Blue Whale of Catoosa

The whale was the work of Hugh Davis, a longtime zoo director in the Tulsa area, who built it in the early 1970s as an anniversary surprise for his wife Zelta, who collected whale figurines. Over a couple of years he mixed the concrete and shaped the great smiling creature by hand along the edge of the family's spring-fed pond, complete with a slide off its tail and a ladder up its side.

What started as a private spot for the grandchildren became a magnet for the neighborhood and then for travelers on Route 66. Word spread, and the Davis family eventually opened the pond to the public as a swimming hole, with the whale as its grinning centerpiece. For years it was a favorite summer stop for local families and passing road-trippers alike.

As the interstate pulled traffic off Route 66 and the family grew older, the swimming hole eventually closed and the whale fell into disrepair, its paint fading and its structure weathering by the pond. For a time it looked as though it might be lost, one more casualty of the Mother Road's long decline.

Then came the Route 66 revival. Volunteers, the town of Catoosa, and admirers of roadside Americana rallied to repaint and restore the whale, and it has been lovingly maintained ever since. Today it is a free, cheerful stop, its blue paint kept bright and its smile intact, a symbol of the nostalgia and community spirit that keeps old Route 66 alive.

Catoosa sits at the edge of what Oklahomans call Green Country, the wetter, greener northeast corner of the state, and just outside Tulsa, one of Route 66's great cities. This stretch of the old highway is thick with landmarks, from neon signs and vintage motels to other beloved roadside oddities, and the Blue Whale is one of its brightest stars.

The region is the historic home of the Cherokee Nation and other tribes removed to Indian Territory, and Catoosa itself grew as a railroad and river-port town. Today it is best known to travelers as the home of the whale, an easy and joyful stop on a longer Route 66 or Green Country ramble.

A stop at the Blue Whale is a short and happy one. You park beside the old highway, walk down to the pond, and can still climb into and through the whale itself, posing on its fins or peering out of its mouth. Picnic tables sit under the shade trees, and a small gift shop tells the story and sells the requisite souvenirs.

It is the kind of place that rewards a little lingering. Read the plaques about Hugh and Zelta Davis, watch the turtles and fish in the pond, and take the photo everyone takes. Then roll on down Route 66 to the next roadside marvel, of which this corner of Oklahoma has plenty.

The closest Boutel™ stays, so you can turn this stop into an overnight. Each is an independently owned, editorially selected place to stay.