I am unable to reverse the order of the Blog entries so that Day 1 comes first, I encourage you to go to the trouble of starting on page 7 and reading bottom to top page 7 to page 1.

If you have any questions about my trip (or want to invite me along on yours) I can be contacted at kewhite11@yahoo.com

I did not want to get up this morning inspite of the fact I was within riding distance of home, I wanted to roll over and sleep till noon. The cumulative effect of 54 consecuative days of riding had caught up with me.

However I did finally manage to get out of bed and get ready to go. BJP's bike shoes were completely dry compliments of the newspaper stuffing from the night before. We walked over to the nearby Waffle House for breakfast, another thing I had really been missing in the Waffle House deprived states  I passed thru.

The sky was overcast and BJP said the forecast for day was 30% chance of showers which sounded good to me. We set off down the Comet and I enjoyed the early morning peacefulness, I saw several big fat rabbits and one white tailed deer.

Well the 30% chance of rain became 100% and although it was a light drizzle it chilled me enough to stop and pull another shirt over my sleeveless jersey.

I knew 4 of Team Iguana were planning to ride The Silver Comet Trail from the Floyd Rd. trailhead to Cedartown and back today so I kept an eye out for them. Along came Tom H. all alone, the other 3 had bailed. After a congratulatory hug Tom continued on his way west and BJP and I resumed our eastward trek.

It was at that time that we also made the aquaintance of two riders on the Comet for their first time, Daniel Tice and his father Gerald.  They were from Oxford AL and congratulated me on completing my journey.


I found myself getting more and more fatigued which when you consider that the Comet isnt a hard ride told me just how tired I was and that it was a good thing I was so close to home.

The rain continued off and on and just before we reached the end of the trail I made my decision that the rain was a sign and that the end of the Comet trail would be the end of my trail as well.

My mileage total for my 55 days of riding was 3401 with an average of 62 miles a day, and miracle of all miracles ZERO flat tires!!!

Would I do this again? HELL YES!I fully do intend to keep doing rides like this, there is so much of this country (and others) left to see and so many many wonderful people left to meet. Also 8 weeks of riding has done great things for my for my calves, quads, and hips. :-)

Would I do anything differently? I dont know, everything had good points and not so good points.

What am I going to do now? First I'm going to rest up, get all my gear cleaned and put away/returned. Then I am going to consult with my financial planner and determine if I can retire or if I have to get a job.

Do I have any final philosophical words to impart? Yup. Let fear motivate you; the fear of finding yourself sitting in a rocking chair on the porch of a nursing home with a long list of things you never got around to doing and are no longer able to.

Oh yeah, and my most important words of wisdom to live by would be:
EAT DESSERT FIRST! :-)

Do I have any questions for you? Yup, just one. WHAT IN THE HECK ARE YOU WAITING FOR?



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Not looking forward to a repeat of yesterday I opted to try to work my way as far east as I could using roads parallel to Hwy 278, I got as far as Hokes Bluff AL (15 miles).

When I did begin riding on 278 I couldnt believe I was on the same road. Either trucks have Fridays off or they had been warned that there was a crazed gang on the loose comprised of Red, BOB, and The Cycling Goddess.

In the entire 35ish miles I rode on 278 east of Gadsden AL I saw maybe 20 trucks and 40 cars.The low traffic combined with the pleasant temp caused by an overcast sky made for a relaxed ride.

46 miles into my day I arrived at the GA state line. I was so happy to see it I took a picture of the sign, I would have hugged it but BOB is jealous type. ;-)

I found the Silver Comet Trail about a mile into GA and took it eastward, enjoying the total lack of traffic and hills. In Cedar Town I took a break at the train depot and then headed out towards Rockmart on the road as this was day 54 of riding and although its been fun I was very tired and wanted to "Git 'er done".

Antioch Road went on forever and when it finally became Morgan Valley my spirits and pace picked up a bit. Rolling into Rockmart who should I see on the bench outside her restaurant but Frankie.She was excited for me and my accomplishment, and had our picture taken with Redand BOB for her brag board inside the restaurant.

BJP arrived in Rockmart in the evening with the intent of accompanying me to the Mavell Road trailhead on the Silver Comet the next day. From the motel we rode the mile back to Frankie's in street clothes, and had a wonderful dinner complete with white raspberrycheesecake for dessert.

We then noticed the sky darkening and as we left the restaurant heard thunder and saw lightening. We made it about half of the mile back to the motel before the sky opened and the downpour began. It rained so hard and at such an angle that I had trouble catching my breath. The gutters overflowed and water covered the road so I could not see what I was riding thru, it was scary.

We made it the last half mile and there was not a dry spot on us. The front desk people saw us ride in and were nice enough to bring us more towels. I was wearing my biking sandals so the water ran out but BJP's bike shoes were soaked. I advised him to stuff the shoes with newspaper to soak up the water and although he was sceptical he did.




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The day started out ok and went downhill from there. The shoulder on hwy 67 disappeared on the outskirts of Decatur but traffic didnt, especially the logging trucks.

One good spot was when I stopped in Hulaco AL at a Mom & Pop grocery for lunch I had a hoop cheese and ham sandwich and a SunDrop soda pop to go with it, I like trying new things.

I survived 67 with the optomism that surely Hwy 278 would be better. It wasnt to be, 67 might have been scary but 278 was suicidal. Trucks, trucks, and more trucks, no shoulders, hilly. I was a nervous wreck by Snead and at Walnut Grove when I heard thunder rumbling & spotted the road construction next 14 miles sign I pulled into the next paved drive which happened to be for Sarah's cafe. I had apple pie ala mode while arguing with myself about sticking it out or thumbing it to Gadsden.

Finally Richard, one of the cafe owners loaded BOB and Red and I in his truck with the intention of seeing us safely thru the construction. The sky opened up not a minute later and when I saw the construction zone, saw the amount of water on the road and being sprayed by the trucks I knew I would have been roadkill if I had continued riding. Richard insisted on taking me all the way to the campgrounds for which I will be eternally grateful.

I got another unpleasant surprise at the campgrounds, they did not take tents but the kind hearted owner took pity on me and said to find a spot out of the way and keep a low profile.

So here I sit hole up in my tent journaling while the rain pours and itty bitty black ants invade. :-(
Surely tomorrow will be a better day.

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Today I finished up Tennessee and got a good start on Alabama. I was out of the campground by 6:30 and stopped for breakfast less than a mile away in Lawrenceburg. A nice old man by the name of Bud Abbott was so impressed by my journey that he bought my breakfast. :-)

The last stretch from Lawrenceburg to the Alabama border was filled with logging trucks and narrow shoulders. 10 miles into Alabama I reached the Joe Wheeler Dam, the bridge had no shoulders and I pedaled like mad to get across before being sandwiched by logging trucks. WHERE do they all come from?!

Once across I turned off onto CR150 and found lighter traffic for about 10 miles until North Courtland. There I turned east on hwy 72 which started out with decent shoulders but a few miles down the road dwindled to rumble stripes. Consulting my detailed map I found an alternate route thru the charming litle town of Trinity to get to hwy 67 in Decatur.

Hwy67 is called the beltway by the natives and had good shoulders. I was at 70 miles and had planned to go 80 before stopping but then I hit the hotel strip and the call of airconditioning and a real bed got the best of me. I found a nice little Best Western with a restaurant and a dollar store close by and was able to get a reduced rate so here I am sacked out on the bed journaling in the airconditioning after taking a very long bath and doing a load of laundry.

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I woke early and slowly got ready to ride, enjoying the quiet beginning of a new day. The steep downhill from the campground got my adrenaline flowing but it didnt help my legs which were still tired from the hills yesterday.

The rest of hwy 412 was much better and when I got to Linden TN I stopped for breakfast of biscuits & gravy. Then on to Hohenwald where I switched to hwy 20 and headed SE to Summertown. On the outskirts of town there was a roadside picnic area that I couldnt resist and I had a nice 45 min. nap on a picnic table bench using BOB as my footrest.

From Summertown I took hwy 43 south to Lawrenceburg, a good cruise down nice wide shoulders.

I easily found David Crockett State Park in Lawrenceburg and soon after checking in was befriended by Rick Murphy; cyclist, gymnist,and country rock musician living in his self customized rv. We had a great dinner scrounged from the contents of his freezer and pantry, then he treated me to a personal concert. He was reallygood and I am looking forward to being able to say I knew Richard Alan Murphy before he made it big.


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I've been on the road for 50 days now, and it looks like I can be home in 5 more unless the next few days are like today's last 10 miles.

Inspite of a rv pulling in at 11PM and shining their lights into my tent for an eternity and then the trash men emptying dumpsters at 4:15AM (no, I am not exagerating) I slept really well. When I got out of the tent I discovered I had had a nocternal visitor who liked my chocolate raspberry hammer gel. He/she easily opened the gel flask, emptied it,and left it undamaged, then left a little raccoon paw print signature in the middle of my shorts that were drying on the picnic table.

I left the campgrounds about 6:30 and enjoyed the early morning temp and lack of traffic. I headed west on 79 and just before Paris took the 218 bypass to 641 South. 641 was moderately busy but had beautiful shoulders at least 12 feet wide. It wasn't particularly scenic but that was ok with me.

I can tell I am ready to be home.  I'm not taking very many pictures, and I'm not noticing what I'm passing as much. My brain is already wrestling with what to do next; change fields, go back to school, relocate closer to family, etc etc etc...or take a left and head for Maine! :-)

About 2 PM I found a nice shady tree and took about a 45 minute nap, then sat going over TN, AL,and GA maps for almost another 45 minutes. Then I got back on the bike and got into Parsons where I turned onto hwy 412 to take me to Mousetail Landing State Park.That was a hellish 8 mile stretch; narrow lanes with uneven tiny shoulders, BIG rolling hills, bridge construction over the Tennessee River (and some #$%@ idiot couldn't wait and had to squeeze past me, I swear the cement barriers on my right were less than a foot away and he was less than a foot away on my left).

I survived the 8 miles and turned onto hwy 438 to do the last 2.5 miles to the park, and climbed and climbed and climbed. Inside the park to get to the camping there was a hill that would have put The Wall of Brasstown Bald to shame. No wonder only 1 of the 25 sites was taken, I don't think some rv's could make that hill.

So dinner tonight was a banana, an orange, an avacado, a granola bar, and powerade as I was not willing to climb that stinkin hill again after dinner out. I am however looking forward to the downhill in the morning. :-)

The park ranger just came by. When I told him what my dinner had been he drove home and came back with a piece of his Aunt Lucy's chocolate pie and a Dr. Pepper! More proof of how many wonderful people there are in this world. And Aunt Lucy's pie rocked!

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Knowing it was our last day riding together Cindy & I  were up and out by 6:20, a record for us. On the way out of the park we saw several deer and a raccoon.
After breakfast in Benton IL we picked up Hwy 37 and headed south. We got about 35 miles before Cindy's friend Craig found us just north of Pulleys Mill. I was sad to see her go and also felt a mix of regret and relief that I wasnt going too.

I stopped shortly after that in Goreville for lunch. Delaneys on Broadstreet has outstanding chicken salad and gives free pie to cyclists! I had the strawberry rhubarb and it was superb.

I continued down 37 and then cut east on 161 to Vienna to get hwy45 which would take me all the way to Metropolis and Fort MassacState Park.
I45 was great, it was hilly but very shady and not much traffic since it parallels the Interstate.

Three hours later I pulled into the DQ in Metropolis and discovered I had no wallet! Thinking back I realized I had left it in the lawnchair I had been sitting in in front of the grocery store in Vienna when I took a break there.

I was devistated, my drivers license, credit card, and cash were all in the wallet. I called information but since I couldnt givethem the name of the grocery store they couldnt/wouldnt look forthe number.

Then I called back and asked for the number of the Vienna police department. The PD was able to tell me it was the IGA grocery store and gave me the number.

The lady who answered the phone at the IGA checked and said yes they had my wallet in the safe and I could pick it up any time. I explained that it would take 3 hours for me to ride back and asked if any employees lived in the direction of Metropolis. She said yes she lived in Paducah and was getting off work and would come thru Metropolis and bring my wallet to me! Wow, my biking angel was working overtime. So a big big thank you goes to Crystal Smith from the Vienna IL IGA for bailing me out.

So finally I got to Ft. Massac state park and discovered there was a blues festival going on and it was easily heard from the campground; nice.

Just after I pulled in a man came up and talked to me, he was also a cyclist. He invited me to go eat pizza with his group so I piled in the van with Barry Karen Tammy Dave and their kids Ginger Brandon Nick, and Raelyn, and off we went to Cubby's pizza. These folks were all a lot of fun to be with and I felt very appreciative they befriended me. On the way back from dinner they drove me to see the big superman statue in Metropolis and took pictures of me which will get emailed and added to my week 6 photo gallery.

Back at camp I got the tent set up, took a shower, did shower laundry, walked to a gas station and got a strawberry ice cream bar for dessert and a bottle of Squirt, then crashed.


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I slept pretty well, it was almost cool enough to get the sleepingbag out but not quite.

For breakfast we hit the nearby McDonalds where we met a few of the local good old boys. They said from Carlyle south there would be good shoulders on hwy 127...they LIED!

There was NO shoulder at all.We got about two miles down the road when a semi passed me going about 65 and I swear he came within a foot of me. I pulled over to let my heart rate return to normal, then again requested we get the heck off 127. We turned east on 161 thinking we could then pick up 16 going south but the bridge 2 miles south on 16 was closed for repairs so we had no choice but to continue east on 161 to Centralia. There we turned south onto 51 and worked our way southeast to Sesser by Rend Lake.

We were able to find a Corp of Engineers campground on the southeast side of the lake called South Marcum, the mileage total for the day was 72.

The campground was not close to town and had not so much as a pop machine so dinner was fig newtons, cheese crackers, peanutbutter ritz bits, driedfruit, and nuts.

Later that evening Cindy struck up a conversation with one of ourneighbors at the water faucet and mentioned I was still hungry when he asked if there was anything we needed. A few minutes later he and a friend came over with plates of mac&cheese, green beans,and a ham&cheese sandwich, three bottes of assorted drinks, and chocolate granola bars for dessert. (Needless to say I gave them each a big big hug.) Cindy, ya did good!

It did get chilly enough to get out the sleepin bag which was way better than sweltering like previous nights. Our other young neighbors were noisy until late but eventually quieted down.




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