2009 April 28th: I had a good nights sleep last night and got up ready to go. I had spent some time on the phone with a very good friend that lives just outside Atlanta, GA last night. I have made a slight change in my route to go visit her because I needed to order a new tire for the bike and I had to have a place to ship it to. The first thing that I did this morning was to order the tire. The estimated arrival date was to be the 5th of May or next Tuesday. I have some maintenance that needs to be performed on the bike like it needs an oil change and a couple of other minor things need to be looked at.
Once I had ordered the tire, I got everything packed up and on the bike. I left and headed toward New Orleans, LA. I rode down by the French Quarter and the convention center, but I was unable to stop for any pictures as traffic was bad and the parking was too far away for me to feel safe enough to leave the bike. I got back on the road and continued on my route.
I did not know or remember that at one point my route took me on a ferry and when I got to that point I was surprised. I took a ferry across the Mississippi River. It was a new experience, to ride a ferry with a motorcycle.
I continued on my route and before too long I was in Mississippi. The route led me down Beach Blvd. which was being cleaned by many different crews. They were cleaning up the sand that must have been blown off of the beach and onto the road. It reminded me of shoveling snow after a snow storm, only these guys were using heavy equipment.
Once I got into Biloxi, MS, I took a turn and went to look for the military base where I was born. It took a little bit of effort but I found Keesler Air Force Base without a problem. I stopped at one of the gates to take a picture and the guard on duty asked me what I was doing and when I told her she just said “OK” and walked off. I snapped a couple of pictures and then rode off. I went back to Beach Blvd. and continued on the route.
This is where I had made a change in plan and turn my route toward the North and East. I had decided that instead of going out of my way to go to Barber Motorsports museum that I would turn now and make that stop on my way to my friend’s in the Atlanta area.
Once the bike has been taken care of, I will go back South and return to my predetermined route around the gulf coast and eventually to the Florida Keys.
I rode for quite a long while and stopped in Thomasville, AL to get some fuel. The bike had gone over 220 miles and had still not gone on reserve yet. When I filled up the tank it took just over 4 gallons so, I’m getting over 50 mpg now. In Texas, fighting all of that wind the mileage was less 40mpg. It keeps improving the further I go.
When I stopped for gas, I had asked an officer if he knew of an RV Park nearby. He gave me directions, but I never found it. I had considered several times to do some renegade camping. This is camping on land that is for sale or behind a church or school. Or just finding a spot off of the road far enough. It was getting dark and I just wasn’t feeling very good about any of those options.
I came to a small town and saw a hotel that looked abandoned except for the sign that said OPEN and it was well lit up with lights. I stopped and knocked on the door. A man came out and I asked if I could just pitch a tent out in the back yard. His wife came out and we talked for a few minutes and they were OK with letting me just camp out. I drove the bike around the back and then they said that they would rather I just slept in a room. They opened a room for me and told me to sleep here and not worry about the tent. I really want to Thank Rachel and Josh for there astounding generosity. You have completely made up for the actions of another at the Motel 6. I have been shocked and humbled by the friendliness and at how generous the people in the south have been to me. The people I have met on this journey have made it so great for me.
I wanted to say that I was saddened this morning when I saw within a very short amount of time 4 different birds of prey dead on the side of the road. I’m not sure if they were Hawks or Falcons; all I know is that I saw 4 of them all within a couple of miles. I think that the armadillo is still in the lead for the most found on the side of the road but there was a new entry today, I saw a lot of opossum today and a couple of wild pigs or Javalina’s.Everyday seems to be a new experience for me on this trip. Tomorrow I will be stopping at the Barber Motorsports Museum. I’m currently less than a hundred miles from there, so I have a short ride in the morning. After the museum I will look for a place to camp.