Google Maps Tried to Send Me Two Miles Down Somebody's Driveway

October 13, 2018

Day Three: Dover, TN to Hurricane Mills, TN

I was up early, and immediately turned on the Nashville TV station, where I watched the very perky weather lady describe the rain that would be moving in tomorrow night. "Bring your umbrella!"

It was chillier this morning, but at least it was not raining. I was on the bike a little after 7:00, rode a mile or so on the shoulder of the highway, and then turned onto Taylor Chapel Road, where I spent five very pleasant miles. There was zero traffic this morning. I'd quickly worked out a route with Google Maps last night which zigzagged 50 miles to Dickson, a larger town with several lodging options. I thought I'd see how I felt when I got there, and decide what to do then.

After 23 more miles of scenic, completely empty back roads, I arrived in Erin (population 1,324). Erin looked a little downtrodden, with several closed businesses and ramshackle houses, but just off my route there was a restaurant. The place had reopened that morning under new ownership after being closed for two months, and the new owners only had a few items on the (temporary) menu. Still, I was pretty excited the place was there. What I got was certainly a cut above the typical gas station food that I rely on while bike touring.

I was in a good mood as I left Erin. My hastily designed route was really working out. So far Tennessee had lots of smooth, paved, empty roads. In Illinois, where I lived until recently, many of these roads would have been abandoned years ago. It seems like Tennessee has a Kentucky-level of commitment to paving just about everything that would be dirt or gravel other places.

At about mile 35 I glanced down at my phone, which had Google Maps loaded, and saw that I was supposed to make a left turn. However, that was a gravel driveway that was clearly signed "No Trespassing." Also, the entire area was enclosed with a tall fence that I've seen before on ostrich farms. I had a good run today, but, as has so often happened in the past, Google Maps eventually let me down. There was no way I was going to attempt riding two miles onto private property and possibly interact with gigantic, fierce ostriches.

My vague plan had been to head southeast toward the suburbs south of Nashville today, and get on the Natchez Trace tomorrow. Yesterday I'd met a couple who were slowly riding from Milwaukee to New Orleans, and they were planning to take the Natchez Trace for almost its entire length. "The Trace" is a 400+ mile scenic road with no commercial development - presumably a longer version of the route through the LBL that I was bored with yesterday. I wasn't enthused about the prospect of what I imagined would be four hundred miles in a tunnel of trees anyway, so I revised my plans and headed straight south instead, on another great empty lane.

The wisdom of this decision was confirmed when I arrived seven miles later in McEwen (population 1,750) and spotted a Dairy Queen. I spent 45 minutes there eating a Peanut Buster Parfait, working on a new route, and eavesdropping on a table of local people, one of whom, an older man, announced to his companions at least six times that it was "'Bout time for me to hit the road!" before he finally got up and left.

I left McEwen and quickly got on more great empty roads. I'd decided to head to Hurricane Mills, which appeared to be nothing but a group of hotels and a Pilot Travel Center at an exit off I-40. Not an ideal destination, but I'd have to go another 20 miles south of there to find a more appealing destination, and I didn't want to push too hard today.

The sun finally came out for the rest of the ride. I arrived at TN-13, a busy state highway, and decided it would be worth adding several miles to avoid it by taking "Old 13" instead. However, I wasn't sure that all of "Old 13", which crossed the Duck River, was even passable, despite what Google Maps said. So I stopped in at the visitor center at the Loretta Lynn Ranch, where the young woman there assured me that the bridge was open, and the road was passable - although some of it was rough gravel.

Old 13 was great. Once I passed Loretta Lynn's house (she still lives here part of the year), the road turned to gravel and then dirt for a while, but it was easy with my bike's big, tough tires (it would have been possible, but not so great, on skinny road tires.)

After an entire day on empty country roads, my arrival at the interstate and the truck stop and motel zone was a little jarring. I decided to splurge and get a room at the Holiday Inn Express instead of one of the older and crappier-looking interstate motels. It was overpriced and a littler shabbier than I expected. Oh well.

After dinner next door at a buffet place I walked back and watched TV for a while, something I never do unless I'm in a motel on a bike trip. A different weather lady on the Nashville TV station confirmed that yes, I was going to get wet tomorrow.

Today's ride: 70 miles (113 km)
Total: 223 miles (359 km)

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