Day 4: June 17, 2007
A Little Rain 		Previous Day
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Round Barn, Arcadia, OK Round Barn, Arcadia, OK Round Barn, Arcadia, OK Some more pictures of the round barn in Arcadia that are much like all the others except that I walked to the barn. Hillbillee's is just down the hill from the barn and I actually walked up last evening and took a few shots outside. But the barn was closed then so I returned this morning when I could get inside.
Golden Driller, Tulsa, OK Golden Driller, Tulsa, OK Golden Driller, Tulsa, OK On Arcadia's west side, Pops is not yet open but it's close. Mid to late July the signs say and they've got the "Now Hiring" banners out. I was hoping I could see this place in operation but it appears I have another thing to come back for.
Cyrus Avery's Grave, Tulsa, OK Cyrus Avery's Grave, Tulsa, OK In Britton, John & Jean Dunning are restoring the stone buildings at Owl Courts for use as a postcard shop and museum. The first building's looking great but plenty of work remains.
Plymouth on display, Tulsa, OK Plymouth on display, Tulsa, OK Plymouth on display, Tulsa, OK Plymouth on display, Tulsa, OK Lake Overholser didn't look all that romantic today but its reputation for "submarine races" and the fact that some locals refer to the place as "Lake Hold Her Closer" say otherwise. The rain actually got pretty heavy for awhile and did limit visibility but submarine race fans say there's more to the sport than just a good view. There are plans to convert the 1924 bridge to pedestrian only in the next year or two.

There is a rather neat looking Route 66 Park on the west side of the lake but, even though the rain had slowed, it was too wet to do much exploring. The last picture is of the California end of a "map" that identifies many attractions on and near the road. Around it are pedestal mounted panels with more details.

Oasis Drive-In, El Reno, OK Prices were great but service was abysmal. Actually, the sign and building were "rehabilitated" in 2003. There's a pre-rehab picture here.
West of El Reno, OK Pony Truss Bridge, OK Strong arming the horizon. The first picture was taken about thirteen miles west of El Reno on the old concrete. The second is of the thirty-eight span "pony truss" bridge over the South Canadian River.
Shoe Tree, Stroud, OK Shoe Tree, Stroud, OK Shoe Tree, Stroud, OK Shoe Tree, Stroud, OK This was my first visit to Lucille's. I'll never know just how I missed it in both 1999 and 2003 but I did. So this is the first time that I've actually seen how close I-40's west bound lanes are to the old US highway. The concept of cars and trucks speeding by where they might once have stopped is hardly abstract here. A hundred yards or so is all that separated Lucille's gas pumps and Coke coolers from the expressway traffic. That couldn't have been a pleasant view.

Lucille Hamons died in 2000 after operating the station for 59 years. Rick Koch owns it now. He's spruced the place up and put a pair of old Phillips 66 pumps out front. Windows have been replaced and Rick is just generally making sure the place is being taken care of. But he won't reopen it. What he has opened is a place called Lucille's Roadhouse just a few miles up the road in Weatherford. The roadhouse is constructed to resemble the real Lucille's live-over station. I figured that Weatherford would be a good place to stop for the day and that Lucille's Roadhouse would be a good place for dinner. Who would have guessed that a joint with "roadhouse" in its name would be closed on Sundays? I believe the restaurant will eventually become a seven day operation but not yet.

Rock Cafe, Stroud, OK Yes, this picture is out of sequence since it was obviously taken at the real Lucille's. I was in my car and just about to pull away when a couple of cars pulled up to the old station. One was actually a mini-van and it parked on the far side of building while the other stopped right in front of me. I was ready to slip out around it when I noticed its Ohio license plate. I got out of my car and introduced myself as a fellow buckeye. The car with NJ tags, I explained, was a rental. And that's how I met the Millers from somewhere near Toledo. They are on a month long trip visiting offspring from California to Texas and getting in a little Mother Road on the way. Maybe we're not exactly neighbors but it's still kind of fun meeting someone from your home state at a long closed gas station on an even longer decommissioned stretch of U.S. highway.
Route 66 Interpretive Center, Chandler, OK Route 66 Interpretive Center, Chandler, OK Route 66 Interpretive Center, Chandler, OK Route 66 Interpretive Center, Chandler, OK Without the possibility of dinner at the new Roadhouse, ending the day at Weatherford didn't seem quite so attractive. Since I'll be returning to Clinton in a few days, I closed my eyes through there so I wouldn't spoil anything. No pictures, of course. I did get pictures of Kobel's Station near Foss and some familiar spots in Canute.
Bypassed road section west of Canute, OK Bypassed road section west of Canute, OK This spot is becoming somewhat familiar, too. I remember driving this abandoned strip, just west of Canute, in 1999 and I photographed my car under that tree in 2003.

I drove on but as I was about to turn and head over the expressway, I realized that the EZ66 Guide said to go under the expressway. I turned back and was shocked to learn that the guide wanted me to turn before I reached the abandoned strip with tree. Was it not old US-66? I was more confident of that being the case than of McJerry making a mistake but I started making mental notes to ask him about it. Then I realized what the truth was. Yes, that was once Sixty-Six but it had been sliced off by I-40 and crossing over east of it was the best way to drive the most old road. The second picture shows the slicing. Even though the semi on I-40 partially blocks the view of the old two lane beyond, it's clear that if I drove straight ahead from the south side segment (and successfully dodged all the trucks on I-40) I'd end up on the old route north of the expressway. I backtracked a bit and followed the EZ (and safe) route to a bit of the old Road I had not yet been on.

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