(Glad We Weren’t) Singing the Blues

DAY 1 ~ Our Great River Road Adventure

The SolAire was stocked and ready for the adventure to begin before we went to bed Friday night.  We awoke early Saturday and met John and Becky for our six o’clock departure.  On this first day each of us was on-time!

The 500+miles we traveled to Memphis were smooth, unless you count the bumpy expansion joints on Mississippi’s I-22, and our slide malfunction. 

Northwest of Birmingham, AL, we pulled off on an exit for lunch. With one slide extended, we had room for the four of us to enjoy a quick lunch of homemade chicken salad and bowtie pasta.  But when we tried to retract the slide, no luck.  And for forty minutes, we combed through the owner’s manual, Googled the problem, phoned the factory; still, no luck.  Finally, after searching in desperation for the location of the hand-crank access to the motor, we called Bama RV, the dealership where we purchased the SolAire.  Thank goodness for Robby who suggested we check the cords, and sure enough, Jamie found the loose connection.  Fixed it! And we were back on the road.  Thought for a bit we were gonna be singing the blues on I-22, rather than on Beale Street.  Lesson learned: there is no hand-crank option on this model.

Our approach to T. O. Fuller State Park looked a lot like East Albany, GA:  dated, run-down, and not safe.  Fortunately, we were pleased with the campground once we arrived. Shaded lots, easy to back in, nice neighbors. 

After a quick set up, we headed downtown to experience a classic Memphis evening.  Music spilled from numerous restaurants and bars, filling the air with energy.  Plenty of people ambled along the sidewalks and through the blocked-off street, but we appreciated that it wasn’t crowded. Neon lights beckoned customers. 

We chose B.B. King’s BBQ for dinner.  The barbecue was delicious and the music even better: well worth the $5/person cover charge.

 Our after-dinner taxi driver, aka Jamie, gave us a brief ride through the rest of downtown and along the riverfront – enough to pique our interest for tomorrow.  He even included our first Mississippi River crossing on the Hernando DeSoto Bridge, checking off state #5, Arkansas (the others: GA, AL, MS, TN), and wowing us with a colorful sunset, a lighted bridge, and the Memphis skyline.

A view of the Hernando DeSoto Bridge in Memphis, TN