Day 5: Cuba MO to Miami OK – 245 miles
Hola amigos. We’ve journeyed from Cuba to Miami today – and we didn’t even use a raft!
Continuing to explore the same mysterious theme, we stop to photograph a giant rocking chair – where is Edith Ann?
While we started out on Route 66 this morning, we have now encountered a rainstorm of biblical proportions. After passing through several sections of standing water, we are forced to abandon the Mother Road for the interstate. This turns out to be a wise decision as I-44 itself will be become inundated and be forced to close in the following 48 hours. As we drive past Eureka, Mo, we are blithely unaware that the Meramec River is cresting and the town will soon be totally flooded.
By the time we reach Springfield, MO (lots of towns named Springfield out this way), the skies lighten and we are able to return to Route 66 and drive through Kansas and into Oklahoma. After a mandatory tourist visit to Meramec Caverns (where Jesse James once took refuge), we settle down in Miami (pronounced “Miamuh” by the locals). This is an excellent time to take stock of just how much Route 66 swag we have accumulated so far. Seems we’ve never met a gift shop we didn’t like.
