Short Trip Continued

This will be much easier now. We're home and have internet at the house, so I can continue with our trip memories.

We usually try to avoid downtown traffic in large cities, but The Varsity is in downtown Atlanta, so there was no avoiding it. Gene did an admirable job of negotiating lanes and insuring we left Atlanta with no dents or anyone else's paint on our vehicle. About an hour and a half out of Atlanta, we stopped to stretch our legs and I took over driving for the next hour and a half.
As long as we're on an interstate or 4 lane road where people can pass me, I don't get nervous.
I like to tootle along about 55 - 60 mph and most folks like to go a little faster no matter what they're driving. Gene gets a little uptight watching me drive - he says I have a death grip on the steering wheel. Well, yeah, I don't want to hit a bump and have the wheel jerked out of my hands. So, lots of times he'll go to the back and lay down to rest (and so he doesn't have to watch me).

Shortly after we switched drivers again, we entered Tennessee and it began to rain. I was so thankful Gene was at the wheel as we were in the Cumberland Mountain area with 5% grades.
We arrived at Natchez Trace Thousand Trails (after a few unintended detours) and settled in for a few days. We were able to visit the death and burial place of Meriwether Lewis that is just a few miles down the road. I read "From Sea to Shining Sea" by James Alexander Thom about the Clark family and the Lewis and Clark expedition and have been interested in that aspect of our history ever since. History comes alive when one can walk the grounds where it took place.

We departed on Saturday morning (9/19), driving along the Natchez Trace Parkway for about 40 miles. It's a peaceful and scenic two lane highway. We saw deer near the edge of the woods and several groups of wild turkeys.

We ate lunch at Old South BBQ in Oak Grove, KY - just a little past Ft. Campbell. It's a little place with great barbeque and huge servings. Our leftovers fed us for several meals. We traveled through Kentucky and into Indiana. I lost track of how many times we have been in and out of Eastern and Central time zones on this trip. The only sure way to know the correct time was to check my cell phone.

The countryside in Indiana was farmland. There were fields of corn and soybeans and produce stands full of pumpkins and watermelons. A definite sign of fall even though the temperatures have been in the 70's. Shortly after crossing the Wabash River (and another time zone change) we arrived at Horseshoe Lakes Thousand Trails. We have visited this one several times, but chose a campsite in another section - right next to one of the small lakes. Very serene - I love to sit and watch the water. There was bird seed left from the previous campers, so I watched a chipmunk and several wrens feasting on the bounty.

On Monday, we reacquainted with Al & Dixie whom we had met at Indian Lakes Thousand Trails last year. They taught us the domino game of Mexican Train. It was a brief but enjoyable visit.

This is a good stopping place for now.

God's blessings to all of you.