Our first stop, Kent Jewelry at 907 Pine Street in Downtown Rolla. This is the new Route 66 mural! This was a very important stop! Next, we saw the frog in Waynesville, MO, but the photo proof is on the other camera :).
The giant bowling pin just off of I-44 in Buckhorn is an essential Rt 66 photo op. The Adult Superstore sign with the Church of Nazarene sign pointing to it, is just a cherry on top.
Lydia used her magic to balance the giant bowling pin on her head! We're so cool.
Our next stop was in Gay Parita in Paris Springs, MO. We got to meet Gary Turner there and we became 'friends for life,' as he would say. There is a beautiful old gas station there with a small gift shop and a ton of vintage cars. The people you meet on Rt 66 are the best people anywhere. But even with that, we couldn't stay out of trouble. Dad just had to mess with the wrong cop car!
Red Oak 2 is a side trip off of Route 66 east of Carthage, MO. Lowell Davis saw that his community was being bulldozed to the ground so he pulled the buildings out of Red Oak and moved them to his farm. This is now Red Oak 2. The compound is huge and covered in Lowell's original iron artwork. A large piece called the "Crap Duster," a flying manure spreader, was advertised in the E-Z guide, but Kent and Lydia couldn't locate it.
We finally made it to Kansas that afternoon. Just in time for a late lunch at Angels on the Route! Their 'create your own' sandwiches were VERY yummy! They even have frozen custard.
This dapper fellow is in the Packard museum in Afton, OK . The man there was very nice and hospitable. We got to see many different vintage Packard models and even some antique models! The showrooms were beautiful and it was a definite "must- stop" on Route 66.
Us with the world's largest Totem Pole in Foyil, OK. It was built by Ed Galloway during 11 years. It is 90 ft high. This was one of many in the park area.
Ed also carved hundreds of fiddles. He tried to make a fiddle from wood from every country in the world, and he got pretty close. They were housed in an 11 sided house.
We finally reached Claremore, OK and settled down for the night. We got to see the outside of the Will Rogers museum and visit his tomb. The monument to him was beautiful. We stayed at a Kampground of America in Claremore at the Will Rogers Downs. The tent was good enough for us!
~Francine
