Day 2 - May 12, 2023. Fulton, MS - Counce, TN

Here we go............  It's great to finally be underway.  The plan was that we would ride more or less as a group the first 3 miles to a UGRR info board, meet the mayor there for a photo op and then be on our way.  Well - on the first pedal stroke Carol & Lise broke the chain on their tandem so that delayed proceedings a bit.  


There were two husbands along to see their wives off and we bade them farewell this morning.  Just the girls from here............


We made quick work of those first 3 miles.  Here is the sign and the photo op.  BTW - that was the only indication of the UGRR today.  Hopefully more in our future.  Post-dinner note:  Apparently there were more UGRR elements today.  We were on the John Rankin Highway for over 10 miles early in the ride.  John Rankin (1793-1886) was a prominent Presbyterian minister, educator, and abolitionist.  Upon moving to Ripley, Ohio in 1822 he became known as one of Ohio's first and most active "conductors" on the UGRR.  





I'm pretty sure I followed the measurement directions carefully, but my commemorative jersey is a tad too large for me.  Not sure that it will ever see the light of day again.  Apparently I'm not alone with this issue; pretty much everyone has a jersey that is several sizes too big for them.  

The loose dogs were out in full force this morning.  Ugh!  I was only chased by a few, but there's no relaxing as I ride through these backroads.  I'm constantly on the lookout for dogs in motion.  No pictures of dogs, but perhaps this flag gives an indication of the nature of the local population.  


We were occasionally within spittin' distance of the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway.



I made a few detours seeking out an opportunity to see one of the locks.  I was finally successful at the Sonny Montgomery lock.  I wasn't able to get very close to it, but it seems to look similar to those on the Rideau Canal, except that the holding bay is huge compared to those on the Rideau.  I suppose it was built to take large commercial vessels headed for the Gulf.  




After dogs and then the really rough John Rankin Parkway it was heaven to turn onto the Natchez Trace Parkway.  Great pavement, little traffic, nice forests for 10 miles - yay!  


The Natchez Trace Parkway is a 444-mile recreational road and scenic drive through three states.  It roughly follows the "Old Natchez Trace", a historic travel corridor used by American Indians, European settlers, slave traders, and soldiers.  Natchez (which is located on the Mississippi River) was the most active slave trading city in the state of Mississippi, and Mississippi had one of the largest slave populations in the US.  

After leaving the Parkway we got onto State Route 25 and then SR 30 for about 9 miles.  Lots of large truck traffic and no shoulder; not much fun.....  It also started to rain around here, so the camera went away for a good long time. 

At about 45 miles we got onto quieter roads once again.  At some point we had a good view of the man-made section of the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway.  



At about 75 miles we crossed back into the state of Tennessee (from Mississippi).  Margarita party tonight!  We're actually not too far from the AL-MS-TN border in the middle of the Tennessee River.   



Well, that was a pretty big day for the first day of a tour.  While I got rained on a bit, it seems that a lot of the folks got a lot wetter than I did.  Besides, at these temperatures I'm almost happy for the rain (except for the fact that it get my bike pretty dirty).  

Miscellaneous things........  I saw a cardinal (or some type of very red bird; very pretty).  I saw a bunch of road-kill armadillos.  I'm back in the land of 37 varieties of Baptist Churches.  After a late spring in Calgary it's nice to see fully leafed-out trees and green grass.  I took my time today and neither the distance nor the elevation was an issue for me.  


Counce, Tennessee

Population 316 (2020).  Counce is located on Tennessee State Route 57 near the Mississippi border, and is adjacent to the Tennessee River near the Pickwick Landing Dam.  Counce is named after the Counce families, who were the first families to inhabit the community.


Stats for the day:

Distance:  127.5 km / 79 miles

Elevation (Garmin):  1215 m up /  1146 m down.   3986' up /   3760' down

Elevation (RWGPS):  1840 m up / 1774 m down.   6036' up / 5820' down

Weather:  18C - 27C, and then back down to about 17C in the rain.  Overcast most of the morning, then light showers on and off most of the afternoon.  A bit of a tailwind early in the day.  The headwind picked up a bit during the rain episodes, but really not much of an issue.  




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