Plains, Georgia

I prepared for the event the night before by getting addresses, mapping the destination through Google Maps, writing out the direction (left or right), the road name and the miles on sticky notes for the windshield. The round trip mileage was to be 185 miles, which would be a little over 4 hours. This would be a nice distance while giving us lots of time to wander around Plains.


The directions were great but I got a little nervous when I reached the final road and I hadn't seen a sign for Plains yet and we were heading down this isolated country road. We reached the end of the road without seeing anything resembling Billy Carter's Gas Station Museum, which was the destination. We broke out the map of Georgia and found the best way to get back on track.


The road into Plains was straight, flat, about 8 miles long and surrounded by cotton fields. I've seen cotton fields since being in Georgia but it still fascinates this Northern boy. It seems surreal to see cotton balls growing out of plants. I also can't help but think of the time when people would be working out there in the Georgia heat picking this stuff.


We stopped at the visitor center upon entering Plains, which was also the old high school and housed a museum devoted to the school and Jimmy & Rosalynn Carter.


They had one section briefly documenting many of the great things this couple has done throughout their life. I had visited the Carter library in Atlanta earlier this year with my parents and was amazed at all they had done. I have great respect and admiration for Jimmy & Rosalynn and don't know how they had the energy to do all that they have done.


Elizabeth and I ate lunch outside the museum on some picnic benches that we under the shade of some trees.


After learning a little more about the president and first lady, it was time to visit the museum devoted to the more colorful member of the family. I was in 5th grade when Jimmy was elected president and I remember seeing and hearing about Billy but missed out on most of his escapades. I have since read up on him using wikipedia and it sounds like he was quite the character.


The gas station was very small and those working there were busy getting ready for Peanut Festival that was happening the following week. We had planned on hitting the festival, but I was to be on-call that weekend and needed to stay close to home.


A big focus of the museum was Billy's associated with beer, mostly the failed Billy Beer product. They also went into his controversial relationship with Libya as well as his unique manner of dress.


Billy lost most of what he had due to unpaid back taxes, eventually acknowledged being an alcoholic, and died of pancreatic cancer in 1988 at the age of 51.


After leaving Plains, Elizabeth and I headed into Columbus to pick up some beans, yeast & stuff at Country Life Vegetarian Restaurant and Natural Food store.


The trip that was supposed to be 185 miles ended up being 250. The ride home was extremely hot (high 90's) and we were thirsty and exhausted.

Now I'm ready for my next road trip :)

McIntosh Reserve Park

I left debated on whether I should ride with my family or go solo on the bike behind everyone. The day was beautiful and I knew the colder weather would be here in a couple months, so my rubber arm was easily twisted into the saddle.

It was a short ride that amounted to 110 miles total. We planned on going up to McIntosh Reserve Park in Carroll County and then back through Newnan for a little window shopping and coffee.

Sarah Joy took position as photographer in the cage as I cruised along behind or beside them.

The park has some beautiful wooded roads and I spotted a copperhead slithering off the road as we entered the park. Elizabeth had already pulled over, because she knew that I would be doing the same. Unfortunately, we believe this snake was hit prior to us getting there because it was moving awkwardly and had some blood on one side of its head. We ended up walking by it later in the day and it didn't look good. I love these snakes and have been graced to see a number of them in our travels.

We didn't have a definitive plan, so we found a trail and just started walking. Our only goal was to hit the "water park" and walk along the water way.

The water park amounted to a couple fountain type things that would get you wet. I liked the mushroom.

We visited a small family cemetery where most of the graves were from the 1800s.

They also have a replica of an old cabin that was used as a inn.

Your faithful narrator

The Chattahoochee runs through the reserve and we saw people fishing, boating and just enjoying view.

Elizabeth along the Chattahoochee

Dylan tearing up the trails on his unicycle

After we left the park, we went into Newnan and enjoyed a cup of coffee at Barnes & Noble before heading home.

Cloudland Canyon

I planned out an ambitious bike trip earlier this week. This was ambitious for me because it would be my longest day trip and would include riding on the interstate, which I hadn't done in the two years I'd been riding.

I had heard good things about Cloudland Canyon, GA and for one reason or another, we haven't been able to make it up there. It is a long drive and something else usually gets in the way.

Googlemaps told me that it would take me 3.5 hours to get there and that is exactly what I needed. It was a good ride, but I was pretty cold for most of the trip. I threw on a flannel thinking that it would help, but it didn't do the trick. Other than the cold, the trip up was uneventful. I did ride on I-75, but there was so little traffic that I didn't really consider it riding on the interstate.

I parked at the top of the canyon and the view above is the first that I saw.

The path down into the canyon to the waterfalls was very easy. It consisted of metal stairs, wooden walkways and flat dirt trails - such as above.

Above is the first set of water falls. As I got closer, I got nervous because I didn't hear any water. When I got there I realized that it may have been better to make this trip in the Spring rather than the fall.

Above is the river bed that signs told us to avoid because of slippery rocks and danger of falling in the water. I managed to stay dry.

The area was very peaceful. I saw two people coming down when I was leaving and that was the only time I saw anyone other than the people working at the park.

Below is the second set of water falls, which was fed from the first set.

The leaves haven't started to change in LaGrange and it was nice to see the colors as I walked around.

Below is the walk down to the overlook that gives you a good view of the entire canyon.

Most of the life I saw consisted of squirrels getting ready for winter.

My bike ended up with 9,980 miles by the time the trip was over. I knew that I was close to getting my 10,000 miles maintenance check and that I also needed a new back tire. I had planned on stopping at Great South Harley on the way back but didn't plan on getting the work done that day, which I did. I got there around 3:30 and they finished at 6:00. I didn't mind staying at the dealership for 2.5 hours, but it is a dangerous place to hang out.

Mentally, I think I spent a few thousand as I customized my bike visualizing the things on the wall on my faithful stead. I planned out all new foot controls, hand controls, replacement chrome parts and various other accessories. I didn't get any of these, but I did end up getting a new skull gas cap and a Harley addition to the back of the sissy bar.

The trip totaled 370 miles and I rode on I-75, I-285 (through Atlanta) and on I-85. The interstate riding wasn't bad at all, even Atlanta, which had me a little nervous. It was fun just leaning back and cruising along with all the folks in their cages. I left at 7:00 in the morning and got back home at 7:00 in the evening. It was a full day but I felt awesome as I parked the bike in the garage.

In the beginning of the summer, I wrote down 10 destinations. I have hit 5 of them and would like to hit a few more before the weather turns.