The Good the Bad and the Ugly

Morning came and we were all still dreaming of BBQ!!!!  As I mentioned last night we were off to the Shotgun House for some BBQ ribs.  Only to discover it was Monday and they were not opened.   Man we were bummed.  We have been smelling them for days as we stroll the small towns of Mississippi.

The Shotgun House was within walking distance so we took the hike only to discover that they had a blues musician walk of fame embedded in the sidewalk with famous blues musicians names.   Still looking for a place to eat we went across the Levee from the hotel to the Casino for dinner.   The food was delicious but cheap.  Dinner was served in Styrofoam containers. We just need to set the bar a little lower I guess.

We did have a nice continental breakfast at the hotel this morning before we left which was good as we still had some laundry to do and an oil change was in order.  So the guys left early again to beat the heat knowing they had an 112 mile day.  I shoved off too and headed for the Quick Clean laundry mat.   It was open and had a few patrons already.  I then ran to the oil change place and was on the road to catch up with the guys around 8:30 am. They had been riding for 2 1/2 hours before I caught up.

They had a morning ride around 2 lakes which were a bit more scenic than yesterday.  They came across the remnants of an old church that had been destroyed by a cyclone in 1904 but not before all of the windows had been removed to use the lead for bullets in the civil war.

The roads this morning were rough and tough, no shoulders and not much traffic.  The rough roads did not improve much as the day went on.  We disobeyed another detour only to find out that it was probably not the best idea we have ever had.  It was Ugly.  They were reinforcing the levee road also known as hwy 465.  It was not much of a hwy.  There was no center line or shoulder markings and was marked as single lane traffic only.  There were pot holes and patches that made your hands sore from the bouncing around.  Then just when you thought it could not get any worse it did.  It then turned to dirt and then loose dirt.  We must have gotten off our bikes at least 10 times to walk across the cattle guards. It finally got so bad we had to load the bikes on the van and drive the last mile to meet the pavement again.

Then once we got onto the new pavement it was a sweet ride.   I gave up the bike so Dave and Terry could  finish out the day in Historical Vicksburg. The last stretch of the ride proved to be colorful as you have seen in the photos. The home of Rev. H.D. Dennis. It was a grocery store.  The story goes as this. The Reverend promised to make the store a palace if his wife Margaret agreed to marry him.

Then into Vicksburg they rode along the historical riverfront with murals painted on the levee walls depicting periods of history.  Vicksburg is also known for the first Coca Cola bottling plant in the US.  The 1890 building has been restored into a museum  complete with a soda fountain and candy store.  Lots to see and do here just not enough time.

We are staying in another comfortable inn tonight that had a guest reception in the lobby serving appetizers, coke and beer.  So we went down and enjoyed ourselves while chatting with other guests who turned out to be construction workers who have been staying here for months.

Then we picked up our laundry on the way back to room so it was a truly productive day.

Good Night Y'all and tune in tomorrow for more stories served up with some southern hospitality.

Dave, Terry & Julie