RAIN!!!

Day 11, Saturday, April 25, 2015

First of all let me apologize for not giving you the line up for last night.  We changed roommates.  Chuck/Bruce, Jan/C.E., Ken/Jake and J.B./Me. 

My alarm sounded at 6:30 AM.  Did I mention this before?  I got up immediately and got dressed.  I kept looking at J.B. and wondering when he would wake up.  I was trying to be quiet.  I packed by bags and was sitting on my bed putting the battery back in the camera.  I dropped my camera on the floor and J.B. stirred.  As I was picking up my camera, J.B. opened his eyes and saluted me.  I guess I taught him right!  I was done packing.  J.B. got up and started to get dressed.  I took a couple of bags down to my Motorcycle to pack them.  As I got outside, I saw that it was sprinkling.  I packed my bags and cleaned my Motorcycle.  I walked into the breakfast room and Ken and Jake were already eating.  The guys slowly came in for breakfast.  Chuck was almost the last one.  Now, THAT is the Chuck we all know.  Bruce was the last to arrive.  We all ate breakfast and we were not in any hurry.  As we were eating, it rained harder.  We were unsure as to whether we would leave or spend another night.  We looked at the radar and saw that there were two storm fronts and one was above us.  Chuck said that we would wait and leave between the two storm fronts.  We were finished eating and we slowly went to our rooms and gathered the rest of our belongings.  Our Motorcycles were all packed and some of the guys got their rain gear out and started to put them on.  We still had about an hour before we even thought about leaving.  Jan and Chuck checked their tires and put in more air.  Ken, Jan and I cleaned our Motorcycles of the bugs and road dirt.  We were just killing time.  It was getting closer to leave and we all checked out of our rooms.  Chuck told us that we were going to leave soon.  The rest of us put on our rain gear.  Since we all needed to gas up, Jan, Ken and I decided that we would leave and ride next door to the gas station and gas up.  It was not raining at this time.  We thought that we had escaped the rain for a while.  The rest came to the gas station and gassed up.  Well, guess what?  As we finished gassing up, it started to rain.  We left at 11:34 AM with Jake leading.

Jake led us in the rain north on Highway 267.  When we reached Highway 90, Jake led us east.  At this point, we were headed to Montgomery, Ala.  That was the initial plan that Chuck discussed with Jake.  As we rode Highway 90, we went on a bridge over Lake Seminole.  After we did, there was a sign that stated that we were now on Central Time.  This was at 12:04 PM, which now, after passing the sign, it was 11:04 AM.  We gained an hour.  We continued and stopped at 11:30 AM after riding 58 miles in Marianna, Fla.  Jake thought that we needed a pit stop.  OK, with the suggestion planted in our mind, we did!  While we were taking a break, Chuck was busy checking the map and his phone.  We all felt that the plans were about to change.  Chuck told Jake to find some place for lunch.  We left at 12:13 PM.

Jake led us onto Highway 71, north.  We continued north and at 12:32 PM, we crossed over to Alabama.  The Highway turned into Highway 53.  We continued north going through Cottonwood, ALA, not Arizona.  We continued on Highway 53 for a distance and, whoops, Jake missed the turn.  We had to make a u-turn.  That’s OK, we all do that.  We went north on CR-33.  This was a two-lane County road.  Everything was green.  We rode for a while until we reached a fork in the road.  The left road was CR-33 and the right was Sweetie Smith Rd.  Guess which road we took?  Yup! We went right.  Welcome to the Group Jake!  He led us to the first intersection and made a u-turn.  We rode back to the fork in the road and turned into CR-33.  Now we were on the correct path.  We rode for a while and came up to Highway 82 going east/west.  Jake got on the CB and asked for suggestions.  Chuck told him on the CB to turn left.  There was a gas station and other buildings close by.  We thought that maybe there may have been a Subway.  There wasn’t.  We had ridden 38 miles and stopped in Ashford, Ala at 12:59 PM.  Jake and Chuck checked the map, again, and Jake had his instructions.  Jake led us onto Broadway and Old Highway 84.  After riding for 2 miles, we stopped at a business, still in Ashford, at 1:14 PM.  Checking the map, again, Chuck told Jake a different plan.  We left at 1:24 PM.

Jake took us on Old Highway 84 to Pleasant Grove and turned north.  We rode on this road until we met up with CR-33 again.  We turned east onto CR-33.  We rode for a distance and at 1:41 PM, we crossed over into Georgia.  It was now 2:41 PM.  We lost an hour, again.  We were on Eastern Time, again.  We were now on Highway 62.  We rode for 26 miles and at 2:54 PM, we stopped in Blakely, GA at a Subway for lunch.  We had a relaxing lunch.  Just before we arrived in Blakely, I was listening to an FM radio station.  The disc jockey was talking about a “Tornado Warning” with wind gusts of 60 mph and half dollar size hail in the southwest area of Georgia.  We were in the southwest area of Georgia!  I told the guys during lunch.  Chuck checked the map again and spoke with Jake.  We were done with lunch.  We left at 3:42 PM. 

Jake led us back onto Highway 62 and turned onto Highway 39 North.  We rode around some City buildings and possible City Hall.  We were headed north on Highway 39 and I was still listening to the FM station.  The sky was very dark to our left and an occasional lightning bolt would flash.  We also heard thunder.  We were trying to beat the storm and were going up to 80 mph on the country road.  There wasn’t much traffic so it was safe.  We rode for 41 miles and at 4:25 PM we stopped at a small gas station in Georgetown, GA.  Just as we arrived, the sky opened up!  It rained!  We parked our Motorcycles, some under the canopy and some not.  It poured!  We got out our rain gear and started to dress into them.  The thunder, lightning and the rain were fierce.  We waited until it had lightened up.  We thought that it was OK to go so we left at 4:51 PM. 

Jake led up on Highway 39 and we crossed over into Alabama, again.  We went north on Highway 431.  As we rode on Highway 431, the rain would start up again and rain hard.  Then it would stop.  Start.  Stop.  We rode for 55 miles and at 5:47 PM, we stopped at a gas station in Phenix City, Ala.  Yes, that is spelled correctly.  They just don’t know how to spell it correctly like we do in the big city!  We didn’t know where we were going.  We knew that we wanted to go to the Holiday Inn Express in Phenix City.  J.B. told us that he had the Holiday Inn Express address set on his Garman.  He then led the Group and left at 5:58 PM.  J.B. left and didn’t check to make sure that we were all ready to go.  Chuck, Jan and I were left at the gas station and J.B. and the rest were nowhere in sight.  We rode east.  Chuck led us a few blocks, blindly, until we saw Bruce stopped at a traffic light waiting for us.  We caught up and he turned south, following J.B. and the rest of the Group’s path.  We rode a few blocks and could NOT see them.  We made a few turns and stopped at a small parking lot.  Chuck checked his phone while I checked my navigation system.  I could not find the Holiday Inn Express.  We left and headed through the city trying to locate Highway 431, where we had entered the city.  We found it and were on Highway 431, east of Highway 280.  Chuck checked his phone and found that he had missed a call from Jake.  Chuck called Jake and Jake told Chuck that they were at the Holiday Inn Express and checked in.  He also said that a Quality Inn was next door.  Bruce walked to the gas station to use the restroom.  Chuck checked his phone for directions to the hotel.  Jan suggested to Chuck that maybe we should ask someone.  Chuck said, “No.”  Bruce returned and Chuck led us, again, north on Highway 280.  We rode for about a mile or so.  I saw a sign that read, “Welcome to Georgia.”  We stopped at a stop light and I told Chuck about the sign.  He asked me if I knew where to go.  I told him that we needed to go the opposite direction and get back to Alabama.  He told me to lead.

I led the four of us and made a u-turn.  We got back onto Highway 280 and rode for about two miles.  Jan got on the CB and told me that he saw the Quality Inn.  We exited Highway 280 and onto the access road.  We finally saw the Holiday Inn Express next door to the Quality Inn.  We rode into the front of the hotel and the rest of the guys were there waiting for us.  Whew!  Our partners told us our room numbers and gave us our keys.  We unloaded our bags.  I unloaded my bags, took off my rain gear, put it away, wiped down my Motorcycle and covered it.  All of the Motorcycles were tucked in for the night.  Inside the Quality Inn was a restaurant called, “AJ’s” where, after putting our stuff in our rooms, we walked for dinner.

We had a good dinner and relaxed.  After dinner, we walked back to our hotel, collected our computers and maps and went to the breakfast room to work on our blogs and check the maps…and drink coffee!  The nice Hawaiian Clerk was kind enough to make up two fresh pots of coffee.  The guys finished doing what they were doing and I stayed and finished the blog.  Another late night.

As I told you at the beginning of this blog, we had intended to go straight to Montgomery, Ala.  Our plans changed several times.  We never made it to Montgomery and we went BACK to Georgia.  Who knows where we will end up tomorrow?  I know that about five miles from this location, we DO change to Central Time.  We were told that although we are in Alabama, this city chose to be on Eastern Time. 

Today, we rode for 229 miles.  We have ridden over 3,000 miles on this trip so far.  Tomorrow, At this point, the only thing I know, for sure, that we will do is ride west.  Of course, as you have read, it can change.  We shall see…