Route 66

2022-07-05
AR, OK

We began the morning with number four on the Hot Springs list: hike Hot Springs Mountain. The theory was to hike early before it was hot, but that turned out to be impossible; it was never below about 80 F. Despite the heat and humidity, we hiked 3.5 miles, doing a full loop around the outside as well as a side trip up to Goat Rock where we learned that it was hazy. Along the trails were a few shelters from an earlier era that had been refurbished. There is also an observation tower that you can go up in for a fee; however, I didn't think it would be less hazy after hiking one mile, so we declined. The signs told us that baseball players including Ty Cobb trained on the mountain which gave them great fitness. I didn't see anything special about it; probably any place with a little altitude would be as good.

After the hike we got ready and left the Happy Hollow feeling good about a completed list. Good old Google took us along the rural highways instead of an interstate. It was fun to get a feel for the area from the ground. We passed through Ouatachi National Forest. It went on for miles. There are a lot of villages to support recreational activities in the Forest. Fishing seemed to be the currently active one.

We crossed into Oklahoma following the rural routes before picking up Interstate 40 for a while. Just past Oklahoma City we jumped off and took the scenic route along Route 66. In many places it has been upgraded to a modern highway (often I-40 west of Oklahoma City) but we were able to follow it for several miles. It's a narrow road with "soft shoulders" which means that it's grass if you have to pull over and can be muddy. We went through a couple places that are trying to be nostalgic but didn't stop for, well, mostly food.

We did hope to visit the Route 66 museum as an evening activity, but it closed before we got there. And at one point when we were on I-40/Rt 66 we declined to exit for the world's largest Route 66 sign. If you want to see that you're on your own.

Most of the day the car thermometer read 101, plus or minus a couple degrees. The humidity dropped as we moved from Arkansas to Oklahoma, but the heat was potent. Yesterday we met a wedding photographer who lived in Hot Springs and he said, "isn't the weather in PA like this?" No; no it is not. Since the goal for today was just moving west, we spent the night in a hotel in Clinton, OK.

Driving miles 410

Hiking miles: 3.5