Today was another early start. The big city of Oklahoma City stood in the middle of our journey for the day. Lots of stops to make and lots of things to see. We started the day off with a driving through Sapulpa and seeing the sites there, not many photos from that spot, because we had to gain as much time as we could to be able to make an important stop in Oklahoma City. It was Sunday morning, and a lot of places hadn't opened yet, and there was no real traffic at all, which made it a great beginning.
We found an old alignment of the Route that was lined with Oil Tanks and drove through Bristow and Depew. Not long before we reached Stroud, OK, we found the famous Shoe Tree, or should I say Shoe Trees as the collection has grown so much it takes over nearly the whole street corner now. Too bad we didn't have any to add to the collection.
The next stop was the Rock Cafe. The lady who owns the place was the inspiration for the Cars movie character Sally. They have wooden cutouts of Sheriff, Lightning McQueen and Sally outside. There was a really nice gift shop next door where you could find your things and then take them to the Cafe to pay for them. Jon found a new wallet with Route 66 on it and a postcard to add to his now growing collection. Jon is really liking finding the Cars things on the route. I am glad we researched that and got him excited.
After leaving Stroud, we made our next stop in Arcadia, OK. This place is a Route 66 jackpot! There were all kinds of things to see. First we found the Rock Of Ages gas station. It is in ruins now, but the owner of the property takes really nice care of it. The legend goes that the original owner had a hidden backroom that he made counterfeit money, one of the bills that he made was caught and traced back to him and he was sent to prison. That left the station to be abandoned and time took it's toll on it.
Driving a little further up the road, we found a section of original Portland Concrete. It was a little rough, but it is really amazing to think how old this stuff is and how much it has been traveled on. To be in any kind of shape is a testament to the strength of this section.
After driving that old alignment, we turned back and backtracked a little to find a little quirky place that I had heard about. It is the residence of a man named John Hargrove. He is retired, and moved to Arcadia just about 7 years ago. He loves to tinker and keep himself busy, and his love of Route 66 brought him here to this spot where with his creativity and hands, he has made some recreations of some of the most famous sites along the route. Now he isn't much of a groundsman, because it all could have used a mow, but what he doesn't have in trimming, he more than makes up for with his personality. We were greeted by his dog when we drove up, she looked very proud to be there and to have us visit her. We walked across the parking lot and I spotted John walking up near the house. I waved and he waved back and said hello. We walked around his yard taking photos of the unique treasures. As we got closer to the house, the garage doors cracked open and we noticed the "Welcome, come on in" sign handwritten stuck to the door. So in we went. There we were greeted by John and invited into his home to look around. He gave us a quick tour and left us to look around by ourselves. Words cannot describe the obvious love for the route this man has. Every square inch of his home has something in it. Something that in some way, has a connection to Route 66. From a drive in movie screen on the wall, with the DVD and VCR in a Teepee in the corner and the diner booths covered by a Meramec Caverns barn roof. I think the craziest thing, though, has to be the VW Bug hanging out the second story window painted to look like Herbie! Jon even went upstairs and sat in the drivers seat! Then as we were leaving, John started talking, and to be honest, I think we could have spent all day there and not felt bad about it and probably not run out of things to talk about. He is an interesting guy, and honestly, I think it should be a destination for anyone who just wants to meet a good guy and see some folk art that will really blow your mind!
Not sure how we could top our visit with John, because really, the people are what make Route 66. I wish we could talk to them all! Once we left, we realized that we better get a move on, because time had flown by while we were at John's. We drove by the Round Barn in Arcadia and made a pit stop at Pop's.
Pop's is famous for having around 500 unique sodas from around the world. From the every day Coke and Pepsi to the most disgusting flavors imaginable. Peanut Butter and Jelly? Bacon? Whatever. I settled on a Rocket Fizz Cherry Cola while Tony got a Root Beer and Mom a soda from Hawaii. None of us are very adventurous when it comes to sodas!
Next we made it into Oklahoma City where we strayed away from Route 66 to make a stop at the Oklahoma City National Memorial on the grounds of where the Alfred P. Murrah building once stood. Being a Sunday, there was very few cars in the city, and there were very few people at the Memorial, which made it even more impressionable as it was almost quiet enough to hear a pin drop.
We strolled around the reflecting pool that only has about 3/4 an inch of water in it that flows off the sides making the slightest sound of running water. This would have been where 5th street would have been. On one side stood the 168 empty chairs, on the other stood a few rows of trees and on either end stood gates. One marked with 9:01 and the other with 9:03. This framed in the location of the bombing which took place on April 19, 1995. The gates framed the time (9:02) when the bomb exploded. The chairs represented all of the lives lost, with large chairs intermingled with small chairs. The sheer number of small chairs made my heart sink. The reality that each one represented someone's child. Outside of the memorial were pieces of the chain-link fence that had surrounded the site as the area was cleared shortly after the incident. The trinkets and memorials to those lost blew in the wind and served as silent reminders of the ones that were left behind.
We were lucky enough to have been there right at the time that a Park Ranger gave a presentation about the memorial. He showed photos of the aftermath, and without mentioning any names, told how the whole bombing and subsequent capture of the perpetrator happened moment by moment. He explained the monument and how the tree that we sat beneath had been a survivor. This memorial is unlike most others, because it not only memorializes the lives lost that day, but also the survivors. There is a corner of the building wall left, which has marble that once was used inside inscribed with the names of the more than 600 survivors. Honestly, I walked away with a feeling I haven't felt in a long time, a sense of peace. It is a very powerful place and made a huge impression on me.
After that, and tell me, what can really follow up something like that, we continued on. We drove through Bridgeport and saw the pony bridge, it has 38 arches (19 on each side) and then once we got rolling on, we started to notice some really, REALLY dark clouds rolling up. Then the radio started with the beeps, you know the ones, the Emergency Broadcast beeps. Well, being right in the heart of Tornado country, and not knowing where we would be able to go if they turned bad, we jumped on I-40 and bypassed a few miles to our hotel in Elk City. We pulled in and the sky was dark all around and the wind was blowing so hard that it took your breath away. Better safe than sorry, I believe. So, we hunkered down and just called it a day. I can honestly say though, much of the roads looked similar in Oklahoma outside of towns...
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Off to Texas tomorrow!!
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