It also struck me as I was riding that this is also a land of contrasts. We had earlier that morning ridden past the state park that is named after and is also the birthplace of Davy Crockett (legendary folk hero and frontiersman). I was visualising him walking through the forest with his old musket over his shoulder and wondered if the landscape was much the same as in his day. As I pondered this, on the side of the road (just before Knoxville) a large billboard loomed above the treeline stating "DOLLYWOOD - NEXT EXIT" (promoting country singer Dolly Parton's theme park). There seem to be these elements of 'tackiness' that appear along the way to detract from the sense of history and appreciation of the scenery!
After linking up with Hwy 81 we had about an hour of riding until Knoxville and then Hwy 81 South merged onto Hwy 40 West. We crossed a change in time zone to Central Time (gained an hour) and then the torrential rain came! Visibility was really poor at times and we had to reduce speed quite a bit. At Cookesville we pulled into a fuel station and they also had coffee and hot food, which really hit the spot. Normally we would take our time and have regular stops, but the weather was so appalling that we just wanted to get off the road as soon as possible. The woman at the gas station said that there had been flooding in Nashville with road closures, so we didn't know what we were heading in to!
Another hours ride in the wet and we arrived at our hotel in Nashville. Due to the time zone change we arrived just after lunch (with check in not until 3pm), but the staff were really good and saw how wet and bedraggled we looked and checked us straight in. We found out that there had been some pretty bad flash flooding in parts of the city and some roads had been temporarily closed not far from where we were staying. I was not surprised - if the conditions we encountered on the ride were anything to go by. It never ceases to amaze me the extreme weather events you get in the USA.
After we had changed we walked through the Graceland Opry Resort that was nearby and then continued on to see the Grand Ole Opry Theatre (the home of the legendary Country Music radio show). We spent some time at the large Opry Mills Shopping Centre and then caught a bus back to near where we were staying and had dinner at the Opry Bar & Grill.
I had been to Nashville a few months earlier for a conference and really enjoyed the city - it has a great 'vibe' and country music is very much at the heart of it's culture. They even have country music playing out of speakers at the pedestrian crossings at some intersections! It was great to have Tracee with me this time to experience what the city has to offer.
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