Take a scenic ride through the quiet backroads of northeastern Oklahoma as we follow U.S. Route 60 from the Historic 1923 Ribbon Road near Afton to Oklahoma Highway 66 in White Oak. This 21-mile stretch offers a blend of Oklahoma heritage, rural charm, and subtle ties to the glory days of Route 66, winding past farmland, rolling prairies, and small towns that keep the spirit of the open road alive.
Our journey begins just east of Afton, where U.S. Route 60 intersects with one of the rarest stretches of original Route 66: the historic 9-foot-wide Ribbon Road. This narrow concrete relic of early highway construction is a reminder of how far American roadbuilding has come—and how fiercely local communities once fought for a piece of the Mother Road. From here, we leave the historic byway behind and merge west onto U.S. 60, entering a wide corridor of cultivated fields and farmsteads. The terrain is relatively flat, with low ridges rising gently in the distance. It’s a classic northeastern Oklahoma landscape: open, functional, and deeply tied to agriculture.
As we roll past Afton’s outskirts, the landscape transitions subtly. Grain silos rise like sentinels near the tracks of the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway, which parallels much of U.S. 60 here. The town itself, once a hub for both Route 66 and the Frisco railroad, has a few visible remnants of its more bustling past—like the Afton Station Route 66 Museum, a restored gas station turned tribute to the road’s legacy. But U.S. 60 itself keeps its focus forward, carving through ranchland and rural neighborhoods with occasional tree breaks and roadside barns dotting the view.
Further west, the route straightens and opens up even more. We pass junctions with local farm roads and the occasional scenic pull-off, though this isn’t a highway made for frequent stops—it’s a road for movement, built to get from one dusty point to another. Near Vinita, the area becomes more developed but retains a quiet, small-town energy. Though we bypass Vinita proper, its presence is marked by distant water towers and side roads that lead to its downtown—home to one of the world’s largest McDonald’s restaurants straddling the Will Rogers Turnpike (I-44), a bizarre roadside relic that still draws curious travelers off the mainline.
Crossing into the final leg of our route, we head into the community of White Oak. This unincorporated area has deep ties to Native American heritage, particularly the Shawnee Tribe, and remains primarily residential with wide-open fields and quiet country lanes. It’s the kind of place where time slows just enough to remind you that not every road has to be busy to be meaningful. Our drive concludes at the junction with Oklahoma Highway 66—a modern successor to old Route 66—where the legacy of the open road continues west toward Chelsea and Tulsa.
This short but evocative stretch of U.S. Route 60 offers a window into Oklahoma’s layered transportation history. From its early-20th-century origins in the Ribbon Road to its present-day role as a quiet rural connector, the road invites us to appreciate the long view. Here, travel isn’t rushed, and the destinations are stitched together by the lives and landscapes in between.
NOTE: In the video, we incorrectly labeled the town of Vinita as White Oak. We will have an updated video soon correcting this, and apologize to the fine folks of Vinita for our error.
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