Twenty-six Girl Scouts, seventh-12th graders, from a variety of western Oklahoma communities plus three adult sponsors recently took an annual overnight bus trip to explore various parts of Oklahoma.

Seven girls from the local Thunderbird service unit, Norman, Noble and Little Axe, made the trip. First stop along the way to see landmarks and tourist spots in the Tulsa-Claremore area was a tour of the Frankoma Pottery factory in Sapulpa. The Boston Avenue United Methodist Church in downtown Tulsa was next on the itinerary. A fact not to be missed on the girls was that the church was designed by a female architect, Dr. Adah Robinson, back in a time, 1927-1929, when very few of the nation's architects were women.

Afternoon activities included a visit to the Oklahoma Aquarium in Jenks and participation in a program at the Philbrook Art Museum. After checking into the hotel, the group headed to Discoveryland for a chuck wagon dinner and to see the musical "Oklahoma!" Getting autographs and speaking to cast members after the performance was a treat, the girls said.

The following day included a tour of the Tulsa Port of Catoosa and two Route 66 landmarks -- the Blue Whale in Catoosa and the world's largest cement totem pole in Foyil. Lunch was in the tea room of the Belvidere Mansion in Claremore. No visit to Claremore would be complete without a visit to the Will Rogers Museum and Memorial, where girls saw a 30-minute movie about Will Rogers' life.

Dinner at a new Route 66 landmark in Arcadia, POPS, capped off the busy two-day tour.

Pam Moser, a current Norman volunteer for Girl Scouts--Western Oklahoma, said the trip was envisioned and instigated five years ago for girls to take an affordable overnight bus trip and to go to places in the state where most likely girls would not have been before.

Previous years included the Trail of Tears drama in Tahlequah, catching crawdads in the stream in Beaver's Bend State Park, a visit to the Tall Grass Prairie Preserve and the Cathedral of the Osage, to see the stained glass windows, both in Pawhuska. They spent the night in the former Kerr Mansion in Poteau to watch the bats leave the Selman Bat Cave and the girls toured Alabaster Caverns. Plans are now underway for next summer's "Explore Oklahoma."

Local girls on the trip were Kaylee Blalock, Noble; Elizabeth Sawtelle and Heather Hyde, Little Axe; Sara Kozak and Raeley Ledet, originally Robin Hill area, but now at Highland East in Moore; Sarah Marshment and Melinda Fuson, Norman. In addition to Moser, two other Girl Scouts--Western Oklahoma volunteers led the trip, Bridget McElreath, Hobart, and Brenda Peaster, Norman.