Entry for Monday, 26 June 2000

State road 100 east of Henderson. A narrow road with lots of traffic.

Main street in Scotts Hill.

Time is running out to repent, but I guess it's OK to get my lawn cut first.

More from the Bible Belt.

Crossing the Tennessee River near Clifton, TN.

Connie and I had cheeseburgers for lunch Bingham's One Stop near Clifton, TN.

Last Modified on 6/27/2000 at 4:08:35

Day's Narrative: It seemed awfully early at 5:30 this morning, but the sun was already up and the heat of the day was beginning.

For breakfast I had a choice of McDonald's or Burger King. I had never had breakfast at Burger King so I tried them. Expecting eggs and sausage, I ordered two of the the Sausage Biscuits. Wrong. These things are just sausage patties and biscuits. I barely made through them, with the dough sticking to the roof of my mouth.

The reason for changing the route of this trip from Savannah to Henderson was twofold. First, after some discussion, Connie and I discovered that neither she nor I really had any real, burning desire to tour a war battlefield. Secondly, I suspected the US 64 going from Savannah across to Lawrenceburg, Fayetteville and Monteagle would have lots of traffic. Starting from Henderson would put the first part of the trip on SR 100, which, hopefully, would have less traffic than US 64.

As it turned out, SR 100 from Henderson to Scotts Hill (about 20 miles) was narrow with no paved shoulder and had quite a bit of traffic, including lots of large trucks. Most of SR 100 is beyond "gently rolling" and into "definitely rolling." It's a good way to exercise in the early morning, but it's not exhausting. However SR 114 from Scotts Hill to US 64 near Waynesboro was really deserted, and a joy to ride on.

I was standing in a convenience store in Scotts Hill leaning against a counter drinking a Coke when a young man came in and wanted to buy a pack of cigarettes. He looked to be about 16 and wore baggy shorts that are the rage among teenagers now, and had a cell phone hanging from his belt. The clerk asked for his drivers license as proof that he was 18 and he handed it to her. She looked at it intently for a moment, then went to the office to talk to the manager. When she returned she shook her head "no," and handed the driver's license back. The young man then left. A customer standing nearby asked what had happened and the clerk replied that the driver's license had been broken in half and then taped up again.

Connie caught up with me near Clifton on SR 114 and we had lunch at Bingham's One Stop.

This part of the United States is in the middle of the so called "Bible Belt" and has lots of Protestant fundamentalist church denominations. The two photos above give one a feeling for this.

As I approached Waynesboro on US 64, Connie came back to meet me. It seems all the rooms in the only [good] motel in Waynesboro had been reserved for the jury of some big trial and we would have to go further down the road to find a place to spend the night. Actually this turned out to be a blessing. US 64 was narrow and the formerly paved shoulder had deteriorated into gravel and could not be ridden on.

So we discussed the various possible solutions and decided to drive on the Pulaski to spend the night, which would also allow me to get off US 64. US 64 is not a road a bicyclist would voluntarily choose to ride on. As we drove down past Waynesboro through Lawrenceburg the traffic became even worse, and the road was still very narrow.

Tomorrow's weather forecast is for thunderstorms, hopefully only in the late afternoon.

In passing, I thought I would mention that as we have traveled through the Midwest we have found some place names that especially interested us: Toad Suck, Arkansas (or was it Oklahoma?), Bucksnort, Tennessee, and Big Bone Lick State Park in Kentucky. Hmmm. I wonder who named these places.

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© Ray & Connie Poore, 2000