Tennessee with Davy and Jack

 We have been moving slower and driving 50-160 miles each time we move. There just seems to be so many good places to see and the food to eat.  Stick with me. This is the end of the Natchez Trace.

Sinkhole that was used by travelers during rain

Cutting through the northwest corner of Alabama, the terrain changed and there were

more opportunities to take short walks on the trails. We stopped at Rocky Springs for

an interpretive walk and watched the springs bubbling up through the rocks in the bottom of the creek.

Sweetwater was another nice walk where the Chickasaw would stop for fresh water. We left the Trace shortly after crossing the border to head east. It would be too easy to get off track and just keep
wandering in an attempt to see everything there is out there. But we need to get to South Carolina.



When we arrived at David Crockett State Park, where most of the campers are locals. Our neighbors serenaded us with her guitar at night and was quite good. We loved their stories about living in the back hills of Tennessee. 

There is a town 10 miles north from us with an Amish village. They

pick you up at the farmer's market and take you to their village in a carriage. Unfortunately

for us, we were here for Easter and leaving the next day. We hear the produce in their

farmer's market in the summer is so good.

I missed getting a picture of the Amish couple on their ride through the park in a horse drawn carriage. I had told Mike an hour before that I need to remember my camera while taking a walk. I might miss something.

Davy Crockett owned this land with a Grist Mill until it flooded and he lost it. As we walked along the trails we sang "Davy Davy Crocket king of the wild frontier." If you don't remember it, Don't worry. That was a long time ago and kind of lame.

Staying on the back roads has been a treat with a chance to see some small towns. It is

easy to get lost since many of the signs are missing (the post is still there). Thank goodness for GPS. We have to pay attention to the gas gage and keep it above 1/2 a tank. Once we had to take

smaller winding back roads to fill up.

The dogwoods were really blooming in Tennessee.

We took a walk along the Davy's Walkabout Trail and imagined him in his coonskin hat and

musket. We found this guy on the trail on our morning walk before heading to Lynchburg.

Does the song Tennessee Whiskey ring a bell?

We didn't have internet to check on what was ahead, but did have a Tennessee travel guide. On the front was a little distillery 20 miles off our route. Who are we to question a sign?  

We signed up for the Angel Tour even though this is a dry county.  Jack Daniels found ways around that to produce his whiskey legally. We had not reserved a place before arriving. Fortunately, it was a Monday and they had room for us. Sunday they had 30 people on each tour. We had 15.

Another sign?

The tour guide was delightful and irreverent in her story telling. The 1 1/2 hour tour flew by. In no time we were sitting in the tasting room.

The original REO Speedwagon

The mineral-rich Cave Spring Hollow, which Jack purchased for $24, holds the spring water that Jack Daniels uses for his brew.

Jack leaves home at 13 years old and is taken in by Reverend Dan Call. He learns the art of whiskey making from the preacher.

Every bottle of Jack Daniel’s sold around the world is made with the water from this source. Considering all the whiskey that’s come from Jack’s $2,148 investment with the land he purchased after the cave, we’d say he received a pretty good return.

Jack's office. He never went to work before 10 am until one morning he arrived early. He couldn't remember the combination to the safe and kicked it, breaking his toe. He didn't have a wife to make him go to the doctor. Gangrene set in. He had his foot amputated, then his lower leg, then died when his upper leg was being removed. The moral of this story?

Don't go to work early.

While touring the processing areas of the distillery, we had to leave our cameras, cell phones and other items that could cause a spark off. I guess that could be a problem with all of that 140 proof alcohol.

This looks like a small amount to taste but more than enough for me.



Frank Sinatra always traveled with 2 cases of No 7. He never knew when a party would break out and wanted to be ready. He was buried with a bottle of Jack. We got to taste the special production made for Sinatra's 100th birthday which sells for $100 per bottle.

After tasting Old number 7, we headed over to Miss Mary Bobbo's Boarding House for lunch. We did not have reservations. As we walked in, they were seating a room and had room for us. They were serving fried chicken, roasted pork and all of the fixings family style. I was partial to the spiced apples with a bit of #7. A hostess sat with us while we all ate and told us stories about Miss Bobbo and Lynchburg.

  Miss Mary operated the boarding house until her death in 1983, just shy of her 102nd birthday. Several local high school students work here for two years and if they meet the requirements, They get a 2 year college scholarship provided by Jack and the state of Tennessee.

We enjoyed the company of other travelers as we ate and then waddled out together down the three blocks of Lynchburg to our vehicles.

We climbed back in our truck to finish our drive to Chattanooga after a fun day.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zAThXFOy2c

A little Tennessee Whiskey for you



Tupelo Honey

Van Morrison would have cringed if he heard us singing.

Cypress Swamp

Our final leg on the Natchez Trace with us riding 100 miles of the 440 miles. I don't think I will ever ride the entire park but so glad we took the time to enjoy and see it.



We stopped at Cypress Swamp even though we had seen Cypress swamps in Texas and

to take the 20 minute walk. It lasted 10 minutes once I saw the huge black swamp snake slithering

 nearby, I was done.

Walmart

This has been quite an activity packed trip so far. Before heading much further we stopped to stock up at Walmart.

A couple of items that Walmart carries. We passed this time.

Tupelo, Mississippi

The temperatures are running 12 degrees above normal at 85 degrees so we decided to find a campground with full hookups. There are campgrounds on the Trace but are dry camping and we needed air conditioning. Our solar power just won't cut it. We found a place a Trace State Park overlooking the lake.

Trace State Park was 10 miles off the Trace but the closest campground where we wanted to stop. We keep seeing many of the same people at the different campgrounds each day as we travel north.

 

 A man camping nearby told us to take all of the firewood that we wanted. He was not going to load it and haul it around anymore. It was some great hardwood and we helped ourselves. We were then obligated to build a fire once it cooled down even though it was 87 degrees in the afternoon. 

 While sitting by the fire, a man from New Brunswick came marching over sat down and visited for an hour. He was a hoot. Then he got up and marched off when he saw his wife looking out the motorhome window. His stories were hilarious. Who needs TV or internet? The next day they invited us over after dinner to sit and visit by their fire. We are meeting some fun people along the way.

On our last day of riding our bikes, we stopped at the 13 unknown Confederate soldiers' graves along the trace that the soldiers, Indians and trappers would walk. The headstones face away from the graves so people walking the Trace could read and remember them. It is not known if the died of wounds, lingering hunger, poverty or sickness in the army camps.

We stopped at a rest area and met three ladies that were returning to Jackson on

their bikes. They had ridden a section north, camped and vowed to return and ride the

entire Trace both ways in May. They are from Alabama and Louisiana and must be

used to the heat and humidity. Actually, by getting out in the morning and done

before noon makes the riding much more pleasant.

Who could be in Tupelo and not check out Elvis's birthplace? It is actually not a very large town.

His dad built this 2 bedroom home.

Statue of Elvis at 13 years old.

A replica of the car driven by Elvis's family as they left Tupelo to make a life in Memphis.

The Assembly of God church that Elvis learned to play the guitar was moved to the Birthplace Park.

The circle of life exhibit around the house was very nice with a bit of his history while living in Tupelo.

I asked the visitor's center where we should have lunch. She recommended Johnnie's Drive Inn that Elvis frequented as a boy.

A dough burger is a combination of flour and hamburger meat that creates a patty.  Back in the day, individuals would make these patties in order for the meat to last longer.

Not much has changed at Johnnie’s.  The same booths that were there nearly 70 years ago are still there today. Johnnie’s Drive-In takes claim as being one of Elvis’s old hangout spots.  Today, customers can enjoy their meal in the exact booth as Elvis used to enjoy his.

You would think the tourists are what keeps Johnnie’s going, but actually the tourists are only 10 percent of their customers.  Johnnie’s has the same group of men that come and drink coffee every morning.  It’s the locals that keep it going.

We sat down in the tight quarters. I asked the lady next to me what she was eating. She liked the Johnny burger. Then spent the time visiting with them about Elvis and Tupelo.

The Elvis booth after a sweaty bike ride but a mandatory picture anyway.

We were there so we had to do it. We ended the day singing "Trying to get to you"  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEzSuFShgYc