I broke up today's travel journal into two parts:
Part 1: Hot Springs National Park
Part 2: On the Road and Interesting Stuff I Saw
The Road Trip
My destination for tonight was Clinton, OK. I thought there were some cool Route 66 stuff to see here, and maybe there are, but I didn't see any once I left interstate 40 to get to the motel. I'll have to do some Googling and look around a bit tomorrow morning before I hit the road.
The road was pretty uneventful. Because I didn't take the interstate through Arkansas, it took as long to get through Arkansas as it did to get from the Arkansas - Oklahoma border to Clinton, OK.
After lunch at a Waffle House, I left Hot Springs, AR around 12:30 PM CDT. I crossed into Oklahoma at about 4:30 PM CDT. And rolled into Clinton, OK just before 8:30 PM CDT. I got a little sleepy about 2:00 PM CDT, so I stopped at a convenience store for a 30 minute nap.
After checking into the Super 8 Motel and dropping off my computer backpack and my regular backpack that's full of clothes (I also have a suitcase, but the backpack is easier to manage on a daily basis) in my room, I walked to the Mexican restaurant next door. Things sure are cheap here in Oklahoma. A chicken chimichanga, iced tea and a xango (a cheesecake burrito-like dessert with vanilla ice cream) cost less than $10 including tax 😮. The interesting part about my dinner: chimichangas are basically deep-fried burritos, but this wasn't. So really what I got was a chicken burrito, with sauce and melted cheese on top. It was good, but it wasn't a chimichanga.
Interesting Stuff I Saw Today
At the end of my hike -- remember it's 0.8 miles uphill and another 0.8 miles downhill -- I encountered a man and a woman, probably a little older than I am. The woman was wearing flip flops for the hike. Huh? 😶 Speechless. And this isn't the first time I've seen this. One afternoon last year, I went to Exploration Peak, which is a small park in Southwestern Las Vegas. There is a trail that leads up a rather significant hill, which has a great view of Las Vegas. I saw women wearing flip flops and wedge sandals that day. I don't get it.
In eastern Oklahoma, a big rig was on its side in the center median.
Just east of Oklahoma City, an SUV crashed in the center median. They already had it loaded on a flatbed tow truck, but it was pretty smashed up.
That's all I can remember. Sorry there aren't any photos of the crashes, but I was driving.
Tomorrow's destination is Gallup, New Mexico. I'm planning to stop at Cadillac Ranch just west of Amarillo, Texas. That's the only planned stop. But if I see anything interesting, I'm stopping for photos.
Stay Tuned...
DeadGuitarist
