Who said that all plans fail the first incursion with the enemy? They were correct. When I woke up and checked the weather, Oklahoma and Arkansas were hosting thunderstorms and they looked mean. The good news is that they would stay there and I had plenty of riding I could do right from where I was.
I consulted motorcycle roads as I often do and found that the Natchez parkway was a highly rated ride and apparently was a national parkway. I thought that since the Blue Ridge and Skyline Drive were both gorgeous national parkways, this one should be also, so the new plan was to take the interstate up to Tupelo and ride the parkway back south. This would give me a great cross section of Mississippi. My thinking was that if I made it all the way to the end, I'd be in excellent position for a very short run to Baton Rouge in the morning. Game on, let's go.
As usual, my bad habits continue and I left without having breakfast. I always tell myself that I'd like to get some miles under the wheels first, and then stop for breakfast. The problem is that once I get going, I don't want to stop and sit for breakfast. I end up eating horribly. I have no clue what I ate; but, chances are, it was bad for me. Temperatures quickly climbed into the 90's. By 11am, it was 95 and climbing. I knew it would be hot and chose to wear a tee shirt. ATGATT maniacs can kiss my butt. If your'e too afraid to ride without looking like an astronaut all the time, you shouldn't be riding. Plus, I'm much more likely to wreck due to heat exhaustion and dehydration than I am from an incursion with the ground. I have good skills and am relentlessly vigilant in my scan of the road
I needed fuel about 45 minutes out of Tupelo and just as I was about to get on the bike, a farmer came over and wanted to talk about my bike and my travels. This happens a lot. Many want to tell me about their Harley; some want to know all about my bike; and most want to know where I'm off to and where I've been. I'm never in so much of a rush that I can't spend a few minutes with everyone. Many tell me about how life has taken over and they don't have time to ride. Usually, they look at me, after just having heard about how I'm about a thousand miles into a two thousand mile weekend journey and realize they need to make time if they really want to enjoy this aspect of their life. It's not that I have no sympathy for them, it's just that I don't have any sympathy for them. I am polite about it; but, generally their eyes start searching for the ground when they realize they didn't find an empathetic ear. Well, upon leaving the gas station, I thought I was getting back out on the highway; but, realized that it must have zigged and I zagged at some point. I was on some back road. This didn't bother me in the least as there is always exploring to be done. So I poked around for a while and when it was time to get back on course, I put Tupelo in the GPS. My GPS is set to avoid highways, toll roads and the like. There is no setting for dirt / gravel roads, and that is how I found myself on a mile or so of the road below. Now, I'm always up for excitement; but, I have to say I'm very happy that my GPS took me over this road during the day and that the loose gravel part only lasted about a mile and a half; navigating 1000+ of motorcycle and rider through a couple inches of loose stone is slow as your riding must be very deliberate. With ruts made by other vehicles, the road is anything but smooth and traction less than optimal. It's also roads like these that make me want to trade my K1600 for a R1200GS so I can start riding street and off road.
;
So, I made Tupelo around lunch time. I'm always on the search for that quaint, aesthetically pleasing, lunch site where you can get something small and maybe sit outside under the shade of a large tree and enjoy the scenery and people. That dream is omnipresent; but, rarely comes true. What I continue to find, again and again, are chain restaurants - either national chains or small franchises. They're everywhere. It's so disappointing; and so it was for lunch in Tupelo. I had lunch at some small Mexican food franchise. That being said, they had an interesting taco dish. It's a hard taco, wrapped in a flour tortilla. This is an excellent combination because when the hard taco starts breaking apart, the flour tortilla is there to save the day.
So, after lunch, it was somewhere around 95-97 degrees and I'd been riding in it for hours. I was a sweaty blob and the air conditioning and ice water in the Mexican restaurant failed to cool me down. I was longing for my pool. I knew that a 10 minute swim would cool me right down and I'd be ready to go. In fact, if there were a lake on the side of the road, I would have taken my electronics off and walked right in - boots and all. So, with that not being an option, and being I was about to get on the parkway, with no clue if there would be anywhere to stop for drinks, I stopped off and bought a few bottles of water. I drank one and poured one on my head, neck, chest and back. It was cold and shocking; but, after the initial jolt, refreshing. I also knew that the wind against my now wet clothes would help cool me down.
So, I made my way to the Natchez parkway in Tupelo and started heading back South. It is pretty as there are lots of trees all around; but, this is nothing like the Blue Ridge or Skyline with the very majestic landscapes. Things here are decidedly flat and it's like riding in a tree tunnel. Ride 10 miles of this and you've seen it all until you get down to Ross R Barnett Reservoir near Jackson. I've been told since that the parkway is much better from Nashville Tn down to Tupelo.
There are no fuel stops between Tupelo and Natchez on the parkway. That said, my DTE was greater than the distance I would travel, so I didn't worry about fuel; although, I started getting concerned about it when I passed Jackson Mississippi and my fuel reserves were dwindling. It looked like I would make it to the end with about 6 miles in the tank. Life is good.
I made it to the gas station with exactly 6 miles of gas left in my tank. It was about 8 something pm and I was exhausted from a long day of riding. I needed more water, gas and rest - in that order. After filling my tank and getting some more water, I came out to find a guy on a Harley at the pump next to mine. It was 90 something and he was decked out in full leathers, chaps and all. He asked me about my riding pants and we started talking about riding. He just bought a new Harley and I came to find out that he was an Army Major that did logistics. You would never know it by how he carried himself - calm, easy going, social. He served in all our recent wars. I chatted with him for what seemed like half an hour, thanked him for his service and wished him and his men Godspeed. I found hotel accommodations a few miles down the road. The day was done.
So, after lunch, it was somewhere around 95-97 degrees and I'd been riding in it for hours. I was a sweaty blob and the air conditioning and ice water in the Mexican restaurant failed to cool me down. I was longing for my pool. I knew that a 10 minute swim would cool me right down and I'd be ready to go. In fact, if there were a lake on the side of the road, I would have taken my electronics off and walked right in - boots and all. So, with that not being an option, and being I was about to get on the parkway, with no clue if there would be anywhere to stop for drinks, I stopped off and bought a few bottles of water. I drank one and poured one on my head, neck, chest and back. It was cold and shocking; but, after the initial jolt, refreshing. I also knew that the wind against my now wet clothes would help cool me down.
So, I made my way to the Natchez parkway in Tupelo and started heading back South. It is pretty as there are lots of trees all around; but, this is nothing like the Blue Ridge or Skyline with the very majestic landscapes. Things here are decidedly flat and it's like riding in a tree tunnel. Ride 10 miles of this and you've seen it all until you get down to Ross R Barnett Reservoir near Jackson. I've been told since that the parkway is much better from Nashville Tn down to Tupelo.
There are no fuel stops between Tupelo and Natchez on the parkway. That said, my DTE was greater than the distance I would travel, so I didn't worry about fuel; although, I started getting concerned about it when I passed Jackson Mississippi and my fuel reserves were dwindling. It looked like I would make it to the end with about 6 miles in the tank. Life is good.
I made it to the gas station with exactly 6 miles of gas left in my tank. It was about 8 something pm and I was exhausted from a long day of riding. I needed more water, gas and rest - in that order. After filling my tank and getting some more water, I came out to find a guy on a Harley at the pump next to mine. It was 90 something and he was decked out in full leathers, chaps and all. He asked me about my riding pants and we started talking about riding. He just bought a new Harley and I came to find out that he was an Army Major that did logistics. You would never know it by how he carried himself - calm, easy going, social. He served in all our recent wars. I chatted with him for what seemed like half an hour, thanked him for his service and wished him and his men Godspeed. I found hotel accommodations a few miles down the road. The day was done.
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