Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Hot Springs
After visiting with some family in Jonesboro, AR for a few days I was ready to get on the road. Over the previous week I had slowly started accustoming myself to the hardships of camping, trail mix, sweating more, and all this talking to people and staying in air conditioning I was thinking was going to make it hard to get back to the traveling routine again... I was wrong. After I was just outside of Jonesboro on my bike I was already back in the groove. I knew that rain was coming too so I made sure as always to have my rain gear packed in the most accessible place so it was easy to get to. I was about 30 minutes outside of town when I looked up ahead and saw the clouds opening up and pouring down on the road. It is really cool when you can see the actual line of where the rain starts. I immediately pulled off the road to suit up. I thought I was pulling into a driveway of a house, but it turned out to be about the most creepy "maybe" abandoned house I'd ever seen. I pulled up to an overhang from the garage next to it and snapped pictures of what I could see from there. I wasn't too interested in exploring... well I was interested, but I guess I've seen to many movies to go looking around when I'm out in the middle of nowhere. There literally was nothing else around this place for miles and there were some signs that someone might still be around.
Doesn't this make you want to go inside and say hi?
I didn't get a picture of it, but there was a big zip loc bag of water nailed on the wall next to the door..... strange.
Suited up I headed out and hit more rain. I rode through about 45 minutes of rain on the way to Hot Springs. It was only about a 3 hour ride there. Really pretty country though.
I found a campsite and threw up my tent and then headed to town since it was only about 4pm.
I made it downtown and parked the bike to take a stroll down and check out some shops and the area.
Here's a shot of some of the main drag in Hot Springs where all the shops are.
There were quite a few of these things. They were the "Duck Tour" and it was $4 bucks for a ride. I'm not sure where they get in the water at though.
I ended up stopping at a bar called "Capones, Ohio Club." This happens to be the oldest standing bar in Arkansas. I talked with the owner and I think he said it was established in 1905. The gangsters back in the day would come from up north to the nice weather in Hot Springs to vacation and this was one of the spots where they would have a few drinks. The cops had a bit of a unsaid understanding with the gangsters while they were there and didn't harass them if they didn't cause any trouble. I don't think I'd want to mess with Al Capone if I was an Andy Griffith small town cop anyway.
I don't usually drink more than maybe one beer with some food if I'm riding, but I planned on staying here for awhile because it was still very early... and they were serving free pretzels which happen to be one of my favorite snack foods... or for dinner.
I had a Jack and coke and then a Heineken.
I talked with a few other people at the bar besides the owner and ended up meeting Sharon and Joe who just retired to Hot Springs about 3 years ago from Dallas. He ended up buying me a beer and they wished me well on the trip before taking off to entertain their visiting son and his girlfriend. I was told by Sharon that she wasn't the one for him among other things. People just seem to open up to you when they hear you are doing something like I'm doing it seems. Very nice people.
I'm now back at my campsite which costs me $26 for a tent!! But I do get water,electric, and wifi so I guess it's not so bad since I was able to get caught up on my trip here.
When I wake up in the morning I'll decide what to do and where to go then...
Doesn't this make you want to go inside and say hi?
I didn't get a picture of it, but there was a big zip loc bag of water nailed on the wall next to the door..... strange.
Suited up I headed out and hit more rain. I rode through about 45 minutes of rain on the way to Hot Springs. It was only about a 3 hour ride there. Really pretty country though.
I found a campsite and threw up my tent and then headed to town since it was only about 4pm.
I made it downtown and parked the bike to take a stroll down and check out some shops and the area.
Here's a shot of some of the main drag in Hot Springs where all the shops are.
There were quite a few of these things. They were the "Duck Tour" and it was $4 bucks for a ride. I'm not sure where they get in the water at though.
I ended up stopping at a bar called "Capones, Ohio Club." This happens to be the oldest standing bar in Arkansas. I talked with the owner and I think he said it was established in 1905. The gangsters back in the day would come from up north to the nice weather in Hot Springs to vacation and this was one of the spots where they would have a few drinks. The cops had a bit of a unsaid understanding with the gangsters while they were there and didn't harass them if they didn't cause any trouble. I don't think I'd want to mess with Al Capone if I was an Andy Griffith small town cop anyway.
I don't usually drink more than maybe one beer with some food if I'm riding, but I planned on staying here for awhile because it was still very early... and they were serving free pretzels which happen to be one of my favorite snack foods... or for dinner.
I had a Jack and coke and then a Heineken.
I talked with a few other people at the bar besides the owner and ended up meeting Sharon and Joe who just retired to Hot Springs about 3 years ago from Dallas. He ended up buying me a beer and they wished me well on the trip before taking off to entertain their visiting son and his girlfriend. I was told by Sharon that she wasn't the one for him among other things. People just seem to open up to you when they hear you are doing something like I'm doing it seems. Very nice people.
I'm now back at my campsite which costs me $26 for a tent!! But I do get water,electric, and wifi so I guess it's not so bad since I was able to get caught up on my trip here.
When I wake up in the morning I'll decide what to do and where to go then...
Racing The Rain
After Mobile, Alabama I headed to visit some family in Jonesboro, Arkansas. I saw some big thunderheads on the way north and I hadn't tried out my rain gear yet so I figured there's no better time than now. I suited up. Joe Rocket Phoenix 4 with liner, some brand of footies to go over my boots, Tour master rain pants, and an Icon Alliance helmet.
So here goes nothing. I'm doing ok for some slight sprinkling and then the rain starts to come down a little harder.
Problem #1 - My helmet face shield starts to fog some so I start a breathing procedure to exhale through my mouth downward.. fun stuff, but oh well.
Problem #2 - I cracked my face shield because the temp changed so fast causing so much fogging that I couldn't keep it down enough to see clearly. Cracking the face shield eliminated the fogging mostly, BUT it then let water start dripping down the inside of the shield which of course can't then be cleared by your glove or the wind once you close it back up. Lesson learned there... keep that puppy closed and get a better face shield.
Problem #3 - The rain started coming down so hard that even CARS had their hazards on. I knew as soon as I saw other vehicles with their hazards on that I needed to get the hell off the road. Whenever you are in any kind of heavy rain and can't get out of it make sure to have your hazards on. I'd rather have people see me and say to their buddy that I'm an idiot for riding in the rain than hit me and wonder what they ran over. If it's a thunderstorm... pull off and let it pass.
I pulled off at a Sonic finally and got out of the rain. I ordered a Coffee and a corndog and stripped off my rain gear all over around the table I was sitting at.
The Joe Rocket jacket with liner did a good job, but when I took my Tour Master pants off it looked like I had spent all morning drinking coffee and the rest of the day pissing my pants. I'll use my Joe Rocket Alter Ego Pants w/liner in them from now on even though they will be really hot in the summer rains.
I rode through the rain a little ways longer and tried to skirt the the thunderstorms to no avail. They were all around me and I ended giving in and getting a hotel room in Jackson, Mississippi.
It was early and there was nothing to do so I went to the hotel bar "The Hunt Club." Me and about 12 other patrons listened to some horrifically sang southern Karaoke for the next couple hours. When I could take no more I surrendered to my room. Did I mention that they gave me a handicap room? I didn't think anything of it until I went to take a shower and found out that the hand held wand had no place to be mounted so I had to hold it the ENTIRE TIME! I tried to tie it up and wedge it up for a few minutes but just ended up soaking the entire bathroom as it would inevitable come untied and shoot water everywhere haha.
When I left Jackson I headed into Jonesboro to visit family and was there for a few days.
So here goes nothing. I'm doing ok for some slight sprinkling and then the rain starts to come down a little harder.
Problem #1 - My helmet face shield starts to fog some so I start a breathing procedure to exhale through my mouth downward.. fun stuff, but oh well.
Problem #2 - I cracked my face shield because the temp changed so fast causing so much fogging that I couldn't keep it down enough to see clearly. Cracking the face shield eliminated the fogging mostly, BUT it then let water start dripping down the inside of the shield which of course can't then be cleared by your glove or the wind once you close it back up. Lesson learned there... keep that puppy closed and get a better face shield.
Problem #3 - The rain started coming down so hard that even CARS had their hazards on. I knew as soon as I saw other vehicles with their hazards on that I needed to get the hell off the road. Whenever you are in any kind of heavy rain and can't get out of it make sure to have your hazards on. I'd rather have people see me and say to their buddy that I'm an idiot for riding in the rain than hit me and wonder what they ran over. If it's a thunderstorm... pull off and let it pass.
I pulled off at a Sonic finally and got out of the rain. I ordered a Coffee and a corndog and stripped off my rain gear all over around the table I was sitting at.
The Joe Rocket jacket with liner did a good job, but when I took my Tour Master pants off it looked like I had spent all morning drinking coffee and the rest of the day pissing my pants. I'll use my Joe Rocket Alter Ego Pants w/liner in them from now on even though they will be really hot in the summer rains.
I rode through the rain a little ways longer and tried to skirt the the thunderstorms to no avail. They were all around me and I ended giving in and getting a hotel room in Jackson, Mississippi.
It was early and there was nothing to do so I went to the hotel bar "The Hunt Club." Me and about 12 other patrons listened to some horrifically sang southern Karaoke for the next couple hours. When I could take no more I surrendered to my room. Did I mention that they gave me a handicap room? I didn't think anything of it until I went to take a shower and found out that the hand held wand had no place to be mounted so I had to hold it the ENTIRE TIME! I tried to tie it up and wedge it up for a few minutes but just ended up soaking the entire bathroom as it would inevitable come untied and shoot water everywhere haha.
When I left Jackson I headed into Jonesboro to visit family and was there for a few days.
Mobile, Alabama
I left the campground and headed into Mobile, AL.
I decided to take the tunnel to the USS Alabama Memorial site and tour the ship and the USS Drum sub.
Check out the size of a propeller!
Here's the shells those guns shoot.
This is where all the officers on board turn their names to state whether they are on board or not.
The bunks are actually pretty comfy.
The toilets were basically like an outhouse.
Replacement 40mm barrels
From the top of the ship
SR71 Blackbird in the hangar
Here's a tire off of the blackbird after only 3 landings. The Blackbird has the heaviest footprint of any plane ever. They have to take off with about a quarter of tank of gas and then must be fueled in the air within about 10 minutes. It holds 19,500 gallons of fuel, which is equivalent to about 2 1/2 truck tankers of gas.
Torpedo tube on the USS drum
On a submarine you were thought of as a waste of air until you had your dolphins. Silver for enlisted men and gold for officers. To get these you needed to know how to operate EVERYTHING on the sub. If you were a submariner then you were part of the "silent service."
This wheel operates the bow dive angle.
Ever wonder what it was like to look through the periscope of a submarine. In the next picture after this one after a couple minutes I was able to line my camera up to get a shot so now you know.
I decided to take the tunnel to the USS Alabama Memorial site and tour the ship and the USS Drum sub.
Check out the size of a propeller!
Here's the shells those guns shoot.
This is where all the officers on board turn their names to state whether they are on board or not.
The bunks are actually pretty comfy.
The toilets were basically like an outhouse.
Replacement 40mm barrels
From the top of the ship
SR71 Blackbird in the hangar
Here's a tire off of the blackbird after only 3 landings. The Blackbird has the heaviest footprint of any plane ever. They have to take off with about a quarter of tank of gas and then must be fueled in the air within about 10 minutes. It holds 19,500 gallons of fuel, which is equivalent to about 2 1/2 truck tankers of gas.
Torpedo tube on the USS drum
On a submarine you were thought of as a waste of air until you had your dolphins. Silver for enlisted men and gold for officers. To get these you needed to know how to operate EVERYTHING on the sub. If you were a submariner then you were part of the "silent service."
This wheel operates the bow dive angle.
Ever wonder what it was like to look through the periscope of a submarine. In the next picture after this one after a couple minutes I was able to line my camera up to get a shot so now you know.
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