Day 37 - Stroud to Tulsa OK

At breakfast I met Danny and Cookie, a couple who made their careers in the oil industry. Cookie currently works in the Devon Tower in downtown Oklahoma City. They are very aware of plastic pollution problems in the ocean. 

On the road it was cloudy, very cool (40°F) and windy.

As mentioned at ZeroW.org, I continue to pick up at least one piece of trash each day along my route and tweet a picture of it to its maker. Here is a Dasani bottle made by Coca Cola. 

Both Google Maps and RideWithGPS wanted me to go down this old part of Route 66 but it was blocked by a gate. Later I ran into another section that was permanently closed as well.

Clearly I am in Trump country. MAGA looks a bit run down though.

Shortly thereafter I ran into the Route 66 Biker Rally headquarters.

Route 66 then ran through a lot of countryside with almost no vehicles on it -- very nice. 

It is nice to get so much undivided attention from most cows whenever I pass them.

I've passed by many big farm equipment vendors. Here is a small one.

A bit later I encountered a super sized Route 66 gas pump...

... and a smoking joint called Torchy's...

... and a neat Route 66 mural.

Here is a patriotic eating establishment...

...and another old style one geared toward eating in your car.

Lots of flowering trees just outside of Sapulpa, OK.

And more cows along with a plastic cup.

Near Tulsa, I ran into a street of houses each with a brick mailbox.

Many houses had nice purple blooming trees.

My map said I was supposed to get onto the Aquarium Trail here -- this trail did not look very promising...

...but after the grass path and some dirt/gravel...

... the paved portion finally became apparent.

The paved path went past a shopping area and a driving range that had 3 floors of people hitting balls.

I really like how bike paths go under and over freeways.

At last I arrived at the Oklahoma Aquarium in Tulsa.

Kara, Stefani, and a diver whose name I did not catch posed for a selfie. Kara and Stefani were amazed I had biked so far to reach their aquarium and that my household was down to just a quart of trash a month. They are each working toward zero waste as well.

The OK aquarium has a shark tunnel...

...with many bull sharks and human visitors.

They also have a pool with lots of manta rays -- look but don't touch these. They also have some bat rays and other touch pools.

Here they have some native Oklahoma fish and creatures. Kind of reminded me of the Monterey Bay Aquarium's tidal zone area with waterfalls instead of waves.

Paddlefish are found in Oklahoma but their populations have decreased dramatically. They are currently listed as vulnerable and not that far from becoming endangered.

Lots of fresh water turtles.

The OK aquarium also has 1 large leatherback sea turtle.

Sea turtles are threatened by climate change and especially by plastic bags that look like jelly fish. Sea turtles love jelly fish but the bags kill them.

Joe, one of the docent volunteers posed with me and their sea turtle. The turtle is scheduled to be named by this November through a public naming contest that just started. 

After leaving the aquarium, I rode across a super wide bike/ped bridge!

Then I dropped by Phat Tire to pick up a spare tire just in case I encounter any more large screws like I did in Portales New Mexico. I have a schedule to keep so will carry a bit more weight to ensure I have the parts I need in an area where bike stores can be a bit scarce.

After the bike store stop I hopped back on an excellent bike path.

It eventually dropped me on a bike route in a very nice neighborhood.

I zigged and zagged past very interesting vehicles and houses until I reached my Warmshowers host for the evening.