booked Sun Jun 28, 1 night at Big Cypress Lodge inside Bass Pro Pyramid. Confirmation PP29KB637 from screenshot; no confirmation email received yet.
- Mammoth Cave: book a cabin/hotel for Mon Jun 29 and Tue Jun 30, plus cave tour for Tue Jun 30. Best first checks: The Lodge at Mammoth Cave, Jellystone cabin, Sleep Inn & Suites Cave City, or Mammoth Cave BaseCamp cabin/glamping.
- New River Gorge: book cabin/hotel for Wed Jul 1 and Thu Jul 2. Best first checks: Quality Inn New River Gorge, New River Cabins, Country Road Cabins, Opossum Creek Retreat, or Bear Mountain Cabins.
Return Day 1 · Sat Jun 27
Hotel Reset After Terlingua
Terlingua → Weatherford, TX
512 miGoogle 7h 42mRolling ~9.4 hrHotel night
🌡️
Loading Weatherford forecast…
Hotel arrival area
This is the extraction day from Big Bend country. Goal is simple: get east, keep the LR4 lighter, get showers, get beds, do not make this day clever.
👀 From the car
West Texas fade-out, oil country, big sky, then gradually back toward greener north Texas.
🧠 Kid fact
Weatherford is known as the Peach Capital of Texas, which is a deeply specific flex.
Morning
Check out / depart Terlingua Ranch
Evening
Book: Weatherford hotel · Sat Jun 27
Priority
Easy parking / late arrival / breakfast
Avoid
Extra city logistics after a long day
Return Day 2 · Sun Jun 28
Memphis + Bass Pro Pyramid
Weatherford → Memphis, TN
512 miGoogle 7h 39mRolling ~9.4 hrHotel night
🌡️
Loading Memphis forecast…
Arrival area
Second big highway day. Big Cypress Lodge is booked inside Bass Pro Pyramid for Sunday night, so the fun target and the hotel are the same building. Dinner can be Wahlburgers Wild in the hotel if everyone is cooked.
👀 From the car
North Texas into Arkansas/Tennessee, Mississippi River approach, Memphis skyline.
🧠 Kid fact
The Memphis Pyramid is one of the largest pyramids in the world by base size, and now it has a giant Bass Pro inside because America is weird.
Evening / flex
Arrive Big Cypress Lodge / Bass Pro Pyramid
1 Bass Pro Dr, Memphis, TN 38105. Hotel is inside the Pyramid, so Sunday night can be hotel + Bass Pro + dinner without moving the car.
DinnerWahlburgers Wild
In/at Big Cypress Lodge · likely dinner
Good low-friction dinner plan after the long Weatherford → Memphis drive.
Tonight’s stay: Big Cypress Lodge
Dates
Sun Jun 28 → Mon Jun 29, 2026 · 1 night
Room
Interior Double Queen
Rate
Best Available Rate · $310 room + $40 resort/parking
Total / deposit
$414.03 inclusive of taxes · deposit $414.03
Confirmed from screenshot, not email. Dates match the itinerary: Memphis night is Sunday Jun 28, checkout Monday Jun 29 before Mammoth Cave.
Return Day 3 · Mon Jun 29
Memphis Morning → Mammoth Cave Lodging
Memphis → Mammoth Cave National Park
304 miGoogle 4h 36mRolling ~5.9 hrLodging night 1
🌡️
Loading Mammoth Cave forecast…
Lodging area
Use the morning for Bass Pro if you skipped it Sunday, then drive to Mammoth Cave and check into lodging. Keep the cave tour for Tuesday so you are not racing a check-in clock.
👀 From the car
Mississippi River area, Tennessee/Kentucky transition, rolling green cave-country roads.
🧠 Kid fact
Mammoth Cave is the longest known cave system on Earth, with more than 400 mapped miles.
AM option
Bass Pro Pyramid if not done Sunday
Keep it fun but bounded. The real goal today is getting to lodging without arriving exhausted.
Afternoon
Arrive Mammoth Cave / check in
Book: Mammoth Cave lodging · Mon Jun 29 + Tue Jun 30
Need
2 nights, cabin or hotel, no camping gear
Best first check
The Lodge at Mammoth Cave, if 2-queen/cabin-style rooms are available
Backups
Jellystone cabin, Sleep Inn & Suites Cave City, Mammoth Cave BaseCamp, Grand Victorian Inn
Also book
Cave tour for Tue Jun 30
Return Day 4 · Tue Jun 30
Mammoth Cave Day
Mammoth Cave National Park · lodging night 2
Park dayLodging night 2Book tour ahead
🌡️
Loading Mammoth Cave forecast…
Park day
This is the protected Mammoth Cave day. Book the cave tour around this day, then leave room for visitor center, short hikes, lodging reset, and not being in the truck all day.
👀 On foot
Cave entrance area, Green River country, shaded trails, visitor center exhibits.
🧠 Kid fact
The cave is so huge that people were mining saltpeter there for gunpowder during the War of 1812.
Reservation/activity notes
- Book a cave tour as soon as dates are firm. Popular tours can sell out.
- Pick a tour that fits the boys and the day’s energy; avoid overstuffing with multiple tours unless everyone is pumped.
- Keep the second night near Mammoth so you can do the cave without packing up first thing.
Return Day 5 · Wed Jul 1
Drive to New River Gorge
Mammoth Cave → New River Gorge
359 miGoogle 5h 45mRolling ~7.0 hrLodging night 1
🌡️
Loading New River Gorge forecast…
Camp/arrival area
Move from cave country to West Virginia gorge country. Arrive, check in, and do a low-effort overlook if time/energy allow.
👀 From the car
Kentucky hills into West Virginia, river valleys, big Appalachian terrain.
🧠 Kid fact
The New River is ironically one of the oldest rivers on the continent.
Arrival
Book/choose: New River Gorge lodging · Wed Jul 1 + Thu Jul 2
Need
2 nights, cabin or hotel, close to Fayetteville/bridge area
Simple hotel
Quality Inn New River Gorge in Fayetteville
Cabin-style options
New River Cabins, Country Road Cabins, Opossum Creek Retreat, Bear Mountain Cabins
Return Day 6 · Thu Jul 2
New River Gorge Day
New River Gorge National Park · lodging night 2
Park dayLodging night 2
🌡️
Loading New River Gorge forecast…
Park day
This is the payoff day for adding the extra return day. Keep it flexible: bridge views, short hike, river/gorge overlook, lodging reset.
👀 In the park
Bridge overlooks, gorge views, forested trails, old coal/railroad landscape.
🧠 Kid fact
The New River Gorge Bridge is one of the longest single-span steel arch bridges in the world.
Activity ideas
- Canyon Rim Visitor Center + bridge overlooks: easy and high payoff.
- Endless Wall / short hike option if weather and energy cooperate.
- Keep this day loose; after two weeks of travel, flexibility is the feature.
Return Day 7 · Fri Jul 3
Home Day
New River Gorge → Kane
360 miGoogle 5h 41mRolling ~6.9 hrHome
🌡️
Loading Kane forecast…
Arrival home
Final push home. This is long but normal, and it is much easier if Thursday was a real New River day instead of a rushed drive-through.
👀 From the car
West Virginia and Pennsylvania hills, then familiar northwestern PA roads.
🧠 Kid fact
By this point, the LR4 will have crossed a ridiculous slice of the country from desert to caves to Appalachia.
Morning
Check out / depart New River Gorge
Evening
Home
Kane, PA. Unpack only what smells bad. Everything else can wait.
