000 Vinita, Oklahoma

We decided on Day One of the trip that, in fact, breakfast is NOT the most important meal of the day: Coffee is. Yes, coffee is a meal. I’m married to a dietitian. Trust me.

With each day a marathon of iconic and random Route 66 photo opportunities, our routine was to leave the hotel as early as necessary to get to our first location while the sun was low and the light was golden. That meant grab a coffee and hit the road.

We preferred to get coffee from an actual coffee shop. For example, Tucumcari Donuts, run by a nice Vietnamese couple (who we regrettably did not photograph) was the perfect place to start Day Four — Fresh brewed coffee and a couple of delicious, homemade donuts for the road to tide us over. If an actual coffee shop wasn’t available we would settle for decent coffee at a gas station convenience store, like Circle K. If we were really short on time, our last resort was to grab a cup of the motel coffee, the quality reflective of the motel we stayed at — bad.

The second meal of the day came after the first couple of photography stops, as early as 10:00 in the morning or as late as 2:00 in the afternoon. Sometimes we’d plan ahead using the magic of Google as we drove, but usually we’d stop someplace at random, like Hi-Way Cafe in Vinita, Oklahoma on Day Five. How could we resist that welcoming giant?

Hi-Way Cafe is a registered Route 66 Roadside Attraction, so we knew we were in for a photographic treat. The interior was as visually enticing as the exterior, bedazzled in everything Route 66 and then some. A statue of Elvis welcomed tourists to purchase tee shirts and other Route 66 trinkets, the garage section of the cafe, where we were seated, featured a juke box and a custom painted antique car.

With a full parking lot, we assumed the food to be decent, but we were not expecting to have one of the best meals of the trip. Our meals were scratch made and delicious. I went down the healthy route and ordered the jalapeño chicken salad. The other guys chose chicken-fried steak and Mexican. 5 star reviews all around.

The people here were every bit as friendly as everyone else we met on the trip. Seeing our cameras, the gentleman in the photo below inquired about our visit to Oklahoma and our photographic interests. “What do you like to photograph?” He asked.
“Landscape, Americana, wildlife…,” was the response.

“Wildlife! Ever have a chance to photograph grizzly bear?”

And that’s when Mike Tully told the inquisitive gentleman about the encounter with a grizzly bear Rick and I had in Yellowstone National Park in 2016.

Mike Tully added to the story a detail that I deliberately left out of my Blog post about that morning –– Mike Criswell opted to sleep-in rather than make the drive to Yellowstone from Jackson with Rick and me, thus missing on an epic opportunity to photograph a grizzly bear dining on a freshly killed elk calf. It is a story that has become legendary; and one that Criswell has learned to embrace, but will never live down. He took it in stride, shaking his head with regret.

About Mike Criswell
An Ohio native, Mike was one of the guys on my first NXNW trip to Moab in 2013. Mike is a very talented photographer, a Canon shooter with a special affection for his stupid ultra wide 11mm lens, which I am often jealous of. He has an altruistic nature. Ask him about the month or so he spent down in Louisiana helping to clean up after Hurricane Katrina. In addition to these NXNW trips, he and I have shot a lot of urbex together in places like Detroit, MI and Gary, IN as well as a couple of old abandoned prisons in NY and PA. (None were as scary as they might sound.) Mike has a dry sense of humor hiding behind a grumpy demeanor. A good friend and a great guy to have a craft beer or two with (IPA preferred). One of Mike’s images is featured on the CD cover of the album, Paint This Town by Old Crow Medicine Show. Check it out on Spotify.

You can find Mike Criswell and his work on his Website, Instagram, and Facebook

000 About This Series

From April 12 through April 20, 2025, I was on a Route 66 Photography Adventure (The Trip) with three good friends and like minded photographers. This series is recap of The Trip in stories and images.

All of the images were shot on that historic road or within a couple of miles of it. Neither the images nor stories are necessarily presented in chronological order.

Enjoying the series? Drop a comment.

Hi-Way Cafe

000 Vinita, Oklahoma

000 About This Series

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