Saturday, April 24, 2010
Day 23 - DAY OFF - camera dump ....
with a rainy, nasty stormy day, replete with severe t-storm and tornado warnings,keeping me holed up in crump, MS, the hotel manager was kind enough to let me download some pictures from my digital cam. i'm captioning them, but showing them all here as a group because if i buried them back chronologically, you might not go back to see them... enjoy !
Friday, April 23, 2010
Day 22 - Shiloh, TN
got an early start today for a change! after a great sleep and breakfast of coffee and bagels and honey. had plotted a long day to Shiloh, TN, approaching 100 miles or so. weather was nice again and a brisk tailwind today ! the ride was generally flat with some occassional rises and slopes. very scenic BACK roads today; if you're looking for off the beaten path, this was the place to be ! i was so remote that there was no 'welcome to tennessee' sign along the way to prove I'm here. take my word for it !!!
imminent stormy weather steadily advanced its presence throughout the day, and by the time I rolled into Shiloh, things were looking ominous. got a room and a dinner whose nutritional information (rather, the lack thereof) I won't divulge... enough said.
planning on taking advantage of expected bad weather to take a well-deserved day off. not just a reduced mileage day (generally regarded as a day off !!), but a day off to refresh the mind and legs.
today: 91
to date: 1268
imminent stormy weather steadily advanced its presence throughout the day, and by the time I rolled into Shiloh, things were looking ominous. got a room and a dinner whose nutritional information (rather, the lack thereof) I won't divulge... enough said.
planning on taking advantage of expected bad weather to take a well-deserved day off. not just a reduced mileage day (generally regarded as a day off !!), but a day off to refresh the mind and legs.
today: 91
to date: 1268
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Day 21 - Fulton, MS
enjoyed the unplanned hotel stop in Aberdeen, MS. got yet another late morning start to make the trek to fulton, MS, about a 50 or so mile day. the weather was splendid, yet again. encountered more in the way of frequent appearances of civilization and places to stop for water and food. found a fine campground just outside of Fulton; got a great waterfront spot. treated myself to a monster campsite dinner of a grilled ribeye, salad, and mac & cheese. amazing how good a meal is cooked outside after riding all day: what a treat to have a meal of somthing other than convenience store choices !
looking for a long day tomorrow to Shiloh, TN. bad weather is approaching, so hope to get there to get a room and finally take a full rest day before pressing on ..
today: 47
to date: 1177
looking for a long day tomorrow to Shiloh, TN. bad weather is approaching, so hope to get there to get a room and finally take a full rest day before pressing on ..
today: 47
to date: 1177
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Day 20 - Aberdeen, MS
greetings all from Aberdeen, MS.
broke camp in cochrane on a beautiful cool morning in cochrane. really enjoyed this campground: quiet, empty, had the bath/laundry right next door. 50-cent washer and dryer. made coffee and oatmeal for breakfast while I put stuff away. seems to take longer than it should to break camp; bike space and tent re-assembly require efficient stowage, plus what's the rush ???
intended on a coffee stop in Aliceville, but there appeared to be nowhere to stop. motored on thru rolling hills.
crossed into Mississippi this morning at mile 1088. another state line !!
once past Columbus, roads flattened out. had a bit of a headwind all day that slowed the pace, but not bad... before reaching Columbus, got some local advice to bypass the Columbus-to-West Point segment on the way to Aberdeen and just take another road to go staight there. about 8 more miles today, but also cuts the leg to Fulton on Thursday to an easier day. sounded good to me.
near the end of the ride, I discovered I had lost my ACA map off of my handlebar. knees must have knocked it loose when standing on the pedals. another ass-chapping moment... fortunately, this map ends tomorrow and I start a new one then, so no real loss other than the annoyance.
except for some busy traffic around columbus,a nice ride thru rollers and flats to end the day. couldn't find the local camp spot I was expecting, so took an unplanned hotel.
today: 73 miles
to date: 1131
broke camp in cochrane on a beautiful cool morning in cochrane. really enjoyed this campground: quiet, empty, had the bath/laundry right next door. 50-cent washer and dryer. made coffee and oatmeal for breakfast while I put stuff away. seems to take longer than it should to break camp; bike space and tent re-assembly require efficient stowage, plus what's the rush ???
intended on a coffee stop in Aliceville, but there appeared to be nowhere to stop. motored on thru rolling hills.
crossed into Mississippi this morning at mile 1088. another state line !!
once past Columbus, roads flattened out. had a bit of a headwind all day that slowed the pace, but not bad... before reaching Columbus, got some local advice to bypass the Columbus-to-West Point segment on the way to Aberdeen and just take another road to go staight there. about 8 more miles today, but also cuts the leg to Fulton on Thursday to an easier day. sounded good to me.
near the end of the ride, I discovered I had lost my ACA map off of my handlebar. knees must have knocked it loose when standing on the pedals. another ass-chapping moment... fortunately, this map ends tomorrow and I start a new one then, so no real loss other than the annoyance.
except for some busy traffic around columbus,a nice ride thru rollers and flats to end the day. couldn't find the local camp spot I was expecting, so took an unplanned hotel.
today: 73 miles
to date: 1131
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Day 19 - Cochrane, AL
linden was the first town since gulf shores that had some civilization ! treated to a hotel and an indulgence in cold cereal and milk. no, it wasn't lucky charms or crunch berries, although they both looked tempting...
was raining lightly in the morning, so pushed back my start a bit til 10 or so. had planned a 75 mile mostly gentle route to cochrane, AL to camp there. early part of the ride was overcast and cool, with a teasing blue sky that just stayed north from me. enjoyed a very nice ride thru gentle countryside. sun came out for good and temps stayed nice and spring-ish. the smells were awesome today, nice clean air. gotta love it.
stocked up on food provisions in gainesvile as it was the last chance before cochrane. before leaving gainesville, a young lady was inquiring about my trip. she asked where i stayed and i told her i camped out most nights. she asked me with this incredulous look of disbelief and asked "do you sleep in the brush with the snakes ?" i laughed and told her hell no, i hate snakes !!
food pickings were slim so I got stuff to make a crude tuna casserole. crude it was, but it went down nicely!
pulled into the campground around 5:30, got setup, ate, showered, did some laundry. VERY nice campground. clean. quiet. nice.
these days really blur together, it seems. long quiet rides are very serene, and miles seem to click away easily. really enjoying the fun rides, great springtime weather, camping, and relying on my own efforts to get me from here to there.
limited availability of food provisions has required advanced planning of purchases, as was the case today. all part of the self-sufficiency of loaded touring !
today: 75 miles
to date: 1058
was raining lightly in the morning, so pushed back my start a bit til 10 or so. had planned a 75 mile mostly gentle route to cochrane, AL to camp there. early part of the ride was overcast and cool, with a teasing blue sky that just stayed north from me. enjoyed a very nice ride thru gentle countryside. sun came out for good and temps stayed nice and spring-ish. the smells were awesome today, nice clean air. gotta love it.
stocked up on food provisions in gainesvile as it was the last chance before cochrane. before leaving gainesville, a young lady was inquiring about my trip. she asked where i stayed and i told her i camped out most nights. she asked me with this incredulous look of disbelief and asked "do you sleep in the brush with the snakes ?" i laughed and told her hell no, i hate snakes !!
food pickings were slim so I got stuff to make a crude tuna casserole. crude it was, but it went down nicely!
pulled into the campground around 5:30, got setup, ate, showered, did some laundry. VERY nice campground. clean. quiet. nice.
these days really blur together, it seems. long quiet rides are very serene, and miles seem to click away easily. really enjoying the fun rides, great springtime weather, camping, and relying on my own efforts to get me from here to there.
limited availability of food provisions has required advanced planning of purchases, as was the case today. all part of the self-sufficiency of loaded touring !
today: 75 miles
to date: 1058
Monday, April 19, 2010
Day 18 - Linden, AL
awoke today to a cooler and drier morning. made a pot of coffee first thing; if i use my cooking gear for only that, it's worth carrying. very tough to beat campsite coffee in the morning!
set out toward linden today, about 50+ miles. still working some easier rolling grades, nothing of note. wanted to go a little easier today and then go longer on flatter routes toward Fulton, MS, which I hope to reach by the end of the week.
moderate ride today. i had been getting fond of the perfect weather i've had thus far, but today brought clouds and increasingly ominous conditions. traveled thru active logging territory; logging trucks zipping by all day. a little nervy, but,the drivers were all aware and courteous. still, undesirable conditions. ride was otherwise nondescript.
reached linden, AL. chose hotel over possible rain camping (which is fine by necessity).
the routes of the last several days, along with the many days of coastal rural Florida, make it hard to discern one day from the other. the daily destinations are what make the days stand out ! good thing for the blog !
today: 52 miles
to date: 983
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Day 17 - Coffeeville, AL
today was intended to be a short easy day. leisurely took it easy getting to coffeeville . took a little bit of a shortcut off of the underground railroad route getting there. nice pleasant ride just to keep the legs loose after the long day yesterday. intended on reaching a campground only to find it closed. I decided to go primitive along the bank of the tombigbee river. very nice. doubled back to the only store open to load up on water bottles and I was set for the night. cell service not bad the past few days but definitely some spotty at times... food provisions limited to convenience store choices, so getting calories, but could do better there...
thinking I had this spot to myself, up drives this very elderly man. seems he meets with his buds on Sunday evenings. well, ok I think! in a little bit, up rides a younger bubba (who evidently lived down the dirt road) on a 4-wheeler. both these guys have their dogs.. they're speaking in back-woods Alabama tongues that all my years living in the south barely helped interpret... they left in a bit and that was that.
vacillated early on whether to bring the cooking gear. definitely getting sufficient use thus far: plus, morning campground perked coffee is impossible to beat !!
today: 32 recovery miles
to date: 931
thinking I had this spot to myself, up drives this very elderly man. seems he meets with his buds on Sunday evenings. well, ok I think! in a little bit, up rides a younger bubba (who evidently lived down the dirt road) on a 4-wheeler. both these guys have their dogs.. they're speaking in back-woods Alabama tongues that all my years living in the south barely helped interpret... they left in a bit and that was that.
vacillated early on whether to bring the cooking gear. definitely getting sufficient use thus far: plus, morning campground perked coffee is impossible to beat !!
today: 32 recovery miles
to date: 931
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