Downtown Koblenz 
My riding partners for the last couple days from Netherlands 🇳🇱. Andre and William. 
Hilltop castles along the Rhine. 
Rain on the Rhine kept me busy putting on and taking off my rain jacket all day. But it was cooler so that was a real relief. 
Petty little towns in wine country. 
Hiding from the rain. 
A stop for morning cake 🍰. It’s become addictive. Sent from my iPhone
Castle ruins at the top of dat hill over there 👉. 
In the rain on the Rhine. The back of Andre and William my riding partners for the afternoon. We are camping in a nice little spot with a hot shower 🚿. OMG I smell beautiful 🤩. 
I love umbrellas ☂️ . Could have used this afternoon 🚿. 
Bonn from a moving bike 🚴🏻 🧐. 
Cologne cathedral and a guy the could use so cologne. 
It’s huge.
Approaching Cologne and so was everyone else 😂. 
Da big ass bridge and the big rain clouds. 
Broken Ferry ⛴️. I will need to wait here until tomorrow- time to bush camp 🏕️. 
Gyro plate and Tums for lunch. 
Reese my granddaughter needs one of these. 
The world needs more of these. 
Is it any wonder that I get lost. But I have a new app from another biker called MapOut and I haven’t been lost since. Well some will argue with that statement. 
Fork in the road. I take left – it’s not a good choice cuz the cows 🐄 weren’t happy with me going through their pasture . I did a bat 🦇 turn and got the hell out of there. I think they had mad 😡 cow disease 🦠 😂. 
Am I supposed to follow the red, purple, or magenta? I keep forgetting. You’re only lost until you’re not. Don’t waste a crisis- is a my new motto 😃😂. Love you guys. Thanks for the comments . You are the best.
They have Mammoths 🦣 here. Nobody told me 😂
Bike fairies everywhere. I crisscross the Rhine several times every day. 
Drive through windmill 😃. With desserts just beyond . 
Yes , that’s chewable orange juice. I’m loving it. 
Camp Happy on the Rhine. 
Entering Germany 🇩🇪. No border crossing guard 💂♂️. 
The shaded trail along the river Rhine. 
Crossing the Rhine on big ass bridge. 
Morning on the Rhine. Just me and da big barges. 
Flat with a wind from behind. Great way to start the day. 
A dip in the Rhine. Great way to end the day near Düsseldorf Germany.
Rotterdam a beautiful city and easily got lost 😠. 
Camping with the sheep. 
Following the river Lek to the Rhine on heavenly bike tracks. 
Chewy orange juice 😂❤️ 
Life’s a beach. The cold river felt wonderful. 
Drive thru windmill in Wijk bij Duurstede included carrot cake. 
Carrot cake break and more chewable orange juice. 
Camping with chickens in the backyard of a guy and wife that I stopped to ask directions. Julius and Ann were wonderfully kind and I had a great nights rest in camp happy 😃.
It’s official. After a two day ride from Amsterdam I dipped my tires in the North Sea this morning. 
The Rhine. I’ll be following it upstream all the way to Lake Constance. 
Lunch in Rotterdam . 
More beautiful windmills and the amazing bike paths in Holland.
Sent from my iPhone
I keep thinking that we will be soon out of these hills. But they just keep coming one after another. They are gentle but long. My legs and butt are feeling the fatigued of seven days of pedaling.
After seven wonderful days, and 414 miles we pull into Natchez Mississippi.. We take showers at Russ and Cindy ‘s hotel and then meet at the waterfront for a delicious celebration meal.
Port Gibson Mississippi to Natchez Mississippi . 38 warm and sunny miles.
It was a great trip with a wonderful bunch of friends. I got thinking we should do it South to north next year, and then my mind returned to just enjoy them moment of feeling relief and accomplishment. Put this Natchez Trace Parkway on your list of things to see. THE END
Cheers,
Freebird
Russ Barnett reservoir near Jackson MS to Grand Gulf Military Camp near Port Gibson MS, 63 miles.
This is one of the prettiest parts of this beautiful ride. We wind along the reservoir for miles and then travel through the center of Jackson on a paved off road biking path that Parallels the Trace. It’s a safe and enjoyable way to get through this big city. We meet Cindy and Russ on there tandem and stop for a delicious lunch in Clinton MS. The rest of the day goes well as we are blessed with sunshine and a nice tail wind. We pull into camp and just catch the ranger before he leaves for the day. He Turns out to be quite a character that could fill another page with silliness. The campsite is not too far from a nuclear power plant on the Mississippi River. Its low tone hums can be heard for miles. I put in my earplugs and curl up in camp happy for the last night of the journey down the Natchez Trace.
Riding the Trace Parkway video
Jeff Bugsby Park MS to Russ Barnett Reservoir camp (just north of Jackson MS) 61 miles of warm Mississippi sunshine.
We get an early start because we don’t have to pack up camp. It’s Sunday morning and there is very little traffic just like always on the Natchez Trace. Riding into the little historic town of French Camp we notice a church parking lot full of Sunday worshipers and ask about breakfast places. We are told that everything is closed on Sundays. We ride on and munch on energy bars and leftovers from our food bags. Our day is spent enjoying the sunshine and the beautiful scenery as we pedal along the Trace. The hike around Cypress Swamp goes without a gator sighting, yet there is something magical about these monstrous trees growing out of the water. We pull into a private campground and pay the $5.00 camp fee. It is our first paid site and comes with a shower – well kind of a shower . Let’s just say it was warm and wet:). Camp happy is set up on a flat area just above the water. My friends joke about me becoming gator bait as night falls in the Mississippi Bayou. The only real predators turns out to be the mosquitoes. I crawl into my little tent (camp happy) close my eyes and listen to the wild songs from the birds and animals of the Bayou. Two owls hoot from a tree above lull me to sleep.
Tupelo Mississippi camp to nearby Jeff Bugsby Park (hotel in Eupora MS. ) 62 miles.
Today was my drive day. It was spent finding and delivering lunch to the other riders and a hotel and laundry services for the evening. The hotel is nothing to write home about but it had running water, hot showers and was close to a laundromat. We showered, washed clothes, and ate Mexican food. An exciting Saturday night for sure:)
