OKLAHOMA AND KANSAS INCLUDING ROUTE 66
John Carter, former presenter of television’s Wish You Were Here programme and avid
globetrotter experiences many delights in Kansas and Oklahoma.
The obvious, easiest and quite the most sensible way of covering the 105 miles between
Tulsa and Oklahoma City is to take the Turner Turnpike - Highway 44. So why do so many
people choose a different road - older, narrower, and marginally longer? Because that lessconvenient alternative is Route 66.
True, you have to be of a certain age to appreciate the importance of that road - which runs
in total for 2,448 miles between Chicago and Santa Monica, California. But an iconic
television series, broadcast from 1960 to 1964, took Route 66 as its title and made the road
famous throughout the world. As, of course, did Bobby Troup's 1946 song.
So Route 66 it has to be. Especially if you are a visitor to the USA, determined to make the
most of your time on your long-planned road trip. The problem when in Oklahoma, however
(and every other State, come to that) is that there never seems to be enough time to see it
all.
Which is why I always suggest using a specialist operator if you are a newcomer to a region,
or, in any event if you want to get the most from your visit. Tour companies have had plenty
of time to plan and refine their suggested routes and itineraries, sending you from point to
point without undue delay. Independent travel is all very well, but should be undertaken only
when you have taken good advice and familiarised yourself with your destination in advance,
and have time to spare.
One such pre-planned self-drive holiday starts with a three night stay in Tulsa, which gives
you plenty of time to explore the city itself, with its wealth of museums and art galleries,
restaurants, clubs and bars. What you may not know, but will quickly discover as you visit
locations around Tulsa - such as the Cherokee Heritage Center at Tahlequah, the Ataloa
Lodge Museum in Muskogee, or historic Fort Gibson - is that Oklahoma has a wealth of
Western history that goes far beyond the eponymous popular musical. Its very name comes
from the Choctaw language - "okla humma" meaning Red People - and no fewer than 25
Native American languages are spoken within its borders. Indeed, Cherokee is the third
most spoken language in Oklahoma - after English and Spanish.
From Tulsa you drive - along Route 66 - for a three night stay in Oklahoma City. There's
more history here in the form of the stunning National Cowboy and Western Heritage
Museum, portraying the rugged individualism and romantic spirit of the American frontier.
The Oklahoma City Stockyards is the largest working stocker/feeder cattle market in the
world, and after visiting the huge cattle pens and auction house, stop back on main street for
authentic western shopping - the best western wear, jewellery, boots, hats, saddles and all
the necessities for western riding. Oklahoma City National Memorial Museum offers a selfguided tour where the Murrah Federal Building once stood and honours the victims,
survivors, and rescuers of the 1995 bombing tragedy. Spend the evening in Bricktown Oklahoma City’s renovated warehouse entertainment district with its mile-long pedestrian
waterway, restaurants and music clubs.
Not far from Oklahoma City, around the town of Sulphur, is the Chickasaw Cultural Center,
the largest of its kind in the USA, set in a magnificently undulating location with streams and
forest land to please the eye.
If you hadn't realised it by now, this State is almost fanatically proud of its place in America's
history - or rather, that part of its history which saw white and red men bury their differences
as America expanded westwards. In 1889, when a "land run" was held, 10,000 people
settled in Oklahoma City in a single day. Pressure like that meant the upheaval of settled
tribes, and a great deal of injustice. But Oklahoma is a fine example of how the America of
today has come to appreciate the rich culture and heritage of those it now rightly calls
"Native Americans".
It's less than 200 miles from Oklahoma City to Wichita, whose flowering into the largest city
in Kansas was spurred on when Jesse Chisholm blazed through en route from Texas to
Abilene in the 1860’s, on what became the famous Chisholm Cattle Trail. By
spending three nights here, you have ample opportunity to learn more about the old west,
but Wichita has much more to offer. I would particularly recommend spending time in the Old
Town. Originally a district of brick-built warehouses, it is a mecca for shoppers during the
day, but transforms Cinderella-like each evening into a vibrant entertainment district - with
restaurants and nightclubs and just about every type of music entertainment you could wish
for.
An excellent excursion from Wichita would take you into Amish country. The village of Yoder
offers genuine handmade Amish craftwork and quilts and - in the Carriage Crossing
Restaurant - a unique place to eat. In complete contrast, you should also visit Hutchinson,
where the Kansas Cosmosphere and Space Center is home to the second largest collection
of space artefacts in the USA (The largest is in the National Air and Space Museum in
Washington's Smithsonian Institute, in case you were wondering.)
There could be no greater contrast to Tulsa, Oklahoma City or Wichita than your next stop
on this grand road trip. The town of Cottonwood Falls is a mere 90 miles from Wichita,
and the short journey takes you along the Flint Hills National Scenic Byway through the
grasslands of the Great Plains with time to stop along the way to learn more about that
fascinating ecosystem. Cottonwood Falls is a charming town, the largest in Chase
County. The 2010 Census put its population at 903. The Chase County Court House was
built in French Renaissance style in 1873 - just as the Acheson, Topeka and Santa Fe
railway arrived in the locality. The Court House is on the National Register of Historic Places,
and rightly so!
In Council Grove (take lunch, if you can, in Hays House which is the oldest restaurant west
of the Mississippi), the entire downtown area is listed on the national register of historical
places, as this is where the Santa Fe Trail heading West began. See the statues of the
Madonna of the Trail and Guardian of the Grove before you head north for an overnight stay
in Manhattan. No, we haven't suddenly arrived in New York - this Manhattan is a mere 60
miles from Cottonwood Falls and definitely you are still in Kansas. Like university towns the
world over (in this case K-State U) Manhattan has masses of places where you may wine
and dine comparatively cheaply.
By now the trip is nearing its end - just about one-hour drive east from Manhattan to
Lawrence, for the next two nights. On the way, spare time to explore Topeka - though
Lawrence is far from being an anticlimax. It is, by any measure, a unique community. Very
few places in the USA provide live music in their evening streets, as patrons take advantage
of pavement restaurants, boutiques, art galleries and antique shops.
Finally, a short journey to Kansas City - which straddles the Kansas/Missouri state line,
offers a wealth of museums, plenty of shops and a good selection of restaurants. A great
place to end a comprehensive tour of Oklahoma and Kansas. A great place to decide,
probably, that you will return!