A Splash of River History

DAY 2 ~ Our Great River Road Adventure

What began as a practical joke in the 1930s has become a world-famous drawing card for The Peabody Hotel.  We, too, were drawn to the excitement of five ducks waddling down a red carpet, up three steps, and into the lobby fountain.  Such fun!  The Sunday morning mimosas added to the enjoyment, as did the squawking and splashing of the ducks as they chased one another around the fountain.   Peabody Ducks Video 

Jamie has a knack for finding the best views! John & Becky in Memphis overlooking the Mississippi River

We took a short walk to the monorail station and rode across to Mud Island.  What a view of the river and the city from the air!  The museum on Mud Island featured displays of native American cultures which previously inhabited the area, as well as displays of river shipping history, Civil War artifacts, and the Memphis music scene. 

The highlight of Mud Island, though, is the half mile winding re-creation of the lower Mississippi River.  Built to scale with depth contours, this incredible feature showcases the mighty Mississipp as it narrows and widens along its course to the Gulf of Mexico.  Watching the water flow rapidly through narrows and curves, then appear to slow as it spread out in the wider patches was an amazing experience.  A perfect beginning for this Great River Road adventure on which we have embarked.

Reading up on where we're headed and marveling at this 1/2 mile long lower Mississippi river exhibit

We were having so much fun that we skipped lunch entirely; fortunately, Becky had prepared ham and egg (Mc)Muffins for us this morning.  We ended our sightseeing with an early dinner at the Flying Fish with gumbo and po’boys.  A good choice!

 

(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