Alabama Adventuring

This is the first part of a two-part adventure of Sprinty and his humans enjoying some outdoor exercise in adjacent states of Alabama and Tennessee.

With the backyard deck replacement project finished,

we could think about adventuring again. Sprinty's anxiety about the COVID-19 situation seems to grow daily, enabled by the continuous string of news indicating increasing case counts and various examples of COVidiot behavior. His humans share his concerns. As a way to somewhat balance out doing nothing and doing something, he proposed a series of adjacent state adventures focused on the outside activities of bike riding and golf.

Greatly preferring to ride bikes on dedicated bike trails (Rails-to-Trails, Greenways, etc) makes them a useful destination for adventuring. Good trails long enough to warrant traveling to are not very plentiful. Using the TrailLink web site/app, we developed a list of candidate bike riding opportunities. Of course, we are somewhat spoiled by our normal summer access to the Great Allegheny Passage Trail (Rails-to-Trails) which we use to compare various opportunities.

Starting with adjacent states (Alabama, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Florida) we have the beginnings of some one-week to two-week outside adventure opportunities. Traveling in Sprinty also provides a clean restroom before and after the rides.

As we starting putting details to this concept, we reached out to Jean to see if her hectic schedule might enable a short visit. We have come to enjoy our "Weniger time", which has averaged about twice a year. She is working as the plant manager for Heil Environmental in Fort Payne, AL. Heil Environmental builds trash collection trucks. Next time you are patiently waiting behind a trash connection truck, see if you can see the name of the truck manufacturer - likely it is from Heil.

As Jean has a full workweek, and weekends are her limited re-charge time, we wanted to respect her re-charge time. So we arranged to visit for a few hours on a Sunday afternoon.

Sunday, 19 July

We picked up Sprinty from the storage facility Saturday afternoon and got him ready for another adventure. Sprinty was mostly ready - just needed to turn on the refrigerator, load food and clothes, top off the fresh water tank, and, of course, load up golf and bike stuff.

As our Soleil golf/RV friends, Matt and Lori, had a trip planned to visit family in Colorado, they wanted to start their trip with us. They had bought two RadCity eBikes in late May. One arrived in late June (the black one), and the white one was on the way. An unforeseen delay resulted in the bike not arriving before our departure date. Not wanting to have to share the one eBike (two eBikes are way more fun for a couple than just one), they had to delay their departure in order to be home to take delivery of the white RadCity. The modified plan was that they would catch up with us on Tuesday, if possible. As we were adventuring slowly, Sprinty would be close enough for them to catch up easily.

Although we had arranged an after-lunch visit with Jean, Sprinty was ready to go earlier than needed for the two-hour drive to Alabama (which is also in Central Daylight Time), so his humans added golf to the agenda.

Driving the back roads to Fort Payne, AL was peaceful, with few people out on the road early Sunday morning. We arrived at Desoto Golf Course, a nine-hole municipal course, in Fort Payne about 9:30 CDT. There were only a few cars in the parking lot, and we were able to play without waiting.

We both started off with very good drives that resulted in only a bogey apiece. We stayed close on each hole. Kris finished strong on the last three holes, but Darrell prevailed by one shot at the end of nine holes.

We considered playing the course again to make 18 holes, figuring we could play it better now that we had learned some of the quirks. However, more people were out on the course, and it was getting hot. Like as in really hot. So we relaxed for a bit, and worked at getting rehydrated. One of the challenges of playing golf in small towns is the lack of Starbucks nearby for settling up.

About noon, we drove past the Heil Environmental plant on the way to Wills Creek RV Park where Jean and the boys live in their fifth wheel. Upon arrival, it was self-checkin (contact-less). As we drove to the campsites, we ran into the owner, Brad, who said we could pick any unoccupied site. We got to pick a site across the road from Jean.

We visited Jean sitting outside, spaced more than 6 feet apart. We caught up on family things and learned more about the day-to-day impacts of COVID-19 on the business of building trash collection trucks.

Sprinty enjoyed a quiet evening putting his Quiet Air Conditioner to good use.

Monday, 20 July

As we headed towards Guntersville, AL, we saw a number of signs indicating we were along the Trail of Tears.

Our original plan was to play golf with Matt and Lori at Eagles Nest Golf Course in Lake Guntersville State Park. As mentioned before, their departure was delayed due to the late arrival of their second RadCity eBike. So we decided to depart Fort Payne when we completed our normal morning routine and hope we might could play earlier than originally planned, when it might be a little cooler.

Eagles Nest Golf Course is located at the top of a mountain. When we arrived, there were only six or seven cars in the parking lot. And we were able to go off early.

We both started off with good drives. Darrell made a couple more pars than Kris, but Kris made the only birdie of the day to make the turn two strokes back. Kris struggled a bit more on the back, while Darrell only made a couple of oops. Oops is his new expression to utter in lieu of some other four-letter word choices.

He finished the day ahead, but when you factored in the four or five holes where Kris was significantly disadvantaged due to the length of several holes (for example, a 488 yard par 5), Darrell noted he should have spotted her about 4 strokes - making the score much closer.

An advantage to being near a larger city was a Starbucks for Darrell to pay up. Sprinty took the scenic route which enabled us to scout out the rest of Lake Guntersville SP for a bike ride later.

After returning from Starbucks, we got checked in. We had a couple of hours of quiet time to rehydrate and rest up.

About 3pm, we broke out the eBikes and rode over 11 miles through the campground, down some gravel roads, even a section of the Trail of Tears dirt trail that runs through the park.

After the Trails of Tears trail, we explored a gravel road, then decided to ride the bike up to the top of the mountain. It was quite steep, making us really, really appreciate the electric assist. At the top, across from the golf course entrance, we stopped to take in the view from the overlook. In the distance, down by the lakeshore, is the campground.

Tuesday, 21 July

Our destination for the day was Huntsville, AL. The original plan was to bike ride three connected Greenway trails located on the southeast side of Huntsville: Flint River Greenway, 1.8 miles + Big Cove Creek Greenway, 2.8 miles + Little Cove Road Greenway, 5 miles. Huntsville also has a bike trail located on Redstone Arsenal, an Army base on the west side of Huntsville.

Last night, Matt updated us that their RV refrigerator was not working on propane. Their Forest River Sunseeker Class C RV has a Dometic 2-way refrigerator - it runs on 120v and propane. Not having the refrigerator run on propane was a major issue for their planned trip to Colorado, so it needed to get fixed before departure.

As we got an early start (our bodies are still on Eastern Daylight Time) and not having to figure out how to get Matt & Lori on Redstone Arsenal, we decided to ride our bikes there instead. Darrell occasionally had work at Redstone Arsenal when he was teaching at Defense Acquisition University. There were times when base access was pretty restricted, and with COVID-19 procedures, we were not sure what today's situation would be.

One end of the bike trail started at the golf course, making it an ideal place to park Sprinty. We enjoyed a nice ride, and took a detour to ride the bikes through the RV Park (called a FamCamp) on the base. It looked to be a very nice park - concrete pads, full hookups, new bathhouses. Reminded us a lot of the Navy FamCamp at Cheatam Annex near Williamsburg, VA and Army FamCamp at Fort Huachuca in Sierra Vista, AZ.

The trail description from TrailLink, a web and app service which is part of the Rails-toTrails Conservancy, for the trail is:

• The Redstone Arsenal Fitness Trail is located on a U.S. Army base southwest of Huntsville. It circles part way around Madkin Mountain and is partially built on a former rail bed. There is a 1.5-mile spur jogging trail around the Sparkman Center, and, close to the halfway point, the trail bisects a disc golf course. On the north end of the trail, there is a steep climb and decent.
• Because the trail is on a military base, a stringent set of restrictions limits access. Those who are able to use it can expect a well-maintained trail freshly repaved in 2010. The hill on the north end might be too steep for wheelchairs or strollers, but the trail is perfectly fine for biking, walking and jogging. About half the trail is shaded.

While some of the ride was adjacent to roads, most of the ride was through the woods which was nicely shaded. While riding the loop around the Sparkman Center, we stopped briefly for a photo by the menacing looking helicopter.

As we cruised along, Darrell commented about how he looked at military bases had changed. For close to 40 years, military bases were places to work as part of our nations defense. Now, he tends to look at them for recreation - bike trails, golf courses, FamCamps, and occasionally, Starbucks treats.

As we finished the bike ride before lunch, and knowing that Matt and Lori were still getting ready, we decided to play 9 holes of golf at the golf course. By lunchtime, it was easy to get on to play as temperatures were in the 90s. We had the nine holes almost entirely to ourselves. Darrell hit some nice drives, but struggled with his second shots and putting. Kris played her usual consistent game and finished the day several strokes up. She was delighted to stop at a Starbucks along the way to Monte Sano State Park to pay up.

Monte Sano State Park is located at the top of the mountain. Quite the climb up. Check-in was through a window, so it was nearly contact-less. We got Sprinty settled in site #13, which was nicely shaded.

About 4:30pm, Matt and Lori arrived and got set up in the next door site.

Once they got New Blue (their RV) all situated and connected, we broke out the eBikes to ride around the state park. We could hear distant rumble of thunder, and various weather apps said we had 30 minutes to 75 minutes before the thunderstorm hit. Once the thunder got louder, we turned back, only getting in about 3 miles. On back at the campsite, we quickly put the bikes away, just before it started to sprinkle. The campground seemed to be spared the brunt of the thunderstorm, which had a weather advisory for lightning, wind gusts over 40mph and pea size hail.

After our dinner, Darrell adjusted the rear brake on Lori's new bike - the one delivered yesterday. The rear brake was dragging making a screeching sound with every tire revolution. On our bikes, it is an easy adjustment. Because of the direct-drive motor on the RadCity bikes, which is larger in diameter than here's-drive motors on our bikes, accessing the adjustment required removing the brake from the frame or removing the wheel. We settled on removing the brake as being slightly easier.

We both thought we had a most excellent day, even though we modified the plan considerably. While the plan was to ride bikes, our original plan was to ride the Greenway trails - instead we rode the fitness trails at Redstone Arsenal. Golf was not in the day's plan, and we played 9 holes while at Redstone Arsenal.

Wednesday, 22 July

The plan for today was to play golf. We selected a golf course just north of Huntsville, about 30 minutes from the state park. Although we set a departure time of 8am, everyone was ready to go earlier, which meant it would be a little cooler and offer the likelihood we could finish before the forecasted afternoon thunderstorms.

Colonial Golf Course in Meridianville, AL does not do tee times - it is first-come, first-serve. A couple of groups were going out when we arrived, but by the time we got organized and warmed up on the chipping/putting green, it was all clear. We played at our pace all day.

Both Kris and Darrell had unremarkable drives on the first hole. Darrell started making some pars and made the turn ahead. Kris finally made a couple pars late, but was off all day. Most frustrating day for her, she even put her driver in time-out for several holes. But she enjoyed the Starbucks stop afterwards for Darrell to pay up.

After golf and before leaving the golf course, Darrell helped Matt sort out what might be going on with his house batteries. They were not holding a charge. With a big trip planned out to Colorado, he decided to get his batteries replaced.

Kris and Darrell headed back to Monte Sano SP in the rain. They enjoyed one of those nice refreshing rains with the awning out and the sliding door open. After awhile, Matt called from Sam's Club where he went to get new batteries. Seemed something was not right. After talking on the phone, Darrell, Kris and a Sprinty drove down to help out. Fortunately, it was something simple - the batteries in his voltmeter were low and it was not accurately measuring the voltage.

After returning to the campground, we broke out the eBikes. Darrell and Kris rode for about 30 minutes until Matt and Lori caught up. Although the state park is not very big, it had almost no traffic making it ideal for bike riding and exploring the park.

As we rode our bikes through the campground, we discovered the campground had several buddy sites. Maybe another time.

Thursday, 23 July

The original plan was bike riding today at the Richard Martin Trail located north of Athens, AL. The Richard Martin Trail is a 10.2 mile rails-to-trails that runs from Athens, AL to the Tennessee border. TrailLink said that the Richard Martin Trail (a.k.a., Limestone Rail-Trail) is best accessed mid-route from a trailhead in the town of Elkmont. When we added it to the plan, Darrell focused on the length and location with available parking for two RVs. He forgot to also look at the reviews. Fortunately, he rechecked the details last night and learned that some sections were not well maintained, and one of the prior efforts to "maintain" the trail had spread too large size gravel for comfortable bike riding. While Darrell and Kris thought their fat tire eBikes might be up to the ride, it seemed prudent to not have Matt and Lori ride their their RadCity bikes (narrower tires), especially as they are new to eBikes.

So we decided to do the ride we would have done on Tuesday: Flint River Greenway, 1.8 miles + Big Cove Creek Greenway, 2.8 miles + Little Cove Road Greenway, 5 miles - Total 20 miles. The south end of the Big Creek Greenway ends at Hays Nature Preserve, which is also the north end of the Flint River Greenway, in effect a 4.6 mile trail. The Little Cove Road Greenway intersects the Big Cove Greenway, going off to the East along old Highway 431.

About 9am, we broke camp, stopped off at the dump station to dump tanks, and made our way to the parking lot at Hays Nature Preserve. A fine choice as there was plenty of room for Sprinty and New Blue.

We started by riding the Flint River Greenway. Someone who just came off the trail said it was really crowded. We enjoyed a nice ride on a wide concrete paved goal along the Flint River. We even got to see a couple of holes from the Hampton Cove golf course, which made us wonder about our decision to prioritize bike riding over golf today. The course was gorgeous. And had a price tag to match. We certainly did not consider the trail busy or crowded, making us wonder about the comment in the parking lot.

We then rode the Big Cove Creek Greenway to its northern end. As we headed back, we faced a decision to ride the Little Cove Road Greenway 5 miles out, then back. Everyone was up for it, so we went for it after Matt and Lori checked their pet monitor in the RV. They travel with two small fur babies, Penny and Ginger. They have a device in the RV that will alert them via text and phone call if the power goes out, or the temperature gets outside of the range they set.

All was good so we rode east. We knew from the TrailLink map that the trail went along Old US 431 - what was not clear was that the whole 5 miles was a nicely paved, wide bike trail along the highway. Not quite as appealing as the first two trails which were away from roads, mostly in the woods. We stopped along the way a couple of times to enjoy the lakes in the housing areas.

After the bike ride, we stopped for a few grocery items, then headed north to Tim's Ford State Park in Winchester, TN. Along the way, our route followed the Trail of Tears again, for 8 miles during one stretch. Additional details on this trip are in the next blog post.