Day 41: To Davis

October 19, 2014

On the road at 8:50. Cloudy, 53F. The shorter days make it hard to get an early start. I headed west out of Atoka on OK 7. I expected it to be mostly flat but it climbs gently up to 1300 feet elevation. Traffic was light, but much of the traffic was crude oil tanker trucks. Surprising on Sunday.

Some of the first prickly pear cactus I've seen during the tour.

Today I saw prickly pear cactus and pink granite outcroppings for the first time on this tour. The landscape is starting to look vaguely "western".

I passed only 1 store between Atoka and Sulfur. No restaurants. Just ranches. Not many homes.

First exposed granite I've seen during the tour.

I had either a tailwind or crosswind all day. The miles were fast and easy. Good thing because today is a long day.

The terrain is very gentle and the tree canopy is minimal.

Today I saw many cows, oil tanks, oil trucks, and gravel/sand quarries. I think the gravel quarries are mostly for the oil industry. Drilling pads use a huge quantity of gravel. The pavement is mildly imprinted with tractor tire tracks.

The gentle terrain allows the road to go straight for miles.

Trees keep getting shorter and more sparse. The landscape isn't even close to forested now.

I passed through the town of Sulphur without stopping other than taking pictures. It seems fairly prosperous. The oil industry is thriving.

Coming into Sulphur I passed the Oklahoma school for the deaf. Last year I passed the Montana school for the deaf in Dillon.

Casino in Sulphur, operated by the Chickasaw tribe. I'm now in the Chickasaw Nation.

Traffic was extremely heavy between Sulphur and Davis, on a divided highway that connects Sulphur to I-35. And of course it was rush hour as I went through Sulphur and Davis.

I'm now in the Chickasaw Nation, but there aren't many signs of it. I passed only a few tribal facilities. Plus the big casino.

AMTRAK station in Davis, Oklahoma. A minor route that goes from Oklahoma City to Fort Worth.

There was no motel with a vacancy in town in Davis. So I got a $60 room at Mountain View motel 2.5 miles south of town. Then I backtracked into town for dinner at the Mexican restaurant. It had many customers speaking Spanish, which I haven't seen much during this tour.

I'm now in Oklahoma's heartland not far south of Oklahoma City. The region seems fairly prosperous, with oil and ranching doing well. From here I go mostly south to Forth Worth, Texas.

Today had a thin layer of high clouds, with a high of 73F. Not bad. Favorable wind and gentle terrain made it a fairly easy day despite the long distance.

Distance: 79 mi. (126 km)
Climbing: 2111 ft. (640 m)
Average Speed: 13.1 mph (21 km/h)

Today's ride: 79 miles (127 km)
Total: 2,030 miles (3,267 km)

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