The Long and Winding Road

Had I known that the day would be as long as it was, I might not have been so cheerful as we packed up at Little America. There was a light mist falling and it was cool enough for a jacket. This is the first time I had worn a jacket since we left Mom's on Sunday.

As you can see we slept in this morning. We got rolling around 07:00 heading south from Cheyenne. There was a warning on the radio about the possibility of reduced vision due to fog.

The fog was fairly light as we headed south out of town. We utilized the drive through breakfast option again today, although they had a lovely restaurant at Little America. We were anxious to eat up some miles. We headed for Colorado.

The fog got a little thicker and we had to slow down a bit,  but not too much as we continued to keep weather eye out. We also wanted to make sure we could see clearly enough to get our next shot.

Here is the shot we were waiting for. Welcome to Colorado. Thus far we have passed through BC, WA, ID, MT, WY and now CO.

The road stretched on wide and open. The scenery in this part of the world is not overly inspiring except if you have an abiding interest in sky scapes. There is an abundance of  sky available to see!

We bypassed Denver on a Toll Road. The toll booths have been removed and one has to log on to their website, to pay electronically. It probably saved us about 3/4 hr. of travel and cost $9.75 We turned left and headed across I-40. This time we turned off at Limon and headed down 287. After a short drive we came to the town of Hugo.

The bank has a statue cast in bronze outside entitled "Partners" It shows a rancher with a newborn calf talking to his cowgirl. The faithful dog stands guard. The lady has a ponytail, ball cap and daisy earrings, with a hole in the elbow of her jean jacket, while the rancher has frayed cuffs and worn boots.  The statue speaks to a hard life, but one with self-sufficient rewards.

It is interesting that this is the First National Bank of Hugo. Now I could see Hugo City Bank, Hugo Regional Bank, Hugo Citizens State Bank, but Hugo National Bank.....c'mon....what?

We continued south of Hugo and found more flatness. You can look until you see the curvature of the earth. It reminds me of a joke about Saskatchewan. If your dog runs away you can watch him leave home for 3 days!

We came to Wiley. What's in Wiley you ask? Well, there's a gas station.

If you look to the left of the gas station you see this view.

Apparently this is a busy time of year for Wiley. What transpires during Hay Days? I know not!!

The long views continue, broken by an occasional butte eight or nine miles away.

We continued to travel south until we came to the border of our destination state.

We entered Oklahoma at the panhandle. This is an interesting feature of the state. Where Colorado stops and Texas starts there is a thin strip of land about 35 X 166 miles that somehow got attached to OK. Ah yes. Oklahoma where the wind comes whistling o'er the plain. There is increasing use of that self same wind. Although the investment is steep at first, the raw material of generation (wind) is free!!

The landscape continues to amaze. It goes from flat and dry, to hilly and dry. This area has been in drought for the last 3 years.

Apparently someone has enough time to paint rocks white and place an eco-ad for St. Paul's Methodist Church. This must have taken some time to complete in the dry heat.

We stopped in the little town of Stratford TX. to get gas. Scooterchick spotted this garden decor store across the road, and we stopped long enough for a look. You will see the result later.

We continued south and went through the town of Dumas TX. It was about then that is started to rain. It was light at first, but got harder and steadier, then increased in intensity to a regular Texas gully washer. Then interestingly enough it changed to hail. I had heard about this type of weather.

We turned on the radio to check the weather and neither of us was surprised to hear the "brahn-brahn-brahn" tone followed by a warning from the National Weather Service.

I asked Patsy to keep an eye out west as the radio forecast, strong rain, hail, probable thunderstorms and a strong possibility of Tornadic activity. This was considered a Tornado Watch. When it elevates to a Tornado Warning, that means get under cover, it's about to get hinky!!! I thought we should keep traveling and vacate the area. We did stop to get some Fried Chicken to eat while driving. and everyone in the area was keeping one eye on the sky! We drove past a deserted amusement park.

When we reached Amarillo we turned east. The sun was getting low in the sky and the red clay dirt showed itself as we headed back towards Oklahoma.

The dirt is quite striking in the right light, and as the sun sank in the sky we drove on.

The sun sank lower as we went through Clarendon TX. It has a bleak feel to it. Ramshackle houses and trashy yards. It's sad to contrast some towns so neat and well kept and others nearly deserted & junked.

As we traveled east the sun was setting and we tried to catch a few pictures of the prairie sunset.

The colors in the sky are usually just spectacular at sunset. This is the norm rather than the exception.

It was about 9:45 when we arrived in Lawton. This means we had been on the road for just about 18 hrs. and 725mi. We were feeling tired.....not too tired. Scooterchick was thrilled to see Miss Vicky.

I also renewed my love affair with my scooter - Maj- She was waiting patiently for me. I had a fresh insurance sticker for her. I knew she was itching to roll. Soon my sweet....soon!

You will recall the stop in Stratford TX at the outdoor store. This is what Scooterchick found. They are topiary frames. You put the feet in the ground and plant ivy in the center. The ivy then fills in and the globe is "greened."

Well, that's all for now. You may feel it's altogether too much! I wish you well regardless. Until next time be nice to yourself, and be nice to others!