Missssippi to Kentucky

Another beautiful morning. We have been favouring the Best Western Motel chain rather than the cheaper Motel 6 or Super 8. Both of these chains are in every small town and normally charge around $60 (NZ) a night with no frills. Clean rooms and bedding but very basic. Best Western however charge around $70 to $80 but the rooms tend to be newly decorated and you normally get a substantial buffet breakfast included. Such was the case in Clinton.

We were both eager to hit the road today as we had planned to do the entire 400 plus miles of the Natchez-Trace Parkway which is a scenic route that prohibits commercial vehicles. The designation "Parkway" denotes that is scenically (and often) historically significant and is not disimiliar to a National Park. This was a beautiful road to ride, absolutely immaculate with neatly mowed berms and sidings. This lasts for about the same distance as it is from Wellington to Taupo.  The Parkway is very significant in American history. It started as a series of tracks with early Indian cultures several thousand years ago and slowly evolved into a major walking route to get through an important part of the country. In the 1700's it became strategically important  for the movement of troops and continued well past the Civil  War as a route that remained the backbone for the movement of trade goods and people  I'll let the pictures do the talking.

 

This was a highlight and despite the 55 mph speed limit, worth every minute of  the 6 hours we spent riding it. Nashville came and went and as the sky closed in again with lightning and thunder we finally pulled into another little town called Bowling Green. Now this place is famous as the birthplace of the Stingray Corvette and the vehicle is still made here. As we pulled into the Best Western we noted a Harley dealership right up the road. After unpacking we rode up there and picked up some more paches. We then enquired as to the location of a good bar and were pleased to be pointed  towards  the direction of out hotel (and a fairly non descript) white building. We showered ancd walked across, were served ice cold drinks and called it a night at Dennys with a Philly sandwich (lots of turkey, bacon, cheese and other stuff. Simply delicious.