My Great Trek to the Midwest
Day 7, Sunday, May 14, 2006
 Bloomington, IN to Athens, AL

Well, there was not any point in sticking around Bloomington for another day as planned.
Maureen is still going through her difficult family situation and is, as she should be, being with
her Mother and Father in Terre Haute.  Our paths are not destined to cross this trip.

So, a day early, I head down south starting my trip home.  This early start is good since I am
unhappy with my previously planned 500 miles a day itinerary.  With an early start, I can put
in some miles today and then lessen the miles each day hence.
Starting out: Trip / Odometer / Time: 5.5 / 32,710 / 8:45 EDT
Along Route 46 to Nashville is a Brown County State Park
Good for a "B" county and for Indiana state; better than
the photo I previously had for Indiana.

Then, in Nashville, there is a Brown County building for
another good photo.  Actually, it's the sheriff's office.
And, across the parking lot is another of the sheriff's facilities
that I believe is still in use.

Nashville is a totally tourist town, but quaint and quite fun.
I like it a lot; it reminds me of Jamestown near Yosemite
but with more flowers and a little bigger.

The flowers were freshened by the nurturing rain that I am
cursing for making my ride so uncomfortable.  Already I
have wet feet from the rain soaking through the leather
of my boots.  Thank goodness I had the foresight to put
on two pair of socks.  Helps, but only marginally.  Toes
are still wet and cold.


I noticed a restaurant named "That Sandwich Place" so I
decided to sit for a real breakfast.  It was reasonably priced
and very good.  Their home fries are like potato chips
but thicker so that they are soft in the center.  Very good.

I believe the owner, who was there conversing with the
local, evidently regular patrons has some affection with
Indiana University sports, a certain basketball coach
in particular.  I wonder if someone made the proprietor
angry if it would result in a thrown chair.
In Louisville, Kentucky I found a post office to prove
I been there.  Later, I stopped at a rest stop that also
afforded a photo opportunity.
For about a half hour, going over some of the Kentucky mountains, I was the victim of some
very heavy rain.  It was the kind that has me looking through 3 sheets of moving water.  On
the front of the windshield the water was running up driven by the wind.  On the back of the
windshield, with the absence of the wind, the water was running down.  Then on my face shield,
with the updraft coming from under the windshield, the water was sheeting up again.

At one point, for 3-4 minutes, I was being pelted by BB sized hail.  Not fun.
Bowling Green, Kentucky is famous as the only factory
location making Corvettes.  There is an independent
National Corvette Museum.

Bowling Green also has a Harley-Davidson Bowling Green
another pin, another shirt.  I've long since run out of room
to pack all these shirts.
Almost immediately upon entering Tennessee there was a
welcoming site and rest stop.  It turned out to be the only
rest stop all the way from the north to the south borders.
Since Tennessee is only about 115 miles tall, that is an
average of one rest stop every 60-65 miles.  It was a nice
one, though.

I looked around in Nashville for some building or another
to get another photo but came up blank.  The building I
had mapped is the city hall.  It turns out to be a night club
with that name.  Hmm, not good enough.  But I did find
some other interesting stuff.


Alabama has a fantastic greeting center as you enter the
state on I-65.  They have veteran memorials for the Korean
and Viet Nam conflicts.

They also have a rocket.  It appears to be an Apollo, but it
doesn't seem to be a Saturn-5 booster.  Too many rocket
nozzles.  Maybe it's a Gemini.

The rocket mounting cables seem to be very well grounded.
I'm guessing this is a good thing for a very tall pointy-nose
metal object in the heart of lightning country.


End point for the day is Athens, Alabama.

When was the last time that by traveling in a more or less
straight line you set foot in four different states in the same day?

Actually, I did it one time previously.  It was kind of
cheating, though, a bit of a trick.  Click here to find out when.

Of course, air ports on multi-leg flights does not count.
Maybe it is feasible New England area where the founding
fathers could not get along with one another enough to
create a state of any size.  It seems the mantra up there
was "Religious freedom!  For us, that is, not for you!"

Done for the day:
29.4 / 33,124 / 7:02 CDT

  

ABC Letters: Counties: B, States: KY, TN, AL

Total: 414 miles, 11 hours 17 minutes
Trip Total: 2,905 miles, 66 hours 27 minutes

Updated: Monday, May 12, 2014 08:46:25 PM