On the Mother Road, Oklahoma & Texas Panhandle

After a week visiting Vincent, Amy & Brian, we were back on the monotonous  interstate, re-connecting us to Route 66. Rolling down the interstate made us think of the words of Charles Kuralt, the host of the TV series “On the Road”:

“Thanks to the interstate highway system, it is now possible to travel across the country from coast to coast without seeing anything. Perhaps it’s the desire to ‘see something’ that keeps Route 66 alive.”  So true.

Once we left the highway, we were charmed by the quirky gas station culture in Texas and Oklahoma.  This gas station in West, TX, celebrates the many Czech immigrants that settled in this area and their culture.

Where else can we buy homemade Czech Kolaches – just like the ones Pete’s grandmother used to make – with our gas?

Around 20 people were queued up waiting to buy both sweet and savory kolaches. Pete ordered his childhood favorite, prune kolache, and Jill had a ham and cheese puff. YUM!  Time to loosen the belt buckles.

Pops gas station and convenience store in Arcadia, Oklahoma, pays homage to the historic role of soda pop on the Mother Road. Out front stands a gigantic 66-foot-tall soda bottle. Its gazillion LED bulbs light up sky at night.

Pops convenience store showcases over 8,000 bottles of soda pop, some very rare. We saw over 20 varieties of root beer and an assortment of sarsaparilla.  Pete ordered a spicy ginger ale.

Pops toots its own horn by selling t-shirts to visitors from all over the world.

It even has an old fashion soda shop on the premises.

Next to Pops on RTE 66 in Arcadia, OK, is the iconic Round Barn, built in 1898.  It has quite a history. It simultaneously served as a grocery store, church and dance hall to people traveling by horse and buggy.

Our 90 something docent was quite a relic, too. He and his wife helped to renovate the barn. A local farmer, he recently lost his wife and wanted us to see her picture and hear her words written on an anniversary card she gave him on their 15th wedding anniversary.  Sad.

He told us a cute story about his mother.  The above equipment was what she used to wash the laundry.  She would run to the house after she heated the water.  He told her not to run, but she said this was the only way she could tell their neighbors that they had “running water.”  LOL

The second level of Round Barn.  What a wonderful place for a hoedown.  We met a starry-eyed young man planning his wedding at this place.  Charming.

We stayed overnight in Oklahoma City’s Brick Town, an entertainment hub.  Most of the city is built from brick because of the abundance of clay soil in this area.

Unfortunately, the first thought that comes to mind when thinking of Oklahoma City is the bombing of the federal building. Timothy McVeigh set off a fertilizer bomb on April 19, 1995. We felt the need to visit the Oklahoma City National Memorial in light of all the recent acts of terrorism in the world.  This site reminds us that terrorism comes in all colors.

Two monumental bronze-clad “Gates of Time” frame the space where the building once stood.  One gate reads 9:01, a minute before the bombing, a minute before the city changed.  The other reads 9:03, a minute after the bombing, the beginning of a city rebuilding.  A shallow 318 foot reflecting pool lies between the gates.

The outdoor memorial includes the “Field of Empty Chairs.” The field houses 168 empty chairs, symbolizing the victims.  Nineteen smaller chairs represent the children in the day-care facility who perished.

“We come here to remember those who were killed, those who survived and those changed forever.  May all who leave here know the impact of violence.  May this memorial offer comfort, strength, peace, hope and serenity.”

Although this small building is now a Vietnamese sandwich shop, Saigon Baguette, the old milk bottle from an iconic RTE 66 grocery remains.  It is a vestige of a simpler past.

Built in 1958 by futuristic architect Buckminster Fuller, the Gold Dome is a major landmark on RTE 66 in Oklahoma City.

Next, we drove to Clinton, OK, to wander through an interactive RTE 66 museum.   The museum took us through many rooms representing each decade of the road.  Souvenir postcards cover the wall at the entrance.

The road grater was essential to the building of the road.

The increase of automobile travel prompted the emergence of service stations.

The Great Depression & Dust Bowl resulted in the steady migration of people in search of better life on RTE 66.  The rooms were accompanied by fitting music:

“Been on this road for a mighty long time, / Ten million men like me, / You drive us from yo’ town, we ramble around, / I got them 66 Highway Blues.” –Woody Guthrie

The emergence of diners and soda shops followed the travelers.

Ah, yes, we remember the family road trip (in a Nash Rambler).

After the museum we drove through the Texas Panhandle. On our way to Amarillo, we saw the most startling sight, the Cadillac Ranch. In 1974 a Texas millionaire, Stanley Marsh, planted 10 Cadillacs (models from 1948-1959 – a period of exaggerated tail fins) in the barren earth.  He said he created it as a tribute to the golden age of car travel.

He encouraged travelers to make the tribute their own by spray painting it.

Pete points to the “2016 Road Trip” personalization.

In reaction to the Cadillac Ranch, a jokester created the Slug-Bug Ranch in Conway, TX.  Here 5 Volkswagen Beetles are buried nose first in the ground.

Travelers personalize the site with great gusto!

After adorning the VW bugs with colorful phrases, travelers apparently found themselves with significant quantities of left over paint.  They used this paint to colorize the abandon buildings and junk cars found near by.

No surface was left untouched (and retouched).

For miles, both East and West of Amarillo on I-40, “The Big Texan Steak Ranch” advertises its free 4.5 lbs steak deal.  We considered visiting for dinner, but decided to forego the spectacle in favor of a more moderate dinner close to our hotel.