I rolled into Jim & Karla’s neighborhood outside of Memphis, Tennessee, excited to get to see them for the second time in just over a year. Military friendship bonds are strong, like family strong, so it felt as if no time had passed at all since I had visited them on my cross-country road trip last year. Well, except that their daughter Katie had grown like a weed!
Karla and I took advantage of the time we had to sightsee while Jim was at work, and Katie at school. Our tour of sights around Memphis started at the Bass Pro Shop at the Pyramid. This place is more than just an outdoor sportsman retail store! In addition to the typical Bass Pro Shop retail departments inside the 535,000 square-foot pyramid is a 103-room wilderness-themed hotel, two restaurant/bars, a bowling alley, archery and pistol ranges, a waterfowl heritage center and museum, and of course, a Pro Bass Shop HUMUNGOUS aquarium with walkways over it from which to view the monstrous fish!
The 600,000 gallon “aquarium” extends across much of the ground floor of the retail area which is a recreated cypress swamp. It’s so big that it contains 36 varieties of fish native to the Mississippi River and piers at which you can check out the buoyancy and amenities of full-size boats. (Bass Pro Shop website)
We rode 28 stories to the top of the pyramid in the world’s tallest free-standing elevator to the Lookout for lunch and the views from the observation deck. Behind us, you can see Hernando do Soto Bridge spanning the Mississippi River (the state line between Arkansas and Tennessee), as well as some condos on Mud Island. The glass segments of the flooring on the observation deck (under our feet) really highlighted the 28-floor height above the ground below!
After lunch, Karla and I toured the National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Hotel. “Established in 1991, [it] is located at the former Lorraine Motel, where civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated on April 4, 1968. Through interactive exhibits, historic collections, dynamic speakers and special events, the museum offers visitors a chance to walk through history and learn more about a tumultuous and inspiring period of change.” I have visited several Civil Rights-themed museums over the last couple of years, and this one definitely ranks in the top tier of the ones I have explored so far.
In 1989, I was stationed at Millington, which at the time was home to all naval aviation A-Schools, where sailors learn their technical skills for their designated military occupation, (which have since moved to Pensacola, Florida). I don’t know if it’s still policy, but back then, we weren’t allowed to wear civilian clothes (aka “civvies”) for the first several months after boot camp. Since I went to avionics training straight out of basic training, I (and pretty much everyone under the same policy) would pack “civvies” anyway to change into after leaving base for weekend liberty. We inevitably ended up on Beale Street, which is several blocks of nightclubs and restaurants. The iconic street, designated as a National Historic Landmark district, is “a melting pot of delta blues, jazz, rock n’ roll, R&B and gospel.” The vibe of the street definitely felt different at this decade of my life than it did back then. (MemphisTravel.com)
It was so great to spend quality time with Jim and Karla, and to be Auntie Karen to Katie, that my overnight stop turned into a several-day stay 😊 Content with the visit, I rolled out of their driveway and continued east towards Shiloh National Military Park.
The Shiloh National Military Park spans battlegrounds across two states; the Battle of Shiloh in Tennessee, and the Corinth Siege and Battle in Mississippi. In February of 1862, Confederate forces staged at the important railroad crossroads at Corinth advanced on Federal troops at Pittsburg Landing, on the Tennessee River near Shiloh. They succeeded in pushing back the outnumbered Federals, only to be defeated in the spring by a reinforced Federal contingency, resulting in 23,746 casualties. The Shiloh National Cemetery was established in 1889 and holds 3,584 Civil War dead, 2,359 of them unknown. (NPS website and brochure)
Also within the Shiloh National Military Park boundaries are six earthen rises that make up the Shiloh Indian Mounds National Historic Landmark. Archeological evidence indicates that an Indigenous town occupied this bluff (from which I took this photo) overlooking the Tennessee River about 800 years ago and that these mounds probably served as platforms for village governance, religious practices, and residences.
From Shiloh, I road about 150 miles east to Stones River National Battlefield. Nearly 24,000 men were killed, wounded or captured during the 3-day Civil War battle at Stones River in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. After transient victories by both sides, the Union Army ultimately claimed victory and held much of Middle Tennessee in an iron grip, making it a launching point for future campaigns. Click HERE to view a 9-minute film about the events that transpired at Murfreesboro and Stones River.
It was late in the day by the time I finished touring Stones River National Battlefield, so I headed further into Murfreesboro to look for a hotel room. A quick online search on my smart phone indicated that there were vacancies at several hotels, so I bee-lined it for the one closest to me. I parked my bike at the registration area by the front doors and walked inside. As I stepped into the lobby, a tween (kid between the ages of 9-12 years) just about plowed me down as he was being chased by a group of peers. I looked around and took in the cacophony of the hotel lobby – kids everywhere, loudly playing tag, roughhousing, and well, just being kids. I walked up to the desk and was assured there were rooms to be had, but that they were interspersed amongst participants in town for a local event. Turns out that the Middle School Tennis State Championships were just getting kicked off. Grateful that I hadn’t booked ahead of time, I thanked the registration clerk and stepped outside to start calling around to see if there were perhaps quieter places to stay.
With daylight quickly winding down, I leaned against my bike and renewed my hotel search (there were no Bunk-a-Biker hosts in the area). Each place I called either had no vacancies or I could hear a similar scene as the one I had just witnessed playing out in the background of each hotel I phoned. Just as I was preparing to leave, I noticed a man break off from a group of what appeared to be, as indicated by stereotypical attire, weathly-ish tennis dads trying to distance themselves from the chaos of the lobby (and the women trying to mitigate the rowdiness), start walking my way. The rest of the group smiling and nodding in my direction.
Tennis Dad: “Nice bike! What’s the deal with Harley-Davidson dealerships, are they going out of business?”
Me: “Um, I’m not sure what you mean. All the dealerships I have passed or stopped by lately seem to be doing pretty well.” Interesting, I thought to myself, that he didn’t ask the usual questions, or conversation starters, like bike or journey specifics.
Tennis Dad: “Oh, it just seems like I saw a couple not far from here that appeared to have vacant parking lots during business hours. I’ve always wanted a bike, but my wife won’t let me have one.”
I don’t know if I actually succeeded in my effort to not roll my eyes at his statement, but I was trying my best.
Me: “Well, that’s unfortunate.” [I mean, what else is there to say?] “I don’t want to be rude, but I really need to get to my next destination before night fall.”
Having been married once, and fully cognizant of the compromises and teamwork required for a successful partnership, I have little patience for people who blame others for not pursuing their own interests. I have absolute respect, however for a man or woman saying something like “I’ve always wanted one, but I talked it over with my significant other and we decided that having young children [or fill in your familial responsibilities or compromise here] preclude me from pursuing that interest at this phase of our lives.”
As I threw a leg over the seat, I glanced back at the group of men encircling the returning tennis dad, laughing and patting him on the back. This time, I really did roll my eyes and felt supremely grateful for my life of freedom, resulting from deliberate life choices, as I rode away into a stunning sunset, towards a little town about 30 minutes away, where I stayed at comfortable, quiet accommodations. They even allowed me to park my bike under the drop-off awning for the night 😊
Now, before I get comments chiding me for being anti-kid or families, let me be clear that my aversion to staying in a noisy hotel or entertaining a married, flirty parent had more to do with my desire to find a place to stay before dark and get a good night’s sleep than it did with family or other people’s reproduction choices. To each their own!
Well-rested, I enjoyed a leisurely breakfast the next morning, then settled in for a scenic ride to Oak Ridge, Tennessee.
FitHippie Adventures 
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