A very long, hot, and exhausting day. 10 hours riding, and just under 900 kms!!!
After waking up outside Chattanooga Tennessee, I rode
southwest into and across Alabama.
Straight across Mississippi, into
Arkansas, then south into Louisiana. I
chose a route across to the point where Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi
meet. It wasn’t the fastest route as it
was a secondary highway not an interstate.
The lesson learned today was that if you have a choice to
take an interstate do so! Most 3 number
“highways” such as the 164 that I chose run through small towns of 350 to 750
people. That means no campgrounds, no
motels, and usually no gas stations! In
fact the entire way across Mississippi I didn’t see a single campground!! Driving through small towns I was amazed at
the devastation the US economy has wreaked.
Houses and businesses vacant everywhere.
Stripped down to the brick shell, everything from the windows, plumbing,
wiring removed.
When I got low on gas I checked my GPS like usual to find
the nearest one: 50kms away!!! After
driving through 3 small towns with the gas stations derelict I was getting
worried. I started looking for a place
to stay the night at 5pm, and was 100 miles away from anything remotely looking
like a hotel room! By 8pm I finally
reached a good sized city just as the rain started!! After having dinner and checking on the
internet situation I discovered I had gained an hour by crossing the
Mississippi!! Whoo Hooo! Does that mean I only rode for 9 hours????? Wow my average speed is pretty good then!!!
So my GPS now has Carlsbad New Mexico plugged in, some
1300kms away. So hopefully in two days I
should be at the next interesting stage of my trip.
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