66 Day Five: Oklahoma City, OK to Shamrock, TX

In Oklahoma City you’ll find the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum, home to thousands of Western and Native American artworks and artifacts. Here you’ll also find the world’s largest collection of rodeo photographs, trophies, saddles, and barbed wire.

If you’re in the mood for a spooky evening, head to the Skirvin Hotel in Oklahoma City. Quaint hotels and motels near and on Route 66 have accommodated road travelers for decades, but stopping at a haunted hotel along the Mother Road may bring you face-to-face with some unexpected fellow guests. One of the creepiest haunted tales along the route is the story of Effie, the ghost of a maid said to have had an affair with oil tycoon W.B. Skirvin. Men staying at the hotel claim they’ve been propositioned by a female voice while in their rooms, and some say the ghost of a naked woman has showered with them during their stay. Others report creepy noises and maid carts moving down the halls on their own. The New York Knicks even blamed a 2010 loss to the OKC Thunder on the spookiness of the place.

If you’re ready for a life-changing culinary experience, hit up Arbuckle Mountain Fried Pies. These Oklahoma pies come from a tiny town called Springer, where Maude Pletcher perfected the family recipe and handed it down to her nine children. Decades later, Maude’s grandson started selling the pies in their struggling gas station restaurant. The shop now offers fruit, chocolate, pumpkin, and coconut cream pies, along with sugar free and savory pies.

Sid’s Diner in El Reno is renowned for its famous fried onion burger. What makes this burger so epic is both its size and its onions, which are caramelized directly into the ground beef. You may recognize this dish from the Travel Channel show Man v. Food.

Just 1 mile south of Hinton, you’ll find Red Rock Canyon Adventure Park. Native Americans used to set up camp here in the winter and it was also once a major stop for 19th century settlers heading west to California.

Lucille's Service Station—also known as Provine Station—is a classic Route 66 gas station known for its unusual design. Built by Carl Ditmore in 1929, there are only a few of these upper-story, porch-style stations left in the U.S. Ditmore sold his station to the Hamons family, and Lucille Hamons ran it for 60 years, earning it its current name.

The Stafford Air & Space Museum includes spacesuits worn by astronauts in orbit, nuclear missiles, an actual Titan II rocket, the Gemini 6 space capsule, a recreation of the Wright Brothers’ glider, and 3,500 other artifacts from the history of air and space travel.