{"id":14346,"date":"2023-01-24T17:04:49","date_gmt":"2023-01-24T23:04:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/yogisden.us\/?p=14346"},"modified":"2023-01-24T19:29:03","modified_gmt":"2023-01-25T01:29:03","slug":"skywatch-friday-cloudy-day-exploration","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/yogisden.us\/?p=14346","title":{"rendered":"Skywatch Friday – Cloudy Day Exploration"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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The forecast for Tuesday was snow starting late in the morning. I decided to skip my yoga class and go for a hike while the hiking was good. Turkey Mountain had closed their trails though and so I went over to nearby Bales Park to see if I could find the future connector pathway between Bales and Turkey Mountain. The two parks are separated by a freeway US 75 but I heard the highway department was going to put in a “shelf” or something on an overpass that could be used for a trail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Bales Park was empty, one other vehicle when I got there so I took off on their recently constructed trail. Bales has some of the most picturesque trees in Tulsa. I just love their shapes. The sky is kind of bleh but that’s okay. It is what it is. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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I love the Bales Park wicket. I can see future trail runs here with maybe this the start and finish gate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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I meandered up the Ridge Trail that runs parallel to US 75.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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I got to the vista at the top where three trails converge. You can also get a view of downtown Tulsa way off in the distance. I actually felt sorry for my former coworkers who are slaving away down there making sure that we have enough energy to power the economy, and provide a return to the shareholders but mostly to keep those pension payments coming!!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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So I headed north along this old road, not on the designated trail. True Confessions. I was looking for a way to cut under US75 where it meets I44. But I ended up having to go off trail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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I got to me destination. The Feds are financing the construction of a new interchange at US 75 and I 44. All of Oklahoma’s congressmen are hurrahing the project. What they don’t say is that they all voted against it. But enough of that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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So I found where the new trail cuts under US 75. It’s almost like a road. Really nice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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So I got over to the other side of US 75 where the YMCA is and followed a trail there. They have put a disc golf course up. YMCA’s are multitaskers!! It looks like they leased a site for a billboard at the same location. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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I couldn’t tarry so I didn’t spend too much time on the east side of US 75 so I doubled back across the trail under the freeway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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And back to Bales Park. I love the trees there. I hardly ever see anybody at Bales Park. On Martin Luther King’s birthday, Turkey Mountain’s parking lots were jam packed. My wife and I went to Bales Park and didn’t hardly see anybody the whole time we were there. I saw literally nobody today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Lots of gray sky and beautiful trees though. That’s Turkey Mountain in the background.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So I see how they are going to connect Bales Park and Turkey Mountain via the YMCA. The freeway interchange construction is at a pause right now and I don’t know when they are starting back up but I don’t see the trail connections being made until the interchange is complete. Obviously I went across and anybody else can but there is really no trails to connect to on either side. Not everybody is going to be willing to overland it like I did.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Here is a map of my adventure. Only about two miles but a million miles of fun.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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