After our rest day on Tuesday we headed out of Natchez again on a warm and
sunny spring day. This day we only did low mileage to the Natchez State Park. It was beautiful but within two miles into the park, we were shown what REAL hills could be. The tent sites were big and equipped with everything a tent camper might need. And they also had warm showers. While we were there, we were the only tenter in all of the campgrounds.

 

1)     2)

1) Morning outside Natchez                

2) First campsite at NSP           

Next morning after some walks over the steep hills in the park we finally made it to the Natchez Trace Parkway. This is a State Park that leads some 440 miles from Natchez, MS to near Nashville, TN. It is a wonderful, pretty road, clean on both sides (no garbage), 50 mph enforced, no commercial traffic allowed. The few traveling cars always gave us plenty of space on the road. 

 

Natchez Trace Parkway

 

It is very pretty now in springtime with many trees and flowers just opening their leaves. Maren loves it very much to look down the road and see the predominate green shades contrasted by Redbud-trees or Red Maples. The downside is, towns for stocking up on food and water are sparse. You usually have to detour 1-4 miles to reach them.

 

       
Wayside stop.... redbuds in bloom

 

That night we stayed at Rocky Springs CG, 18 sites, no fees, restrooms and  water. We were invited by Debbie from Colorado to camp on a grassy spot besides her motor home. Paul II, who camped on the other side of the road came to join us for a dinner which contained only of the things out of our panniers and meat from Paul II's cooler box.

Breakfast at Rocky Springs Campground with Paul Felder

Early next morning he was very helpful to drive me in his truck to the  nearest public phone in Utica, some 15 miles away so I could place a call to Paul and Sue in nearby Jackson, MS. It worked well and after a final breakfast from the leftovers of our panniers we headed on the road. After some 20 miles we ran into Paul on his bike. He returned with us back to a parking lot near the NTP where we and our bikes were loaded into his van and hauled to his home in downtown Jackson, MS. There we stayed the whole Easter weekend with him and Sue. We met the couple during our TransAm in 2001 in Damaskus, VA and rode a few days with them. We had stayed in contact all the time. They are very experienced in bicycling and Sue at the moment works with the MS DOT bicycling department.

 

 

Sue and Paul, our cycling friends from the TransAm in 2001, Jackson, MS

We hated to say "Goodbye" on Monday morning, when Paul delivered us to the
northern terminus of the NTP near Ross Barnett Reservoir. First we visited at "Indian Cycles", a good bike shop where we had some maintenance on one of my fork blades. Paul also had equipped us each with a can of Halt!, a pepper spray to protect us against aggressive dogs. During riding the NTP we never saw a dog, but as soon as you leave the trail, dogs are very common and bicyclists seem to be very uncommon for dogs. Very often they try to chase you. Mostly it is enough when Maren cries out and commands the dogs to stop or go home. Only seldom (up until to now) I have had to interact. Once, however, I did not hear a dog approaching from the rear and realized Maren's warnings only when the dog was less than 10 feet away. I braked brisk and roared at the dog. That made him turn around. This situation would have been too fast to use the pepper spray.

That Monday we stayed at a rough campground at Retliff Ferry. Many fishermen
along the Pearl River. A nice spot but we had to camp on gravel. People
around were very friendly with lots of Franco-Canadians who tend to travel here
in the South during spring.  We have seen more of them recently.

 

Morning by the Pearl River

 

....and  on the Natchez Trace Parkway

 

Tuesday we made it with a long trip into Kosciusko where we stayed at Days Inn. When we returned from shopping at Wal-Mart approximately 1 mile down the road loaded with all the stuff you might need for 2-3 days, we flagged down a car for a hitch. It turned out that it was William A., a high-school teacher who loves Germany and the German language. We were able to discuss many historical and political issues with him in the German language. Promptly I have put him on my mailing list with my German reports from the road.

 

On Wednesday we hade planned to go to Jeff Busby State Park, a very nice spot even with a grocery. But there were two reasons not to do so. One is seen on the photo. They burned the undercover of the wood to clear it and to give the soil (fertilizer?) for new growth. It was right beside the camping area and even though it should be safe, we did not like the strong smell all over the campsite and in our tent and clothing. The other reason not to camp was the weather. They had predicted thunderstorms and it arrived in the night when we stayed in Mathiston in the only (low end) motel.

 

3)     4)

3) Swamp by the NTP

4) Blooming field

On Thursday with clear skies and sun again we rode to a private campground 8
miles south of Tupelo. This time - as mostly after thunderstorms - the wind
had shifted totally from a mild tailwind into a brisk headwind. We made it
with one stop off the trail for a miserable coffee and with some knee
problems on my side by 4 PM. The owner allowed us to set up our tent under
the pavilion, because thunderstorms were predicted for the night. In the
evening we went for dinner in a nearby Steak and Seafood all you can eat.
Besides that we saw two of the biggest guys we have seen since (even the
Americans were looking with wide open eyes at these big men) the meals were
not worth the money. The chicken I had ordered and Maren's catfish consisted
merely of crust with absolutely no flavor. It tasted like bread, like
tasteless crackers.

 

Pavilion at Natchez Trace RV Park

 

The night  we slept very well in our tent and in the morning after the
thunderstorm everything was dry (tent, equipment, bikes). But the sky was
gray and some raindrops fell. We dressed accordingly and hit the road for
only 8 miles into the town of Tupelo. After a little research we ended up at
Ramada where we were allowed to receive the AARP-rates. In the afternoon a
storm front crossed over the town. The same time the temperatures fell into
the fifties the cold wind from Northwest increased.

Because we are on schedule, we opted for another rest day on Saturday.