A Harvest Host located in Vinemont AL. A beautiful 300-acre ranch with a herd of 110 Akaushi cattle.
We parked next to one of the barns on the property:
Our view back toward the driveway entrance:
After setting up, we took a walk down the hill in this direction:
Greg Anderson, owner and part of the “Alabama cowboy tradition.”
Greg’s wife Emily came out and sold us some beef from their freezers:
We planned to ride today, but the weather was iffy, and the wind was blowing … and we talked ourselves out of it. Time for laundry before we leave tomorrow. This rustic looking tiny building was the laundry room – very nice inside though. Everything was going well until Billie warned me about buildings like this … watch for snakes. Snakes!
Our spot at this campground was rather close to the neighbors on either side of us. Lolli and Pop (really!) are to the right. At the back of their rig – and right next to Billie’s bedroom window – were a large set of chimes.
Don’t let the smiling face in the next picture fool you. Those chimes rang 24/7 for four days and someone was NOT happy.
Today we drove to the northern trailhead in New Albany MS. We parked just off Main Street on the other side of the tracks from this engine. The Tanglefoot was named after one of the engines that ran up and down this track when it was in use in the late 1800s.
The beginning of the trail at Mile Marker 43.6 was beautiful. At the end of the ride, we got (our first) coffee at Brew Albany at the end of the ride:
At first, I wondered if this was going to be another “tunnel of trees” ride, i.e. not much to see beyond trees …
but the trail opened up to views of the countryside.
Every time I see a tractor, I think of Justin who has a few tractors and always seems to be restoring one of them. This one could use some of his TLC:
One of the small towns we rode through, Ecru. The mural depicting its history:
Mile Marker 29, our turn-around point:
And then it began to mist … rain as I got back to the starting point. 30 miles and a little bit wet. Load the bikes, lock up everything and walk back to:
A delicious ending to a great ride.
Yesterday we relocated to an RV park on the Natchez Trace SW of Tupelo. This morning we drove to Houston to ride the Tanglefoot Trail. Mile Marker 0:
The worst riding surface – tar and gravel over wood:
MM 9.9 at New Houlka:
Turn around at MM 15:
30 miles – it felt so good to be pedaling again.
Thanks so much Tom and Paula for your hospitality. Another unforgettable experience. It is time to continue the journey.
Elkin Oaks is beautiful. What a backdrop for Sallie:
The back of the house has its own address:
What a great visit! Thanks again.
And lastly, a question to ponder. Tom is a great cook. Check out the silver half-pot. What does Tom use that for?
We left in the morning to drive to Shelby and Scott’s camp on the Tennessee-Tom Bigbee River.
Then we went for lunch at the Louisiana Shrimp Shack:
The crawfish were too spicy for Paula. Tom thought we should get 2 pounds. Billie thought 4 pounds to start with was better. In the end, three of us ate 7 pounds! You only get a teaspoon of tail meat at a time – it’s a messy delicious meal.
Tom knows all the good local places, so our final stop was at
Billie bought a cinnamon raisin bread pudding. In the afternoon, Billie and I organized a few things and got ready to leave the next day. Later, Tom made excellent Bloody Mary’s:
For some reason, we weren’t very hungry for dinner. But there’s always room for dessert. Tom made a whisky sauce which was poured over the bread pudding. We each got a spoon and dug in! Best I’ve every tasted:
Monday May 10. Cindy and her daughter:
Dani, Kathy, and Barbara:
Tuesday May 11. Dani, Cindy, Cheryl, Kathy:
Wednesday May 12. Two rides! What a fine looking group in their Jibe jerseys at Brake Fast Wednesday at Burberry Park. Kathy, Barbara, Cindy C, Cheryl, Jonathan:
Thanks everyone for this picture. I miss you! Kathy, Barbara, Cindy C, Cheryl:
Thursday May 13. Shiloh and daughter:
Jane, Cheryl, Barbara:
Friday May 14. Jonathan took this picture of Leo, Kathy, Cindy C, Jane, Cheryl, Amal, Barbara:
Great rides and pictures this week. Go team!
Big thanks to Tom and Paula
for letting us wash the RV and tow car. Maybe “us” is a stretch. Mostly it was Billie.
Ever ready in the background:
Tom Paula and Leslie left to run an errand:
Clean and shiny:
We drove to Starkville today and had lunch at Georgia Blue.
Unexpectedly delicious appetizer – Turnip Green Bites:
In addition to 3 loads of laundry, Billie and I had a “planning meeting” – our official name for when we sit down to make future travel plans. This includes finding the trails we want to ride and finding the best place to stay, then calling and making the reservations if you can’t do it online. If it’s a long distance (more than 200) miles, we see if there’s a Harvest Host we can stop at for a night. Both of us make our own version of written notes. I’m usually clicking away on the laptop opening tabs with various sources of good info. Billie makes the phone calls.
Billie and Tom traded a few cooking methods. Billie showed him how she makes the individual quiches that Paula really liked.
And then came a most delicious meal: crab cakes by Tom!
arletelouise 