Belgians on the Mother Road: Day 5: Springfield, MO to Tulsa, OK

Today, we had one of our longer drives, touching the road in three states: Missouri, Kansas, and Oklahoma.

My dad calling someone long-distance at the old
Sinclair gas station

Gas station in Paris Springs, MO

We started the road at the west-side of Springfield, MO through a couple small towns. Real soon, we found several old (and some restored) gas stations in Halltown and Paris Springs.

Gary, my dad and I at the Sinclair gas station

In Paris Springs, a town that houses no more than 100 people, we stopped at an old Sinclair gas station. There, we met Gary, an older guy that has been showing the road for about 15 years to traveling visitors. He was very inviting, making sure we took all the right pictures in the right places in his garage he set up with old relics. While drinking a free Route 66 soda he provided us, we discussed the Road, life and politics. We probably spend about 45 minutes with him and he took the time to call out some of the key attractions further down so that we wouldn't miss them.

Church in Red Oaks, MO

General store in Red Oaks, MO

After crossing a few more little towns, we passed by Red Oak, a made-up village from back in the day. You literally found everything in this little town - the general store, gas station, black-smith, church, and several houses and cars.

Flo in the Disney movie "Cars"

The town also held the car that was the inspiration for Flo from the movie Cars.

Drive-in Theater near Carthage, MO

Painted tree in the emptiness that the
tornado left last year in Joplin, MO

Travelling further, we drove through Carthage, which still houses a restored and active drive-in theater. A little later, we ended up in Carterville, a place where we talked to a mechanic for a while about Route 66 and the tornado that destroyed a part of Joplin in May of last year.

One new house, but not many others where the tornado
hit in Joplin, MO

Route 66 took us through downtown Joplin but given the recent tragedy that struck that town, we decided to drive by the affected area to see how things were coming along. As we got closer to the affected area, we started seeing little signs from the devastation - a couple empty lots where stores used to stand, broken off electricity poles, etc.

Downtown Joplin

But as we drove a little further, we transitioned from a busy street of retail stores into almost an open field. Some retail stores were present but were obviously rebuilt in the last year - several new houses, but overall a very eerie feeling. What we also saw in multiple places were construction companies rebuilding houses. It is clear it will still take a while, but it is nice to see this community being rebuilt.

Old gas station in Baxter Springs, KS

Soon after we left Joplin, we entered Kansas.

Kansas only has about 13 miles of Route 66 and when the interstate was built, it completely bypassed Kansas, but the towns that you encounter in the short while you spend in this state are full of Route 66 relics and memories.

Downtown Baxter Springs, KS

Inspiration for Mater the tow truck
in the Disney movie "Cars" in Galena, KS

A nice add was to find the inspiration for Mater the Tow Truck from the movie Cars. Baxter Springs in Kansas had Route 66 plastered all over the town - making sure you knew you were traveling the Mother Road.

Old Spanish colonial-style theater in Miami, OK

Soon, we found ourselves in Oklahoma. The landscape very quickly changed on us to where we found the 100+ acre ranches one after the other. Long miles were spread between the little towns like Quapaw and Commerce.

When we got to Miami, we found a nice 1929 Spanish colonial-style theater in the downtown.

Very soon after that, we were lucky to drive for several miles on original 1922 pieces of Route 66, widened on both sides with some gravel.

The original Mother Road near Miami, OK

Rest Haven Motel sign
in Afton, OK

Three abandoned rooms of the Avon Motel in Afton, OK

Further down, we drove through the towns of Narcissa, Afton and Vinita where we found some old motels, some still in business, others very much not so.

The Rainbow Bridge near
Baxter Springs, KS - the last
"Marsh Arch" bridge remaining

1936 bridge near Catoosa, OK

Today, we also came across multiple bridges from the 1920 era that were carefully taken care of and looked amazing in the landscape we traveled through.