Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi

(I know that's a song)

July 7

It was a very long day. We left Stamps, Arkansas, about 8 a.m., heading to the southern state of Louisiana so Ruth could say she'd ridden there. The weather looked menacing and Mother Nature proved herself right. A few miles down the road it started to sprinkle, then it started raining harder and harder. And harder. I'm really not much for this torrential downpour type of rain, particularly when it's accompanied by lightning and thunder.

I was riding in just jeans and a T-shirt, in a closed frog position, meaning my legs were snugged up next to the gas tank to hold in the engine heat for warmth . My glasses had steamed up part of the way so I had to keep them low on my nose and I ducked close in behind the windshield in order to see. It's a strange way to travel, but a necessity sometimes when on the bike. I was mostly soaked but not cold until I went into a gas station where there was air conditioning.

Why do I bother to wear make up when it either melts due to the heat or is washed away with the rain faster than I can apply it? Except I like looking like a girl and decent when I get on that bike. I want people to know the person on the big bike is a female.

Of course, I'm thinking the female is a hillbilly road queen. Today I've got my jacket packed on with a cargo net and I'm using it for a back rest.

Roc straps, bungee cords and a cargo net.  Necessities for the road.

On top of my leather bag, I've got a red towel over the top of my hydration jacket to keep the water slightly cooler than the outside temperature. And Ruth bought a small cooler so we could pack water, and I've got that attached to the back of the bike with bungee cords. I take blog notes using paper taped to the gas tank with duck tape.

I can get quite a few notes on a couple of pieces of paper.

And Ruth and I hand write the road and towns we're going to and tape those onto the bikes, too. (Note: Redneck GPS.) Yep, I'm just a hillbilly road queen. And proud of it.

Ya do what ya gotta do to make it work.

The station we pulled into is the Phillips 66 Travel Stop in Magnolia, Arkansas. We decided to wait it out for a bit to see if the storm would pass. Yep, it's all part of the adventure. And making new friends. A guy in a lime green Jeep was gassing up and we asked him about the weather ahead. He said it was moving southwest and should be passing through in the not too distant future. We chatted for a few more minutes and then he was gone. He was a new but short-term friend. Like my friend Verlie said, some friends are in your life for moments, like the guy in the Jeep, some are in your life for a few months or years, some are in your life forever. I believe we go through people's lives in that way for a purpose … to help them, or for them to help us. The guy in the Jeep? Very short term. Less than five minutes.

Another new friend is Tabitha. Her folks opened the Phillips 66 Travel Stop 14 years ago. She and her staff were very nice to us and let us hang out at the stop for about three hours. Of course, about every half hour we bought something … frogs, earbuds and a microphone for my phone, water, Pepsi, chicken on a stick. Still it made what could have been an unbearable wait bearable. We chatted with them and some of the customers and the time really passed rather quickly.

Tabitha and me.  A great place to stop if you're in the neighborhood.

We decided to gear up.  The bottoms of my pants didn't have elastic.  I made do with duck tape.  Yellow is always appropriate.

Then we were back on the road again. But this time we were armed with a Roadside America attraction mission … to see the world's largest charcoal grill. The grill looks like a rocket ship laying on its side. Believe it or not, it's portable, and can be hooked up to a pickup or car and towed to a picnic area.

The bikes and me are dwarfed by the cooker.

The front end of the grill.

The tail end of the grill.

It's 70 feet long and has 22 separate barbecue areas inside the rocket ship. I know because I counted them. There's some kind of cook off here every year and people make and bring outlandish grills. That's why this one was originally built.

All those grills, so little food.  Ribs, chicken, hot dogs, corn.  I don't think I can think of enough things to put in all these grills.  My grilling education is sadly lacking.

Ruth and one of the many grill doors.

Road adventures. Finding oddities like the rocket ship grill is one of the things I like about this type of traveling. It's always an adventure and you never know what you will see. Ya gotta love it. It's all part of participating in life instead of looking at it or letting it go by.

We rode on down to Haynesville, Louisiana. It's the butterfly capital of Louisiana. In fact, I saw a butterfly and went to get his photo. The poor thing had half a wing missing. But he was still flying, struggling valiantly to make a butterfly living.

Poor thing was still flying.

Heading back to Arkansas, I saw a fawn down in the ditch, just standing still as a statue, and so beautiful. It was so young it still had its white spots. It didn't look real. I don't remember ever seeing one before, so I felt quite privileged.

Further down the road I hit a bird. It hit hard into the fairing, and while I didn't see it hit the road behind me, or see it go to the side, I can't imagine it survived. It saddens me to hurt an animal, and I went down the road heavy-hearted at taking a life. (Note: The same thing does not apply to bugs.)

In Strong, Arkansas, there was a Lady Liberty statue. And I had to have a photo. I am one who loves things that stand for patriotism. And she is one of those, standing proudly for all to see.

She's always beautiful.

A dead dog lay dead in the road. It appeared to be a black lab, hit, bloodied and mutilated by a car. A short way up ran two young black labs frolicking, possibly siblings or maybe pups of the other. Why do people let them run loose? Why do people leave them unrestrained in the back of a pickup? What makes people so irresponsible when it comes to their pets? Why own them if they don't want to care for them and protect them? It breaks my heart to see this. It's no wonder I prefer most animals to many people. If I ruled the world for a day the people who caused these atrocities would pay for them in kind. (It's my soapbox.)

Highway 82 is green and beautiful in this area. We crossed the Mississippi River, and into Mississippi state. Bridges are another man-made wonder and taking them on a motorcycle is a special treat. In Alaska we don't have this type of bridge, and so the adventure continues.

I love riding over bridges.  This one was no exception.

There was even some action to shoot on the Mississippi. 

So many of the things I see make me want to burst into song. The one going through my mind is “Roll on Mississippi” by Charlie Pride. I'm high on life. And now that I'm traveling through some of these states, my auto-finger is disconnected and my mouth is quiet. However, my mind races with thoughts of dumb drivers and other irksome things.

P.S. The lowest gas price I saw was $2.97 a gallon.

Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia

July 8

Sometimes songs just pop into my mind as I'm riding along. The one today “I can't believe it's magic; nothing can stand in my way.” I know, I think it's two songs, but it sounds great together for a road trip.

Being on the bike is like magic. I feel I can fly and I don't even have to do triple digit, no ticket riding. How 'bout that?

Early in the morning it's pretty cool, and the air flowed gently over my bare arms, making me feel good and happy to be alive and riding in the U.S. of A. I usually feel that way before the temperature rises above 90 degrees. I've slathered sunscreen on every piece of exposed skin, so I hopefully don't burn. My dermatologist doesn't like me in the sun like this, so I must stay slathered.

Ruth spotted an old tractor parked by what used to be an old gas station. I took photos because I knew my friend, Stef, would have loved this piece of equipment and wanted to photograph it. I liked it a lot, too, and took pictures from every angle.

Rusty and old, but still a beautiful piece of machinery.

A piece of history.

Red Bay, Alabama, is where there's a memorial  to fallen soldiers and those who died in the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

The lanes in the little park are all lined with flags, and the centerpiece is a gazebo where there must be bands that play for special occasions.

No one is forgotten at this memorial park.

This was a very interesting and neat place to visit.

I love this sign.

I had been in the Roadside America web site again and this time I found the Key Underwood Coon Dog Memorial Graveyard, near Tuscumbia, Alabama. On Labor Day in 1937, Key Underwood wrapped his faithful hunting companion of 15 years in a cotton sack, buried him in a three-foot deep grave in a meadow in northwest Alabama and used a hammer and a screwdriver to chisel his dog's name into a rock – Troop. The place was a hunting camp used by Key and his friends and Troop was beloved by all. He was a great coon dog, one of the best in the state.

This is the main monument at the cemetary.

This was a beautiful place to put all these faithful pooches.

It may not be the most beautiful, or interesting, but I thought there was so much character to this marker.  "Flop."  Love the name.

I cropped this because I liked the plaque and the collar on the marker.

Most markers are simple; some are more elaborate.

There was so much going on with this marker, I couldn't help but like it.

Underwood's dog was the first, but not the last. Since then there have been dogs, dogs and more dogs, nearly 200 of them. But only coon hounds are allowed to be buried here, and there are a few pretty impressive memorials. I wandered through the cemetary, taking photos and looking at the stones with names, years of birth and death, a saying, a photo. There were coins laid on some of the stones, and I wondered why. A tribute? I didn't know, but I put a few coins on a couple of markers, too. Wouldn't you know the names of both dogs would be Queen?

And it just so happens to be a great marker.

By the time I left I was crying like a baby, saddened by the loss of so many beloved pets. I've lost many myself, they're like family, and their losses are hard on those left behind.

This is outside a restaurant called Rancho Viego ... GA??  Can't remember.  Food was not good although the people were very nice.

I'd found another adventure for us on Roadside America. This time it was the Ave Maria Grotto in Cullman, Alabama. It's not exactly what we were expecting. I was expecting coolness, green plants and going a little into the earth. Not so. It appears to be mostly man-made, and it's a Catholic Church attraction. It's all very interesting, though. The grotto itself has stalagmites and stalagtites, and statues added to it, but it's all very much above ground. There are also more than 125 miniature replicas of biblical structures and world-famous buildings, including the Leaning Tower of Pisa, the Colliseum and Hansel and Gretel's castle. The buildings are made using glass and marbles for decoration, and it's fun to see. There's a lot of detail that people have added to these things. Plus, some of it was in the shade and there were places to sit.

Hansel and Gretl visit the castle of the fairies.

Hansel and Gretl. 

There's incredible detail to all of these works of art.

This is the Ave Maria Grotto.

Close up you can see the detail and how much there is inside the grotto.

I liked this because it was colorful.

This one made me think of my friend Liz.

There is something for everyone here.

Not all are elaborate.

How could I not include a chipmunk crossing?  The only thing missing was the chipmunk.

Ruth and I dodged large rain clouds and teased Mother Nature as we rode along, daring her to dump on us again with rain. A small shower would have felt good. But the best we got from her was a few large drops on the windshield. She had no use for us today and did not respond to the teasing.

The highway and roads are excellent around here and it's beautiful, green and lots of large trees. Horses are everywhere, lots of cows. Yep, lots to look at.

We crossed into Georgia, and rode to Calhoun to spend the night. Maybe not the best choice on a Sunday evening. We found no open restaurants, and the one that would deliver called back to say we were too far away. I'm sure glad I had a couple of apples left and my jar of peanut butter. I did not go to bed hungry.

There are beautiful flowers everywhere.

P.P.S: The lowest price for gas I saw today was $2.95. Gas prices are higher in Georgia. Arkansas and Mississippi are lowest.