Day 5: Crossing the 100th meridian

August 4, 2005
Joplin, MO to Amarillo, TX

Headed off from Joplin this morning on Route 66. It started out as yet another commercial strip, but not far into Kansas turned into a dusty, unkempt road. Signs weren't great, plus there was some confusion between the Route 66 that gets you somewhere and and "Historic Route 66" that goes nowhere.

I spent most of my trip on the interstates still, because otherwise, I'd probably still be puttering along. The pieces of Route 66 that you see in photos are scattered. Most of the road is similar to any other rural road. And sometimes it disappears completely.

Photos can't possibly show the change in landscape I saw today. Missouri was somewhat different from the northeast, but only little pieces that were hard to identify. Oklahoma started out somewhat similar, but by Texas, the land had turned dry, flat, but covered with rich vegetation that was far different from the east, or even Arkansas.

In Shamrock, TX, you can see changes
in the built as well as physical landscape.

Two well-preserved gas stations
were the highlight of Shamrock.

Onward to Day 6>>>

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