I had the opportunity last summer to do a story with Oklahoma Today managing editor Nathan Gunter. I had pitched the story to the publication a couple of years ago and Nathan loved the idea, so after a bit of planning we scheduled six days over a two week period – 3 days each – to travel Oklahoma’s Highway 33, the longest state highway in Soonerland. Starting near at the Arkansas border near Idabel and Broken Bow in far southeast Oklahoma, the road meanders northwest through Ada and Oklahoma City, out west past Watonga and Woodward, and then on through Guymon in the panhandle and exits Oklahoma at the Colorado line near Boise City – a bit over 600 miles total one way. Our plan was to travel from OKC to southeast Oklahoma and back in one 3 day period, then from OKC to Boise City and back in the second 3 day period a week later.
Of course the story is not about the actual highway – that is just a long strip of asphalt and concrete. The story is about the people along the way and how this long stretch of highway ties the diverse economy and culture of Oklahoma together into one state. The terrain is as diverse as the people. Our goal was to not only show the landscape of the state, but more importantly to me, the people of Oklahoma. My job was to help Nathan tell the story of this road and the spirit of the people along the way.
Here are the pages from that story. You can read the full story by picking up a copy of Oklahoma Today at most any newstand or Walmart, or by subscribing at Oklahoma Today.
Below is a slide show of images from our trip.
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