Wednesday on the Trace (4/30/14)

Wednesday.  After a good night's sleep, we both woke up early, and I cajoled Joe into getting on the move.  We were, amazingly, on the road by 7:15 (hoping to see some early morning wildlife).  And we did -- we saw 2 turkeys in the first 5 minutes, and just a few minutes later,  4 deer crossed the road. 

We saw turkeys off and on until we got to Mississippi, and then no more showed up.  But we also saw a red fox, which was really cool.  It stopped and looked at us for a while, so we got a good look at it.  We crossed the Tennessee/Alabama state line at 9:00.  We pulled into one historic site (I forget which one) and there were 2 trucks behind us.  The first one had a wrecked car loaded on it, but the second one was hauling a covered wagon!  I was sorry I didn't get a picture of that.  We hoped to cross paths with that one again but never did.

Joe's hip was bothering him today so I took over the wheel for a while.  I probably drove for 1 1/2 hours.  Did I mention that the Trace is very narrow!  I had a little trouble keeping it between the lines, but I didn't run over anyone.  I even missed a baby turtle that was very slowly crossing my lane.  I don't know what it was thinking.

We crossed the pretty Tennessee River, and right beside that was a side road for the Colbert Ferry.  We drove back to it and parked.  There was a boat ramp there, and a pretty black and white bird posed for me.

There are some pretty famous bridges on the Trace.  This one, over the Tennessee River, is the John Coffee Memorial Bridge, the parkway's longest bridge. 

We crossed into Mississippi around noon and stopped at another historic site -- Bear Creek Mound.

We see lots of wildflowers blooming, including large patches of red ones, that we found out was red clover.  There was a large patch here when we stopped at the Pharr Mounds -- 8 burial mounds built 1,800 to 2,000 years ago.  You can see two small mounds in this photo.

Another interesting sight was the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway.  This waterway opens a navigable route between the Gulf of Mexico and the Tennessee River.  After seeing so many natural rivers, this was quite a change. 
 

Our next stop was the Natchez Trace Visitor Center.  It would have been nice to have had one of these when we first got on the Trace because there was some information that would have been useful.  However, this one was without power -- and had been since the bad thunderstorms on Monday.

From there, we drove down to the highway that took us into Tupelo -- yes, I finally got to see the birthplace of Elvis.   As we entered the town, we could see repairs underway from the tornado damage on Monday -- power lines were down and irrigation systems had been overturned.  We did not see any of the damage to houses though.

We spent a little time at Elvis' house.  In addition to the house that has been restored (Elvis' father actually built the little 2-room house himself), there is a church, a memorial chapel that plays his gospel music, and of course a gift shop. Also on display is a car like the one Elvis' dad dorve when he moved them from Tupelo to Memphis.  It's either a 1937 or 1939 Plymouth.

I'm waiting for Elvis to come swing with me.

It only had a bedroom and a kitchen. 

We didn't go into the church -- I think it has a video running of the gospel music Elvis grew up listening to (and maybe him singing) and you have to wait until it finishes.  But we did go into the memorial chapel.

 

 And the gift shop.  I've added another cup to my collection.  Joe was very patient and let me spend as much time here as I wanted, but we eventually left and headed into town to find some lunch.  On the corners downtown there were guitars on display.

After lunch, we headed back to the Trace to resume our trip.  We encountered some more bikers, and the mobile van that goes with them.

And then we had to STOP.  There was some road construction, and a flagman.  Joe thought we should call someone and complain, since this road was supposed to not have any stops on it.

Our next stop on the Trace was the Cypress Swamp, which was awesome.  But the mosquitoes were very friendly too.  There was a boardwalk bridge or trail all the way around one part of the swamp, so we got to see it from several different angles.  There are cypress and tupelo trees both.

 From there, we drove on past the Ross R. Barnett Reservoir on the Pearl River.  It was beautiful, and huge.

By now, it was a full day and time to get off the Trace and find someplace to camp.  The hostess at the Visitor Center told us about La Fleur State Park in Jackson, so we put that in the GPS and headed into Jackson, Mississippi.  We found the park, but not the entrance, so we turned around and stopped while I tried to call (of course no one answered because it was already after 6:00).  But a very nice lady stopped and asked if we needed help, and she told us to "follow her" to the campground.  Which we did.  But when we got there, it was closed due to flooding from the storm the day before.  We had pulled into the entryway because it was at a park where lots of kids had baseball games going, and there was no way to turn around.  So we had to unhook the car.  But when I went to start the car, the battery was dead.  (Later we decided I had left the key in the wrong position all day).  Anyway, Joe got out the jumper cables and was trying to figure out how to get the RV turned around to the front of my car when a guy stopped and asked if we needed help.  First, he called another campground for us (it didn't answer either but he gave us directions).  Then he pulled his truck over and hooked up the jumper cables so we could get the car started.  All that worked, and we found the way to the campground he had directed us to.  (I drove the car over, so by the time we got to the campground the battery was back up and it started from then on.)  We found the people in Mississippi to be the nicest people we have ever met.  We had two more encounters the next day with very helpful people, so we have nothing but nice things to say about Mississippians!

So we drove 331 miles today, but 22 of them were unproductive -- it was us chasing down the campgrounds.  We drove through town, first trying to get to the one that was closed, then the GPS took us through town instead of onto the freeway to get to the second campground.  We found out the next morning we were only a couple miles off the Trace.  We ended up in Clinton, instead of Jackson, but that didn't matter.

The weather was nice all day -- it started out a little cloudy, then it was sunny, then it clouded us again.  The temperature was in the 60s all day, very pleasant.

Anyway, by now, it had gotten to be a VERY LONG DAY. I think it was about 9:00 p.m. when we got to our campsite.  We hooked up the electricity to the RV, drove back out to a nearby restaurant to get something to eat, and then gladly called it a day.

Tuesday - to the Natchez Trade, April 29

Tuesday.  Today we are heading out of Vincennes.  After much debate and map-studying, Joe picked a roundabout route -- first to Nashville, then onto the Natchez Trace Parkway all the way to Natchez, Mississippi.  So, we began.

We got on the road about 10:30 a.m., after several, several trips up and down the stairs with final loading.  It was windy, then sunny, and eventually we caught up with the rain about 1:00 p.m.  As we traveled across northern Kentucky, it was evident that they have not been able to start farming yet -- in Vincennes, the farmers were hitting the fields hard, working early and late, trying to get some planting done before the next rain.  But the wheat is further along here, and looked pretty in the fields.

We changed time zones as soon as we left Knox County, so we lost an hour.  We managed to actually drive PAST a White Castle Hamburger joint in Owensboro, KY, and had a nice lunch at a Cracker Barrel.  It was a pretty drive down through Kentucky on Hwy. 431.  We did have to stop for road construction once, while the machine mulched part of a tree.

 We crossed the Tennessee State Line about 2:35 (local time), and hit Nashville at rush hour, of course.

 It took us a while to find the beginning the Natchez Trace, we had to circle back once, but we got on it just about 5:00.  Our traveling friends had told us about the Trace several years ago, and we had actually traveled a small piece of it in 2010, on our way to Graceland.  Almost immediately, we saw a couple of turkeys, then 2 deer crossed the road.  I didn't get any pictures of any wildlife, but we did see some.

The Trace runs 444 miles through 3 states and "10,000 years of history."  It was established as a unit of the National Park System in 1938.  Amazingly, there is not a single stop sign or traffic light on the entire 444 miles, and the speed limit is 50 mph.  We LOVED it.  Just our style! I didn't get a photo of the first mile marker, but I finally did.  These were intermittent the entire length of the Trace, sometimes every mile, sometimes a little less frequent.

There was very little traffic, and because we were going 50 or less, we could take in the natural beauty all around us.  Forests, blooming trees, meadows, rivers, creeks, and wildflowers filled our windshield.  Many roads entered and exited the Trace, but none of them required us to stop.  We crossed lots of highways on overpasses so we could see the highway below. 

There are also a lot of bicyclists on the Trace, and we share the road with them.  There are no businesses right on the Trace, so it's a little tricky finding fuel and lodging.  We lucked out Tuesday night and spotted a campground at an overpass just off the Trace about 5:45.  We also lucked out on the weather.  The night before, this campground had received 5-6 inches of rain and had some flooding, but the river or creek was back in its banks tonight.  The host gave us a recommendation for dinner in a nearby town, and we enjoyed a very good Mexican meal there.  The campground host even showed up there too and invited us to join his table, but we didn't move over there.  As we came into town, though, there were several cops with lights flashing right on the edge of town.  Again, our host, very informative, said they had busted a mobile meth lab there. 

The campground, Fall Hollow at Hohenwald, TN, was actually quite nice, grassy, plenty of room, and only 7 miles from town (food and fuel).

We maintained our wildlife count throughout the day -- only the 2 deer we saw right after we got on the Trace, but we saw 11 turkeys in all.

After we ate, we stopped by Walmart to pick up a few groceries, and by then we were just beat.  I was too tired to do the blog, or anything else -- we just went to bed. 

We drove 290 miles today.  We picked up a map of the trace that gives items of interest by milepost, and we made a few stops, but not too many.  Mostly, we just enjoyed the drive.

Fri-Mon. (4/25-4/28)

Friday.  We've been busy and I am behind on my blogging so I'll try to do a quick update, starting with Friday.  Today is my granddaughter's 13 birthday, sure miss seeing her and celebrating with her.

I had a meeting today with what is now the Reunion Committee for my class's 50th high school reunion next year.  Toni Holmes, Barbara Holscher, Nancee Truelove and Brenda Nowaski joined me at La Fiesta and we had a great time.  We laughed about high school days and made the beginnings of a plan for next year.  I look forward to working with these girls during the upcoming months. 

Saturday.  Today was our Terre Haute day.  We first stopped and visited our ex-babysitter, Audrey Williams, who is doing very well after having double knee replacement surgery during the past year.  We had a very nice visit, then her two grandsons showed up so we got to visit with Walker and Luke too.  We have seen Luke the last couple of years during our visits, but it's been a long, long time since we had seen Walker.

From there, we headed back across town to grab a few White Castle hamburgers for lunch.  Joe was thrilled to have his favorites again.

Would you believe they sell a scented candle there.  I probably should have bought one so Joe can enjoy the smell of those onion-hamburgers, but I figured it would just increase his cravings so I didn't get him one.  Also, they were $15.00!!!  But they do look exactly like the boxes those little burgers are served in.

Next, we drove over to Brazil and visited with my ex-coworker, Diane Braden, for a while.  We always have a good time together.  I will have to say she has the only garage I've ever seen that has wallpaper border all around the walls.  Diane always was the decorator of our group.

Saturday evening we met Ed and Nancy Williams for dinner in Terre Haute.  They drove over from Indianapolis.  Our planned meet was at Texas Roadhouse, but it was Prom Night and there was an 1 1/2 hour wait there, so we moved on to Red Lobster.  There were also a few prom couples dining there, but we only had about a 30 minute wait there.  It was fun seeing the girls in all their prom finery, though.

We did see a little wildlife today -- one wild turkey, and 2 deer.  Oh, and a live possum (we usually only see roadkill of the possums).

Sunday.  Today we celebrated First Communion for Jaclyn's boy, Jayden, at St. John's Catholic Church.  That was the first one of those Joe and I had ever attended, and our first time inside this church.  The service was very nice and the kids did a great job.

Jayden barely survived all this, and the tie was just about more than he could endure -- not to mention smiling for any pictures.  He did willingly get his picture taken with Great Grandma, though, and he held up his little sister as well.

After the service, we all had barbeque at Quabache Trails Park, and Jayden got to open some pretty spiffy presents -- lots of $$, a scooter, and a fishing pole, just to name a few.  We finished the picnic just in time -- a thunderstorm rolled in and drenched the park.  Thanks to my friend Barbara, who was calling me with weather updates, we made it to the car about 5 minutes before the storm hit.

We got back out to the house, and Billie and Marcy stopped by for a brief visit.  Joe and I got drafted into making burritos for dinner, so we had that underway.  At supper time, we had a housefull -- the 4 of us, Mike and Rachelle with Clayton and Mallory,  Jaclyn and Adam with Jayden and Adalyn, and Fred and Judy -- 14 in all.  It was a marathon day by the time everyone left.

Monday.  Today was packing day.  We are leaving tomorrow, so Joe and I made a quick trip to town and I got my hair cut.  Dixie had started the laundry, and together we got that finished, while Joe filled up our water tank, then drove the RV up the road and got it fueled ($3.839) and the propane tank filled ($1.99/gallon).  He parked it out front in the old driveway, and we began loading.  It takes lots of trips, up and down the stairs.

We had dinner plans for one last get-together with friends.  We met Mike and Donna Carter, and Barbara and Maurice Holscher for one last pizza at Bobe's.  I believe we finally got our fill of pizzas this time.  Then it was back home to take another couple loads to the motorhome. 

We still have a few things to load in the morning, but we hope to be on the road by noon.  And we hope the storms are ALL GONE. 

Thursday (April 24)

Thursday.  My lilacs are blooming.  Life is good for me whenever I have lilacs in it.  I cut 2 off and brought them into the house so I can enjoy their beauty and fragrance for the next few days.

Rachelle stopped by in the afternoon with the kids (Lucille and I were napping).  Mallory found some wildlife that had stopped by for a visit.

A baby turtle had stopped by on the carport for a visit.  Joe put it on this fly swatter to get a good photo so you can see how little it is.  Although Mallory and Clayton wanted to take it home with them, Joe carried it out to a bush by the back yard and let it go free.

We all went to dinner (Mike, Rachelle, Mallory and Clayton went with us) to the Log Inn down by Haubstadt.  This family-style restaurant is officially recognized as the "Oldest Restaurant in Indiana," built in 1925 for Noon Day Stage Coach Stop & Trading Post.  The placemat says we can dine in the same original log room that Abraham Lincoln was in, in November 1844.  The food was delicious, and plentiful.  There are several rooms, so I don't know if we ate in the Abe Lincoln room or not, but it was definitely a rustic, old log cabin.  We plan to go back on our next visit.  Joe and I had been there once before, several years ago, but we didn't remember how good it was.

When we left there, Joe spotted a sign to a campground on down that same road, so we drove down there to check it out for the future.  It wasn't anything grand, but it looked like it had full hookups, and would be pretty convenient for our last night before going to Lucille's house.

It had interesting landscaping -- I guess it was representing the rural Indiana life.

Tuesday-Wednesday (April 22/23)

Tuesday.  We woke up to a nice, sunny day -- a little windy but that was ok.  My lilacs are about one day away from full bloom so I am keeping a close eye on that bush. Joe and Cathy went to town, then drove up to Verne to see about getting our Explorer looked at (Joe hears a noise in one of the wheels), but they didn't have any luck so he came home and pulled the left front wheel.  Fortunately, he didn't find any problem so maybe we lucked out on a repair bill.

It was time for a Bobe's pizza again, and Fred and Judy met us there, then came out for a card game. 

Wednesday.  Cathy left today, with her arm still wrapped up for her dislocated thumb.  By the time she got everything loaded, including the dog and recycle bottles, it was getting close to noon.  I decided to make my run to Oaktown to my sister's grave, then made my annual trip down memory lane through the backroads of Decker Chapel.  I tracked down my schoolbus buddy, Mike Carter, in the field and had a nice chat with him.  He was busy farming, getting the field ready for corn planting.

 
As I drove on down into the bottomland, I could see where the river had just gotten back into its banks.  Some I of the fields were still wet, but I came upon a tractor at Newton Farms that knew to deal with that.

 

































I finally worked my way back home and came into the kitchen to smells of ham and beans for dinner.  Fred always gets invited out for beans, so he and Judy joined us, and then, of course, we played cards for the rest of the evening. 

Monday (4/21/2014)

Monday.  Well, the party is over, time to do the clean-up.  I think Lucille ended up with about 60 birthday cards, and 2 more arrived today.  We weren't very successful at getting our party attendees to sign the guest book, so we don't have a count for yesterday, but suffice it to say, a good time was had by all.  It was a beautiful Easter Sunday, and the privilege of getting to spend it with family celebrating our matriarch's 98th birthday really made it a memorable day.

Jim headed back to Ft. Wayne this morning, and we started putting away the party stuff.  Of course, one thing always leads to another, and to put something in a drawer, Dixie always thinks we have to clean out the drawer first.  So she gets sidetracked frequently.

































 Joe and Cathy took off for town, for the soda run and whatever other roads Joe sees his name on.  Upon their return, we did learn that the Cannonball Bridge was closed, due to construction-not high water.  The next thing on the agenda was my annual trip to Princeton to put some flowers on my families' graves.  So we loaded up Lucille, the dog, and the 5 of us, and off we went, checking out the farming, the river, the road to the mine where Mike F. works, and anything else of interest.  After the cemetery, we had lunch at Taco Tierra (don't have to go back there), made a stop at the Donut Bank of all things, for tomorrow's breakfast, then browsed through Finder's Keepers, an antique/swap meet in Princeton.  Finally, we headed home with just one side trip and started preparations for dinner.  Judy was bringing out some country ribs she had been cooking in the crockpot all day, so we added some baked potatoes and baked beans and had another fine meal.  After clean-up, we played one game of 6-handed euchre that lasted about 3 hours, so we had a good end to our day.

We did have a brief shower about 5:00 p.m., but then the sun popped out briefly and I captured a picture of an Indiana sunset.