All that is remaining from an old swimming hole in Catoosa, Oklahoma right off Route 66.
A shot from the short road trip Son and I took on Sunday.
Category Archives: Road Trip
SuperPizzaBoy Road Trip Skywatch
Son, SuperPizzaBoy took this image of the sky while we were coming home from our little roadtrip Sunday.
Our World – Road Trip to see Ed Galloway’s Totem Pole Park
Sunday, SuperPizzaBoy and I loaded up and headed up Route 66 northeast from Tulsa to the little town of Foyil, Oklahoma to check out the world’s largest concrete totem pole.
The totem pole is 90 feet tall and is made of concrete over a metal and sandstone base. He started working on it in 1937 and finished in 1948.
The exterior has many bas relief native American inspired designs.
Apparently when asked why he built it he just said that he needed something to do when he retired.
The base of the tower is a turtle. He fashioned it from a sandstone outcropping that was already in place.
There is a small room inside that contains more artwork and an informative sign. If you start googling you will see find that there are lots of totem poles taller than ninety feet. So maybe this is the tallest concrete totem pole.
(SPB photo)
SPB brought his camera. Of course a self portrait was in order.
(SPB photo)
Hmm, this is also a pic of his, That is the scariest face on the Totem.
(SPB photo)
SPB also captured images of some Galloway’s other pieces. I love the arrowhead below.
(SPB photo)
I’m guessing this is a tree trunk.
The park has a gift store inside the “Fiddle House” that includes a variety of fiddles carved by Mr. Galloway.
This was my favorite
The park has a short nature trail which of course we tried.
Galloway died in 1961 and the park fell into disrepair until rescued in the late 1980’s by the Rogers County Historical Society who runs the facility today.
We’ll post the second half of our road trip next week, unless of course we decide to do something else.
National Park Service Article on the Totem Park
Roadside America Link on the Totem Park
Road Trip to the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum
Saturday a week ago,son and I loaded up the car and headed down the highway to Oklahoma City.
We pulled off the turnpike at Wellston and drove down Route 66 to Pops near Arcadia to get us a soft drink. Pops has almost every kind of soft drink known to man. We bought two each. Usually we only get one but it was hot that day. We drank one and put the other in a cooler we brought along just for that purpose. So we could drink something cold on our way back.
Don’t ask my why I always get some sort of Black Cherry soda at Pops. I’m a Diet Doctor Pepper guy usually. Diet Creme Cherry flavored if I can get it. Don’t judge me. I always like diet Orange Crush.
Next stop was the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City. We love this place, just love it. It will always be the Cowboy Hall of Fame to me though. I’ve been going here ever since I moved to Oklahoma twenty six years ago. It has really changed over the years.
One of my favorite places is their big banquet hall. They have five massive triptych paintings by Wilson Hurley. Together they are called Windows on the West. They are huge and spectacular. My employer has a Wilson Hurley painting in the lobby. I saw him there some years ago up on a step ladder touching up the painting.
(The Leader’s Downfall by William R. Leigh)
The museum is cram full of Western Art of all types.
They also have lots of other exhibits about life in the west for cowboys, soldiers, and regular families.
Ronald Reagan belongs in the Museum. I’m assuming that George W. will be there one day. His dad, George H. won’t nothing wrong with him, he is just not western. Barack Obama won’t be there either. I mean you either have it or you don’t. I grew up in small towns of the west with cowboys, I had many western friends, some of my family are western. I don’t have a western bone in my body. I don’t have anything against it, its just now me. But I still like this Museum.
They have a great rodeo exhibit. They explain all the events and have a mock up of a rodeo arena, great fun.
They have a great section on the west in movies and television. That is Kirk Douglas above.
SuperPizzaBoy’s favorite is Prosperity Junction a western Town. He really liked the pulpit in the church.
A mock up of an early day classroom. I hate to admit it but this is how my class rooms in Price, Utah looked like when I was a kid. Inkwells in the desk and all. At least we didn’t use the inkwells.
Early day bank.
I caught him bellying up to the bar. Kids!
I love this hat exhibit. Tell you what though, when I first saw it it reminded my of a tank full of jellyfish. Is there such a thing as Cowboy Hat Jellyfish?
With that, we loaded up, grabbed our second sodas from Pops and headed back home.
I just love road trips, have you been on one lately? Tell us about it.
To the Oklahoma City Zoo and Beyond
A perfect storm on Friday, SuperPizzaBoy is on Fall Break, Sweetie needed a break so all of went on a road trip down the Turner Turnpike to see the Oklahoma City Zoo.
My favorite, a ruddy black rhino getting a mud treatment.
What a sweet little kitty.
I forgot to note what kind of bird this is, but I thought him handsome. I guess that it is a him.
Does he look nervous to you. I think he is worried about his relatives this time of year.
All sorts of wild critters, big and small.
An ostrich took a liking to SPB and followed us around.
I love pumpkins.
After a few hours at the zoo we refreshed ourselves at Belle Isle Brewery at 50 Penn Place.
And walked on down to Full Circle Bookstore. We bought more than we should but it is the best bookstore in the state.
SPB settled into his favorite chair.
The store has everything, a bunch of Shakespeare above (I don’t ever buy Shakespeare but they kind of set the tone.)
And then we went home.
I love Road Trips, Zoos, Brew Pubs, and Independent Bookstores. Don’t you?
Road Trip
Last weekend the Yogi’s along with the world’s greatest MIL Nana and SuperPizzaBoy’s friend Q loaded up to head down the Turner Turnpike for a road trip. There is nothing like a road trip.
First stop, getting something to eat of course!
There is no other choice for Road Food than the Rock Cafe in Stroud, right on route 66. It was built in 1936.
The food is great. It is a popular spot on 66 but we came at an off time.
The owner Dawn Welch has owned it since the 1990’s. She was the inspiration for the character Sally Carrera in the movie “Cars”. Ms. Welch was also named Oklahoma’s 2008 Woman of the Year beating out Carrie Underwood. That’s a big honor especially considering how Oklahoma loves Carrie Underwood.
Don’t take just my word for the food, Guy Fieri of Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives likes it also. Check out his report on the Rock Cafe.
After filling up we traveled a few miles from Stroud to the Sparks Winery, in the central Oklahoma countryside.
We were on a mission, Sweetie was hosting book group and needed their Sangria.
We told the kids to go play and headed into the tasting room.
They have a wide variety of wines. No, I didn’t taste them all, I was the designated driver.
Nana and Sweetie did a thorough evaluation though.
Then we packed up our purchases and went home!
Have you been on a road trip lately?
Colorado Road Trip
The Yogi’s got back Sunday from a weekend road trip to Colorado. We went there mainly to see my lovely young niece Jillian get married to a very nice young man, Brian.
(More on these two in a later post.)
On our way out there Sweetie let me take time to find “Mingo.” It is the oldest active geocache in the world. Now I can die fulfilled. I have not brought peace to the world, but I found Mingo.
We also drove through some funky weather. We had rain, fog, mist and hail on the way out.
SuperPizzaBoy got some major video game play in during the trip. In fact, he got to where he was playing video games, listening to an audio book, and eating Fritos at the same time. Awesome.
Near where my sister and her husband live we saw longhorn cattle.
Of course we got to the wedding
And did some dancing to celebrate.
SPB had a great time.
Then we came home, 
We saw some oil wells in Kansas.
And some motorcycle riders on the Run For the Wall.
No, these folks aren’t welcoming the Yogi’s home. They are cheering the motorcycle riders on. We were cheering them also. They, and their “Road Guards” were causing havoc on I70 so we were glad to turn off. I like your cause guys, but you almost caused a bunch of accidents!!! Convoying can be dangerous even if you know what you are doing and you guys don’t.
Anyways as we got closer to Tulsa we came up on the back side of a series of storms that stretched clear across northeast Oklahoma and Arkansas.
We were glad to be home. Our prayers are with the people of Joplin, Missouri.
I’ll have more on the wedding later.
Missouri Botanical Gardens
The Missouri Botanical Gardens were a total surprise to me. Sweetie wanted to go see them and I said “OK” without a whole lot of enthusiasm. Once I got there I was wowed. They are huge. They cover almost 80 acres and extensive and varied and very very cool. They just go on forever. We spent several hours there. Turns out they are 150 years old.
Plants they had, flowers, shrubs, trees, grass, whatever. They were beautiful, even in mid October.
And more plants, some with thorns on the leaves.
I love water features. They had water features everywhere.
We had lots of FUN that day. We were bushed when we were done.
I recommend that Gardens if you are ever in Saint Louis.
Saint Louis – City Museum
As part of our Saint Louis road trip we took in mid October the Yogi’s visited their City Museum near downtown. It is a unique fun mish mash institution. It has everything from caves to explore that finish with a wild 7 story corkscrew slide, the “Monstrocity” outside a very big jungle that soars about 30 or 40 feet in the air and incorporates two airplance fuselages and a castle tower, a small but fun aquarium, a museum of Mirth, Mystery, and Mayhem, and in interesting collection of terra cotta and stone remnants of torn down buildings.
Sweetie and SuperPizzaBoy in front of Monstrocity. (We climbed up to the airplanes.)
SPB taking off!
Here comes Sweetie climbing through the maze.
Inside the museum building SPB heading up into the caves.
Deep within the bowels of the caves you come upon this massive organ.
Here is a view of the slides. There is no elevator to the top. You climb. Quick ride down. No coffee needed the rest of the day. A girl behind me said “You can go a lot faster if you lay down on your side.” Thanks kid for letting me know what not to do.
I loved their architectural remnants from long gone buildings.
I’ve had days like this
And Bob’s Big Boy – Been a while since I’ve seen one of those. I love SPB’s smile in this one.
They have a little aquarium at City Museum. They were featuring doctor fish. Stick your hands in there for about 5 to 10 minutes and you get a great manicure. They just mob your hands and eat off the dead skin and hangnails. After the initial surprise of getting nibbled by dozens of fish it actually feels good, and it worked as advertised also.
I saved the worst for last. A video of me going down a kiddy slide at City Museum. Of course the only part of me you can see is my shoes.
I rate City Museum in Saint Louis a solid 4 out of 4 stars. Budget at least half a day. Bring some good shoes and loose fitting clothes. This a fun place for the whole family.
Saint Louis – The Arch
A couple weeks ago the Yogi’s went on a road trip from Tulsa, OK to Saint Louis, MO for SuperPizzaBoy’s Fall Break. We have never really been on a Fall Break trip before so we were excited.
The day we got to Arch the weather was cold and cloudy. The arch was otherworldly. It just seemed to come from out of the outer space to the ground.
You know something about the Arch that none of the guidebookstell you? The grounds of the Arch are absolutely gorgeous. It is a park with ponds, grass, and trees. It is a beautiful space that would be noteworthy without an arch.
To go up in the Arch. First you have to go down underground to the visitor center. They have a nice museum down there and your choice of movies. They have a mock up of the elevator car used to get up to the top of the Arch. Its a good idea to check it out if you think you are claustrophobic. I’m mildly claustrophobic but I didn’t have a problem. Here are Sweetie and SuperPizzaBoy in the mock up.
The top of the Arch is ok. I had to go, the Arch is on my bucket list after all. But the Arch is a lot more impressive on the outside than on the inside. You lay down at a 45 degree angle and look out little portholes.
Ironically, for a monument to celebrate Westward Expansion, there is not a whole lot to see to the west.
The more interesting views are to the east. At least if you like baseball. Even if you are not a Cardinals fan.
I’m not a Cardinals fan but I would love to see a game in Busch Stadium. I will always have a soft spot in my heart for the Cardinals. When I was a kid in Utah and Arizona I was a big time Boston Red Sox fan (Carl Yaztremski, Tony Conigliaro, Jim Lonborg, Sparky Lyle, Rico Petrocelli – the only better baseball names are Babe Ruth, Lou Gherig and Mickey Mantle as far as I’m concerned) and I regard the 1967 World Series between the Red Sox and Cardinals to be the epitome of baseball. The Red Sox lost but I was proud of them. The Cardinals won and I respected them, after all, they beat the Red Sox! Oops, sorry, I’m a little off track. Hey I’m entitled. At Eagar, Arizona Elementary school in 1967 in seventh grade we got to go across the street to someone’s house and watch the World Series on a SONY COLOR TELEVISION. Does life get any better than that? Even if the faces were a little purple?
For photographs and stories of places from all over the globe check out That’s My World Tuesday.