Stage 3: Into Alabama!

Up early today... Sunlight and birds make for a much nicer alarm clock than what I am used to hearing.

Last night was the first night in a tent, and it was better than I thought it would be.  The sleeping bag and the Exped air mat was so comfortable that I was out like a light and slept very well.  So well that I snored a lot.  Sorry, Brendan. :(

I think I could get used to this.

While eating breakfast before striking camp, the Ranger pulls up in his truck and asks if we needed a spoon. No, we're good now....

Packed everything up and got back on the Trace after a quick stop to top off our tanks. We log over 100 miles before turning off near Jackson MS so we can find a sporting goods store.  Brendan needs some different ear plugs, his hurt his ears and my brand doesn't feel much better.  

We find a Dicks Sporting Goods near Jackson, MS and head inside...  Oh man, I could get in a lot of trouble here. 

This is the first time I'd been inside a store like this since doing my online shopping for camping gear back in February, and I've been researching various pieces of gear since before that.  Now, nearly every item I'd looked at is on display in the camping section.  So many shiny things!

In a moment of weakness, I pick up a Jetboil Zip stove, and some bug repellant, and some other odds and ends.  I rationalize this $100 purchase with the fact that I can now cook for myself once Brendan and I split off. 

Boiling water in 3 minutes? Yes, please

Eastward we push - we lost a lot of time in Jackson, but we're kinda close to Alabama, so we meander in that general direction.  South of Tuscaloosa, the map shows a lot of National Forrest land and camping, so we hit a grocery store for some last minute dinner supplies, and decide to pick up a couple of rib-eye steaks.  

The first place we try is a bust - their idea of camping is people pulling in with their RV, and they want $45 a night for the privilege. The second place looks a bit more promising, but the road is dirt and looks pretty torn up.  I can tell there has been logging taking place in the area recently.  Brendan tells me to wait while he scouts ahead.... 

And 15 minutes later, he's not back yet.  Another few minutes go by, and I start to get worried.  We're starting to loose light, and I'm guessing either this road is a lot longer than we'd thought, or something's wrong with Brendan's bike.  This road can't be any worse than the gravel in Louisiana, right?

Wrong!  The road is pretty battered, thanks to the logging trucks.  It's like riding on a washboard in most places, with sandy, gravely sections tossed in for good measure.  The ST13 isn't happy at all, but some of my long forgotten dirt riding experience is starting to come back to me.  Eyes up, stand to weight the pegs in the really bad parts, maintain throttle, feed in more throttle to pick up the front end a bit...  

I see Brendan coming towards me, he looks very surprised to see me.  We both stop, he shakes his head and says "No."

The road gets even worse further up, and he's really shocked I made it this far in without issue.

 I turn the big bike around, and he follows me back to the main road.

We pick another site on the GPS, and look them up online.  This place looks like a winner, we get there at twilight and set up in the dark with flashlights and LED camp lanterns.  It's a good thing we picked up the steaks, because we're both super hungry.  With two stoves available, dinner is ready in short order.  

Nom nom nom!

It wasn't till the morning though, that we'd be able to see how nice this place really was. 

Not bad for $3 a night.