Ben and Janet's Travel Blog: Thursday, May 12, 2022. Stuttgart AR to Norman OK

Thursday, May 12, 2022. Stuttgart AR to Norman OK

It was very fortunate they had power available at the end of the museum building and that Ben had enough cord (25’ primary plus 25’ auxiliary 30A cable) to reach because it was a hot and humid night. The outside temperature started in the low 90’s and eventually cooled down to 78˚F by morning, but the RV’s air conditioner was able to keep it comfortable at 73˚F with minimal humidity. We got up at 7am, and got the RV ready to go before the museum opened at 8am. We previewed the outdoors exhibits before the front doors opened.

To further trouble shooting the RV’s propane system, Ben disconnected the built in regulator from the built in tank. Cracking open the main valve generated the expected jet of propane. Ben took down the auxiliary LP tank from the ladder and set it on the ground next to the built in tank and connected the regulator to the auxiliary LP tank, then opened the valve and tested the RV’s systems. No gas leak smell and the LP cooktop worked. We ran the generator for 10 minutes along with the air conditioner since the generator needed to be run anyways for conditioning. This seemed to indicate that the built in regulator worked OK when connected to the auxiliary tank. So Ben closed the auxiliary tank and we stowed it back on the ladder, and Ben reconnected the main tank. But after cracking the valve open again, there was no gas flow to the LP cooktop. It is possible that there is a problem with the POL fitting between the tank and the regulator because some have a flow restrictor to prevent excessive flow of gas. We will have to stop at a hardware store to see if we can buy a full flow POL connector with the proper 1/4”NPT threads to see if that is the problem.

Once the museum opened, we learned that they are open by donation, so we donated $20 and toured the museum. We were pleasantly surprised by the scope and quality of this museum seemingly in the middle of nowhere Arkansas. There are several exhibit halls. The one by the main entry is dedicated to the history of the Stuttgart area and how it became renowned for both rice and ducks.

There was also an Army Air Force base in Stuttgart during WWII. The availability of water and topography make it excellent for growing rice, and also for attracting all manner of migratory water fowl. There is a wing of the museum dedicated to the waterfowl hall of fame. It has what may be the world’s largest collection of waterfowl calls and quite an extensive collection of decoys and taxidermy waterfowl species.

Another hall is full of mechanized equipment, both farm and domestic dating back to the steam era and up to the mid century. They have some very impressive steam tractors including one the size of a tiny house that is rated at 25-90HP.

And there is a hall with a reproduction of the town square with a post office, pharmacy, barber’s chair, other shops and even a creepy jail, complete with a iron cage lock-up.

We could have easily spent a couple of hours wandering around in the museum, but had to force ourselves to hit the road by 9am in order to make it to our destination of Norman OK at a reasonable time. If you find yourself on I-40 driving through Arkansas and wonder if it’s worth the side trip, I’d say go for it.

Driving through Arkansas and eastern Oklahoma we migrated from the flat rice and soybean fields into more hilly country with dense deciduous forests. There are still plenty of road killed armadillos on the shoulders. At one point, we saw a turtle crossing the road in front of us. He was in the center of our lane, so we knew we’d pass harmlessly over the top of him, but humorously, when he saw us coming, he retracted into his shell, like that was going to save him.

We refueled in Russellville AR, taking on 18.640gal @ $5.179/gal with 23446 miles on the odometer (14mpg). We also ran into the Walmart and got a sub sandwich for lunch and DEF for the RV. The refill DEF message hadn’t come on yet, but the DEF level was approaching the mark where that warning usually comes on. That pretty much topped off the DEF tank.

When we crossed into Oklahoma, we used the Oklahoma Visitor Greeting center in Gans OK to switch drivers, giving Janet a shift.

That rest stop happens to have a free trailer dump facility, although we didn’t need to use it.

As we approached the outskirts of Oklahoma City, we couldn’t pass up $5.09 diesel being advertised by a Valero station by the freeway in Johnson OK. There we took on 14.709 gal, but after starting the RV, Ben noticed that it hadn’t really filled the tank. The fuel gauge showed 7/8, so the shutoff mechanism on the pump was a little hypersensitive. There was 23671 miles on the odometer (15.3mpg- overestimated because the tank wasn’t completely full).

As we drove by Tinker AFB, we drove under a railway overpass and saw a train pulling flatbeds loaded with M60 Abrams main battle tanks- a whole division’s worth.

Also near Tinker AFB, we moved to the left lane so that merging traffic could enter easily. There was a brand new black Mustang Shelby coming down the on-ramp who apparently wanted to make a real impression by burning rubber as he merged. Well, he did manage to generate a huge engine roar and brief cloud of smoke before he blew up his transmission and motor, and went sputtering onto the shoulder. Yes, we were duly impressed by that display of testosterone fueled stupidity.

Traffic around the AFB and OK City got pretty bad at spots, but as we headed south into Norman, the traffic eased. We pulled up at Janet’s Aunt Ruby’s house right at 4:30pm. Janet’s cousin Ron was already there waiting for us to arrive.

We stretched out legs and visited a bit before getting into Ron’s Lexus SUV for a trip to Rudy’s BBQ, “Real Texas BBQ” in Oklahoma.

It was situated in a gas station with Phillips 66 pumps. Ron and Ben got into a credit card war when it came to paying up, but Ruby got very insistent that she and Ron host the meal, and Ben wasn’t about to knock the old gal down. So we were treated to some very delicious BBQ. There are lots of picnic tables in the restaurant, but guests are pretty much on their own for service after picking up the meat and fixin’s at the counter. So you pull off a sheet of butcher paper and grab paper towels for napkins and plastic utensils and have yourselves a picnic.

We ended up ordering too much potato salad and beans, but we managed to finish the potato salad, and have about 2 cups of leftover beans for the RV. The moist brisket and baby back pork ribs were quite good. The servings are a half pound of meat per person.

After Rudy’s, we got a tour of the Oklahoma University campus where the Fullerton boys got their education. There’s a lot of red and white brick on that campus, which is quite large and also very lush and green, at least this time of year.