A PHer's guide to Route 66 part 5 - Oklahoma
Discussion
Oklahoma is a big state and there is a lot of original 66 intact here. Coning out of Kansas you hit the small town of Miami ( pron. Myammuh), which has a magnificent restored theatre. and on to Afton:
AFTON
There is a converted filling station here, (admission free) where a collector has his Packards ,and a gift shop. (excellent for Route 66 literature)
Two versions of Packard
Saw a couple of derelict cars on the street.....
and back to the main highway, under the world's biggest McDonalds (now under reno at latest visit)
VINITA
A minor stop , though the cafe sign is quite famous and the food is excellent diner fare. The restaurant , Clanton's, has been in the same family since 1927.http://www.clantonscafe.com/
Very friendly staff too.
CLAREMORE
Nothing much here, but a giant Indian guards the truckstop
CATOOSA
A brief detour onto Route 66 to see the exceptionally kitschy blue whale of Catoosa; however it was a functioning bathing platform and was late to 66,being built in the seventies.
TULSA
This will be covered in the next visit and added here.
STROUD
The well known Stroud Cafe is a 66 instution beloved of bikers. The owner,Dawn Welch was the inspiration for the Porsche character in "cars"
ARCADIA:
Into Oklahoma which has a very long,unbroken stretch of 66 and on it, the OK county Auto trim and Museum near Arcadia OK. If the gate's open, just drive in .John Hargrove has built a combined working garage and museum. He repairs and refurbishes old cars for local customers. There garage is an amazing mixture of artifacts and cars under repair or construction. There is not a computer or electronic diagnostic
tool in sight, but lines and lines of tools. John can build a car pretty much from scratch, except for chrome plating. It looks like it was there forever, but he only built it in 1998, using old shipping containers to construct his buildings.
A model T racer based on period designs is not too far from completion:
Outside there are all sorts of references to the sights of Route 66, real and imagined:
A rare split window VW Microbus represents the character Filmore from the movie "Cars".
Buried nose-down, a VW bug is an homage to the Big Ranch in Conway Tx, itself an homage to the Cadillac Ranch in Amarillo
Captain America's Harley from 66
Another Bug emerges from the second floor.,and visitors can sit on the driver's seat….
In a side building is a 1932 Ford speed racer that John has had for 37 years, with competition history…
..and then there's this…street legal, road registered. John was inspired by Morgan three-wheelers, and set out to build his own, from…a…1979 CHEVY IMPALA…
"Does it run?" I asked. " Of course' He said, pushing the remote and unlocking it. " I used the original wiring harness"…….
Its a lot of fun to drop in on john, a genial and friendly host:
Just down the road. past the Red Barn in Arcadia is one the newest Route 66 attractions. Pops has a huge LED bottle outside, a massive cantilevered canopy, and 6-- different types of sixty drinks...
OKLAHOMA CITY
We arrive in Oklahoma City, surely the quietest place on earth on a Sunday. If you ever saw the movie 28 days, its like that. Basically all restaurants are closed, so we eat at the hotel. We walk over to the the Oklahoma City Memorial on the sites of the Alfred P Murrah building, where Tim McVeigh left a truckload of fertilizer and racing fuel and killed 168 people, including children in a daycare centre. His motivation was revenge on the Federal Government for Waco. The memorial consists of a chair for every victim with half size chairs for the children. It sits on a quiet reflecting pool.
WEATHERFORD
Lucille's roadhouse in Hydro, Oklahoma was an institution until Lucille Haman died at a very advanced age in 2000. The building has been preserved and a modern version now sits in nearby Weatherford. It sits on original Route 66.
In the evening light, Lucille's looks like an Edward Hopper painting:
We stay on old 66 and cross a long bridge imagining how long lines of 1950s cars managed this in heavily congested traffic:
CLINTON
Clinton OK is a small town with a surprisingly good Route 66 Museum, with excellent video of the history of Route 66, and a nicely curated set of artifacts. Much better than the one in Elk City:
On the wall of the museum of a photo of the toughest place to reach on all of 66, the Painted Desert Trading Post. It is on a five mile abandoned, very dangerous strip of broken up 66 in a remote location. We will get there eventually, but if you are not experienced in 4x4 offroading and dealing with desert conditions, this is remote and risky. We will do it eventually, but will not be showing a route. We planned on doing it on this trip:
ELK CITY
We stop at Elk City for the Route 66 Museum. Definitely not worth it.
ERICK
Took a brief run into Erick, ( home of roger Miller of King of the Road fame) where there is the well -preserved old West Winds motel, now a private residence, and the mad Sand Hills Curiosity shop,which is full of memorabilia and sells nothing. The proprietor, Harley Russell, insists on a full rendition of the Bobby Troup song “ Get your kicks on Route 66” with more enthusiasm than musicality. He gets a lot of visitors, and they all leave tips.
Harley is a legend , and the recent little Vimeo gives a good picture of him:
https://vimeo.com/173983959
TEXOLA
Just at the border of Oklahoma and Texas sits the ghost town of Texola, which was variously in TX or OK as the border moved periodically,. It appears to have a handful of inhabitants but is mainly abandoned, with the county Jail standing open:
AFTON
There is a converted filling station here, (admission free) where a collector has his Packards ,and a gift shop. (excellent for Route 66 literature)
Two versions of Packard
Saw a couple of derelict cars on the street.....
and back to the main highway, under the world's biggest McDonalds (now under reno at latest visit)
VINITA
A minor stop , though the cafe sign is quite famous and the food is excellent diner fare. The restaurant , Clanton's, has been in the same family since 1927.http://www.clantonscafe.com/
Very friendly staff too.
CLAREMORE
Nothing much here, but a giant Indian guards the truckstop
CATOOSA
A brief detour onto Route 66 to see the exceptionally kitschy blue whale of Catoosa; however it was a functioning bathing platform and was late to 66,being built in the seventies.
TULSA
This will be covered in the next visit and added here.
STROUD
The well known Stroud Cafe is a 66 instution beloved of bikers. The owner,Dawn Welch was the inspiration for the Porsche character in "cars"
ARCADIA:
Into Oklahoma which has a very long,unbroken stretch of 66 and on it, the OK county Auto trim and Museum near Arcadia OK. If the gate's open, just drive in .John Hargrove has built a combined working garage and museum. He repairs and refurbishes old cars for local customers. There garage is an amazing mixture of artifacts and cars under repair or construction. There is not a computer or electronic diagnostic
tool in sight, but lines and lines of tools. John can build a car pretty much from scratch, except for chrome plating. It looks like it was there forever, but he only built it in 1998, using old shipping containers to construct his buildings.
A model T racer based on period designs is not too far from completion:
Outside there are all sorts of references to the sights of Route 66, real and imagined:
A rare split window VW Microbus represents the character Filmore from the movie "Cars".
Buried nose-down, a VW bug is an homage to the Big Ranch in Conway Tx, itself an homage to the Cadillac Ranch in Amarillo
Captain America's Harley from 66
Another Bug emerges from the second floor.,and visitors can sit on the driver's seat….
In a side building is a 1932 Ford speed racer that John has had for 37 years, with competition history…
..and then there's this…street legal, road registered. John was inspired by Morgan three-wheelers, and set out to build his own, from…a…1979 CHEVY IMPALA…
"Does it run?" I asked. " Of course' He said, pushing the remote and unlocking it. " I used the original wiring harness"…….
Its a lot of fun to drop in on john, a genial and friendly host:
Just down the road. past the Red Barn in Arcadia is one the newest Route 66 attractions. Pops has a huge LED bottle outside, a massive cantilevered canopy, and 6-- different types of sixty drinks...
OKLAHOMA CITY
We arrive in Oklahoma City, surely the quietest place on earth on a Sunday. If you ever saw the movie 28 days, its like that. Basically all restaurants are closed, so we eat at the hotel. We walk over to the the Oklahoma City Memorial on the sites of the Alfred P Murrah building, where Tim McVeigh left a truckload of fertilizer and racing fuel and killed 168 people, including children in a daycare centre. His motivation was revenge on the Federal Government for Waco. The memorial consists of a chair for every victim with half size chairs for the children. It sits on a quiet reflecting pool.
WEATHERFORD
Lucille's roadhouse in Hydro, Oklahoma was an institution until Lucille Haman died at a very advanced age in 2000. The building has been preserved and a modern version now sits in nearby Weatherford. It sits on original Route 66.
In the evening light, Lucille's looks like an Edward Hopper painting:
We stay on old 66 and cross a long bridge imagining how long lines of 1950s cars managed this in heavily congested traffic:
CLINTON
Clinton OK is a small town with a surprisingly good Route 66 Museum, with excellent video of the history of Route 66, and a nicely curated set of artifacts. Much better than the one in Elk City:
On the wall of the museum of a photo of the toughest place to reach on all of 66, the Painted Desert Trading Post. It is on a five mile abandoned, very dangerous strip of broken up 66 in a remote location. We will get there eventually, but if you are not experienced in 4x4 offroading and dealing with desert conditions, this is remote and risky. We will do it eventually, but will not be showing a route. We planned on doing it on this trip:
ELK CITY
We stop at Elk City for the Route 66 Museum. Definitely not worth it.
ERICK
Took a brief run into Erick, ( home of roger Miller of King of the Road fame) where there is the well -preserved old West Winds motel, now a private residence, and the mad Sand Hills Curiosity shop,which is full of memorabilia and sells nothing. The proprietor, Harley Russell, insists on a full rendition of the Bobby Troup song “ Get your kicks on Route 66” with more enthusiasm than musicality. He gets a lot of visitors, and they all leave tips.
Harley is a legend , and the recent little Vimeo gives a good picture of him:
https://vimeo.com/173983959
TEXOLA
Just at the border of Oklahoma and Texas sits the ghost town of Texola, which was variously in TX or OK as the border moved periodically,. It appears to have a handful of inhabitants but is mainly abandoned, with the county Jail standing open:
Edited by RDMcG on Sunday 21st May 18:14
Edited by RDMcG on Sunday 9th July 03:16
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