By COLLIN ZINK, Senior Reporter
Spring break was an adventure for me as I went with my mom, dad, niece and nephew on Route 66 toward Amarillo, Texas.
It all started on the Monday of spring break, when my parents and I made our way to Stillwater to get my niece and nephew. Then, we hit the road.
With two kids in the car — and my niece so obsessed with Halloween that she asked my mom for a spooky story every five minutes and Blue’s Clues playing on repeat — I was happy to have a phone charger, mobile data and earbuds so I could have some peace of my own.
EL RENO
Our first stop was El Reno, where we went and took some pictures by a giant Route 66 sign and a railroad caboose.
After taking some pictures, we went to find somewhere to eat.
My niece once again asked for a spooky story. My mom didn’t have a story to tell at that moment, so I decided to tell her the story about the headless horseman of Sleepy Hollow — with my own little twist to it.
We ate at Johnny’s Grill, and it was filled with more chaos.
My nephew was crying because after throwing his crayons on the floor multiple times, my dad (he was sitting next to my nephew) was not going to pick them up because he was doing it on purpose.
After we ate, we checked into a hotel, and my parents took the kids to a park to play at.
I stayed at the hotel to work on some homework.
We got up the next day, had breakfast and made our way towards Elk City.
WEATHERFORD
On our way there, we stopped in Weatherford and went to the museum right next to I-40.
The museum had exhibits about Native American tribes in Oklahoma, along with Oklahoma ghost towns and much more.
One exhibit I found cool was the military exhibit.
What was cool about it was that the museum had some sand from Normandy Beach that we were allowed to touch. I also found out that my great-great grandfather participated in the Invasion of Normandy in World War II.
There were outdoor exhibits as well. One of the exhibits was a little café where Elvis Presley ate multiple times.
A schoolhouse was also there. My niece was at the teacher’s desk acting like a teacher, and my nephew was playing with a toy school bus.
ELK CITY
When we made it to Elk City, we found a hotel, checked in and rested for the next day.
The next morning, we went to the National Route 66 Museum Complex, which had multiple buildings to tour.
One of the exhibits I spent a lot of time in was the World War I and World War II exhibit, which had a small Operation Desert Storm exhibit merged with it.
As I looked at the exhibit, I was upset to not find anything about the U.S.S Indianapolis because that was the ship that ended World War II.
Next, we went to the Route 66 Bazaar.
We had trouble finding a place to park because there were a whole lot of random street signs mounted outside the building, and we were confused about whether they were for decoration or not.
It was at the Bazaar I learned about a man named Harley Russell, who has his own Route 66 attraction in nearby Erick.
He insults people for comedy, and they give him tips for insults.
That same day, we arrived in Amarillo, Texas.
AMARILLO
Our hotel was a block away from The Big Texan Steak Ranch, which is where we ate dinner.
We woke up the next day and went to Palo Duro Canyon, which is where I found out Coronado Hall is named after the Spanish explorer Francisco Vasquez de Coronado.
We did a little bit of hiking on some easy trails, had a little snack at a restaurant, and drove around to look at the rest of the canyon.
We then went back to the hotel to rest up a little bit and ate at The Big Texan, a famous roadside restaurant, later that day.
While at the restaurant, my niece and nephew got a cowboy hat with their meals.
When we were leaving the restaurant, we saw that there was someone who was doing the 72-oz. Steak Challenge. People who eat the whole steak and all the trimmings get it for free.
We didn’t stay long enough to see if the person won. The event is also timed.
The next day, we went to Cadillac Ranch, where people could spray paint old Cadillac cars.
My niece and nephew had a blast, and I also spray-painted some cars.
Someone spray painted “Boomer Sooner” on the ground. My dad yelled, “Boomer,” and I of course yelled, “Sooner.”
After the Cadillac Ranch, we made our way to a mall.
On the way there, my dad and I went into a Catholic store, while my mom stayed in the car with the kids.
We walked around in the mall for a while, and I looked at some sports memorabilia that was too expensive.
After the mall, we ate at The Lost Cajun restaurant, where they gave us free samples because that was our first time eating there.
The next day, we packed up and headed back home.
