A Tiring Day

I started early this morning in the dark, hoping to make as many miles as possible. I wanted to make it at least to Joplin and maybe even farther. It ended up being a very long and tiring drive. There was construction going through Tulsa and the toll roads took up time as well. Oklahoma does not have any rest areas. They only have "picnic areas" that do not have bathrooms. This means that I stopped at McDonalds along the way. Each time you got off the toll road, you had to show them your receipt and get a refund at the exit and then pay as you got back on the turnpike. Talk about a pain! Then I had to make stops for Moon Shadow that were separate from my stops. Overall, I ended up making 530 miles. I was pretty much ready to stop driving an hour before Joplin, but the area that the hotels were located at were not very good. They were basically a gas station and a hotel next to a field and dirt roads. So, I pushed on and made it to Carthage, MO. I still have about 700 miles to go. At least Missouri and Illinois have rest areas!