Across the Deep South
We posted that last update from a Black River Camp, located in a fallow field about 30 minutes east of Jackson, as a serious storm brewed. It was great to be snug in Evangeline again, as heavy rain fell and dramatic lightning flashes lit the fields. The sound of long freight trains rumbling along the old Vicksburg & Meridian Railroad about a half mile away contributed to the atmosphere. We were fortunate, as the storm caused serious damage and injuries south of us.
The next day dawned clear and we managed to traverse the far muddier drive out of the campground to get on the road northeast. Evangeline is still bearing that honestly earned Mississippi mud on her fenders and running boards almost a week later. We headed towards Jackson first (I obliged Catherine to play the song by Johnny and June) and hopped on the Natchez Trace Parkway, veering northward for the first time since we left the Land Between the Lakes. It turned out that a 20-ish mile stretch of the parkway was closed, including the campground where we had planned to stay, so we were forced to detour at French Camp. This set-up a couple serendipitous experiences.
First, the very nice ladies at the Clinton Visitor Center advised us that the boarding school at French Camp operates a great bakery and café. We enjoyed a delicious BLT there, as well as impromptu conversation with another couple lunching on the sunny patio. It had the “we come from different places and perspectives but can surely get along” vibe that we hope to experience often. Second, we located an outstanding alternate campsite at Choctaw Lake in the Tombigbee National Forest – well-spaced sites right by the lake, amidst a mature forest, with all the amenities at $15 for the night. We hiked the 2.5-mile trail around the lake, spotting herons, turtles, and bass large enough to tempt me into a fruitless attempt to fish (only lost two flies to the tall swamp grass). After dinner we took our chairs down to the lakeside at dusk and listened to the chorus of bullfrogs with an owl soloist. It was… perfect.
We were a bit regretful about leaving in the morning, but we wanted to ensure we got to our last ‘music destination’ – Muscle Shoals – before weekend hours limited our options. If you don’t know why this was on our itinerary, watch the documentary. We headed straight to FAME studios. As Catherine said, sometimes we’re luckier than we deserve, as we arrived there just in time for the last of only two tour slots per day. The group was large for a small space and mostly our demographic – graying boomers. Our guide was a young engineer at the studio who was super knowledgeable about the history of the studio and appreciative of its heritage. We had an impromptu audience with Ms. Linda, the 84-year-old widow of studio founder Rick Hall, who shared stories of their courtship and noted that the business is still in the family, making it one of the oldest studios under continuous ownership in the world.
Jordan played recordings of some of the great hits that were laid down there, starting with Aretha’s I Never Loved a Man (the Way I Loved You), arguably her break-out record. He also told us how Duane Allman, having been turned down for a job as a session guitarist by Rick Hall, camped out in a tent behind the studio for a week until members of the house band (the legendary ‘Swampers’) heard him practicing and told the boss, “You need to hear this guy.” Duane got hired, he convinced Wilson Pickett to record Hey Jude, and the rest is history.
The greater Muscle Shoals area is a cluster of four towns. We spent two nights in the ‘big town’ of Florence across the Tennessee river. It has a charming, bustling downtown, enhanced while we were there by a parade of prom-goers and University of North Alabama graduates.
The next day we headed to the other music destination, Muscle Shoals Sound Studio, founded by the Swampers when they split off from FAME in 1969. We toured with many of the same music tourists we had seen the day before and enjoyed listening to another young engineer providing the background story, showing us through the modest facility, and sharing anecdotes while playing some of the hits recorded there. My favorite anecdote – Keith Richards finishing composing Wild Horses while perched on the toilet off the studio. If you zoom in on this photo, you can see pictures of the Stones recording, and the invoice for a day of studio time - $1063.
The next day we headed to Cloudland Canyon State Park in far northwest Georgia. We passed through Huntsville, home of the Marshall Space Flight Center, which I belatedly realized would have been an outstanding place to include in our itinerary. We had to be content with photographing the collection of rockets from the highway as we passed by, though we did enjoy chatting with a 40-year NASA veteran/retiree who volunteered at the visitor center. She was proud of her service and interactions with Wernher Von Braun and famous astronauts. We’ll be back.
In Cloudland Canyon we took an ostensibly short afternoon hike to Cherokee Falls and Hemlock Falls. It was only a couple miles, but the elevation change was 1100 feet, each way! Great exercise and extraordinary scenery. Towering rock walls with spooky caves and overhangs, rhododendron blooms, and gorgeous falls that rivaled my beloved White Oak Canyon in Shenandoah.
We had a delightful hike the next day on the Western Rim Trail – stunning views of the canyon, rushing streams, and flora in bloom. We were really impressed with the beauty of this area, and the park’s stewardship of it.
The next and last post for this trip will be much briefer, and not just because it’s Catherine’s turn. We’re now in Western North Carolina (Cashiers), staying with a dear friend, enjoying more hikes and fishing and far more downtime. The lovely spring weather continues, and we are feeling very fortunate.
Some website housekeeping notes… I recognize (now) that Cloudinary, the media hosting platform I selected is not serving up the audio along with video we’re posting, and I plan to solve that once we’re home. Also, if you’ve signed up for email notices of our posts, note that when you get an email update you can just click the “continue reading” link at the bottom of the initial snippet to go to the full post with photos. Sorry for the ad-riddled nature of those emails. We’re using the freemium version of the follow.it service and, well, you get what you pay for.