Southern U.S. Day 15


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North America » United States » Alabama » Montgomery
May 18th 2013
Published: May 19th 2013
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Day 15 May 18, 2013

I got good nights sleep, which was welcome after last evening’s debacle. The two visitor centers in the French Quarter didn’t open until 9 am so I didn’t have to rush out the door like I have been.

When I checked the weather, today was going to be hot in New Orleans and warm with thunderstorms in Selma, Alabama, which is where I was headed. It wasn’t shaping up to be a wiz-bang day.

When I checked the website of the two National Historical Trail interpretive centers in Selma and White Hall (I can learn from my mistakes – I should have checked yesterday) I discovered that they close at 4:30 and that the Selma interpretive center is closed Sundays. There was an alert on the web site that stated the White Hall center would be closed on Sundays until further notice because of the sequester.

When I walked outside it was like walking through water, it was so muggy. It wasn’t too bad while you are moving, but when I stopped, I broke out in a sweat.

Riding through the French quarter was interesting because they had an army of workers cleaning the sidewalks and streets, and unloading beer trucks. Either they used soap, or there was a ton of beer spilled the night before, because there were suds everywhere.

I got to the Jean Lafitte visitor center about 15 minutes early, and I saw that the gate was closed, so I went into a souvenir shop and bought post cards. Then I walked to the visitor center and read:

“We’re closed Friday and Saturday, May 17 and 18, so that staff may work at BioBlitz at the park’s Barataria Preserve in Marrero….” I took a picture of the sign, and another picture of my bike in front of the visitor center.

I wasn’t really concerned, though, because the other visitor center was the New Orleans Jazz NHP which had nothing to do with Jean Lafitte. I figured that I would ride over, get my stamp, and be on my merry way.

If you guessed that I figured wrong, you would be correct. I went to the address for the visitor center and found a souvenir shop. I parked in front in a no parking zone and ran in. The clerk told me that the visitor center was around back and I couldn’t stay parked where I was, so I rode around for about 5 minutes before I found a parking space in relatively close proximity to the visitor center. I parked and left my jacket on because I couldn’t leave it with the bike. It was bad enough that my pack was strapped to the back of the bike, but it only had a bottle of rum and dirty clothes in it.

Fortunately, I brought quarters with me for the meter. I rushed to the visitor center to get my stamp from a Louisiana National park. When I got there, there was a musician and someone practicing yoga in front of the center, and on the door I saw…you guessed it – a sign that read:

“We are closed today because we are all down at the other Park where David was yesterday and couldn’t park his motorcycle”

I asked the musician to take a picture of me standing in front of the visitor center sign. I am hoping that I won’t need Louisiana; it will depend on how many more I get on this trip and my New England jaunt.

I rushed back to my bike, getting hotter by the minute and realized that although I was clever enough to bring quarters, I was not clever enough to actually put them in the meter.

When I got back to my bike there was no ticket, maybe today won’t be a complete disaster.

As I was entering my destination into the gps, a vagrant came over and told me he sympathized with victims of Sandy. He said his house had eight feet of water and could I spare $5. I respectfully declined and started my bike and pulled away.

I was about 7 blocks from where I was to get on I10, but in those seven blocks at least 5 of them had lights. No cross traffic, mind you, just red lights. I think it is a rule in New Orleans that when it is hot all the lights have to be red to make motorcyclists uncomfortable.

I finally got on I10 and was pleased to see that traffic was light. As soon as I started going a decent speed without having to stop, I began to cool off. After I got beyond the New Orleans metropolitan area the traffic became very sparse. There were periods when I was the only vehicle in sight.

As the morning progressed and I got further from the Gulf, it became less humid, actually very comfortable. I set cruise control, cranked the music and just appreciated how wonderful life can be.

It would be impossible for me to describe the elation I feel when I am on an open rode in good weather with my motorcycle and my music. It makes all of the hot sticky and wet and cold days worth it. I am trying to figure out how to get my bike to sense how I feel and automatically blare Steppenwolf’s “Born to be Wild” when appropriate. If anyone has any ideas, please let me know.

I spent the next several hours enjoying the ride, listening to music, and contemplating the nature of the universe. I don’t think life can get much better than this.

I stopped several times for short breaks and had some snacks. It is always interesting talking to the shopkeepers when the find out you aren’t from around here.

I arrived in Selma around 3 pm and went to the interpretive center to get a stamp. The Park Ranger told me that this is a new center and only had a movie; the other center had much better exhibits. She told me that I should follow the trail the marchers took to the Lowndes Interpretive center, about 25 miles away. I thanked her and rode to the other center. I got there 15 minutes before they closed, but that was enough time to see much of the exhibit. It was a very moving experience. I cannot imagine how bad it must have been for blacks living in Lowndes County, Alabama in the 50’s & 60’s.

If you are ever close to Montgomery, Alabama, I highly recommend going to this exhibit.

I left the Center, and proceeded to Montgomery, where I checked in to the motel and had dinner.

The weather report is calling for thunderstorms tomorrow, at both end of my planned route. If the weather report still sucks in the morning, I will stay here an extra day.

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20th May 2013

Enjoyed Your Blog
Hi David...enjoyed your blog for part 2 day 14 and day 15. Matter of fact, tears in my eyes from laughing. Continue to have a good time and stay safe during your travels.

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