Day 1 on Highway 61 a.k.a. Airline Highway near I-310 crossing.
Day 2. Camp Moore Confederate Cemetary in Tangipahoa, LA.
"Roller-coaster" hills on Hwy 51 south of Magnolia, Mississippi.
House cleaning at Percy Quin State Park near Magnolia, Mississippi.
Sunrise over Percy Quin State Park.
Fierce downhill on Hwy 51 just north of McComb and Summit, Mississippi.
Highway 51 looks like a parkway between towns. Nice surface too.
May 16. Highway 51 on the way to Jackson, Mississippi.
Patty adjusting to the hilly terrain and May heat.
Parkside Motel in N. Jackson, Mississippi. Nice to have A/C after 93 degree temps today.
Highway 51 just north of Jackson, Mississippi.
Highway 51 between Canton and Pickens, Mississippi.
Bike checkup at the top of a two mile climb to Holmes County State Park.
May 18.
Exposed roots in the easily eroded Loess soil of Holmes County State Park.
New friends from the local area doing some weekend RVing.
Highway 51 looks as good as the nearby Natchez Trace Parkway.
Forced onto I-55 for fifteen miles near Hernando, MS due to rising floodwaters.
May 21
I-55 just north of Batesville, Mississippi. Note the flood waters!
We had special permission from the State Police to ride 25 miles on I-55.
Graceland. South Memphis, Tennessee.
The Mississippi River Bridge at Memphis is where we will cross tomorrow.
This bridge at Memphis is the first to allow peds and bikes
when traveling from south to north along the river.
Memphis skyline as seen through the old bridge and a train bridge.
Yep...that's a river alright.
Patty looking ahead to Arkansas.
West Memphis, Arkansas just across the Mississippi River. Just fixed Patty's first flat.
May 23. Crowley's Ridge on the horizon and the hope of higher, drier ground.
Highway 284 near New Castle, Arkansas just north of Hwy 70 and I-40.
Little did we know, we were nearing our last biking day due to the persistant flooding.
This is what we got done.
Day One of our "Around the Lake" four day training ride.
Catching some shade at the Ruddok - Hwy 51 exit under I-55
Patty's ride - a converted Marin Bear Valley mountain bike.
Old Highway 51 is deserted and perfect for bike touring.
Highway 51 rides a finger of land between Lake Maurepas and Lake Pontchartrain.
Old 51 is a twenty mile stretch of abandoned highway thanks to nearby I-55.
Camping under the pines at Fairview Riverside State Park in Madisonville, LA.
Crossing the West Pearl River on Highway 90 near White Kitchen, LA.
Patty crossing the West Pearl at White Kitchen.
Crossing her first state line by bike.
Wild roses along Hwy 90 near Pearlington, MS.
Old Pearlington Road on the way to the Gulf Coast.
"Nothing to this bike touring stuff!"
Enjoying a breeze at the Mississippi Sound on Beach Road - Waveland, MS.
Nice to get out from BEHIND the camera now and then.
Mississippi Sound on Beach Road - Waveland, MS.
"Do not take a picture of this hair!"
Our campsite at Buccaneer State Park - Waveland, Mississippi.
Raccoon defiance.
Early Morning departure from Waveland.
Just a couple miles from the beach. Photo taken by a fellow camper.
Patty waiting for the Rigolets Brigde to close.
Checking out a Saturn V rocket booster at the NASA facility in Michoud, LA.
Bonnet Carre Spillway on day one of a 90 mile ride up to
Folsom, LA where a friend has a farm.
Crossing the Spillway on Highway 61.
Taking a photo and lunch break at Manchac.
Patty and Matt just north of Hammond, LA on Hwy 443
Highway 40 near Uneedus, LA.
Enjoying the campfire after a 90 mile biking day.
Patty's ride in the studio.
"Flying Teeth or Gnats From Hell" is what the sign says.
No-see-ums were terrible at Buccaneer S.P. this weekend.
THE END

The first 30 photos of this presentation were taken during a bicycle tour from New Orleans, Louisiana to Memphis, Tennessee with my baby sister Patricia. She was on summer break from college and I was enjoying yet another retirement. Our plan was to bike from New Orleans to the headwaters of the Mississippi River near Lake Itasca, Minnesota. Due to severe flooding across the Midwest, our plans were changed for us by the weather. The roads and towns ahead were in the process of flooding as were the roads behind us. Eventually, we rented a truck and drove back to New Orleans on Interstate Highways that were nearly under water as well. We had a lot of fun despite almost every minute of every day looking like a monsoon was about to strike, and strike they did in the evening driving us into the tent early most nights. For added stress, many of our campsites were in recreation areas below huge earthen dams with water lapping at their highest edges. Some campgrounds were partially submerged. These storms were all fueled by continual howling southerly winds - at our back the entire trip - so it is hard to really complain. And we never got rained on while riding even once, although we did hunker down in hotels during some of the worst days. We were also thankful that the thick cloud cover was responsible for one of the coolest months of May on record which afforded us some very comfortable riding temperatures.

After the Memphis trip photos I posted all of the shots from our training rides leading up to the actual long tour. To this day I have not made it to Lake Itasca although I tried two more times over the years. Cutting across Tornado Alley during May is not too smart. In my defense, I am an avid birdwatcher and was attempting to follow Spring migration which often happens during, well, May. And Patricia's summer holiday started in, yes, May as well. Omaha, Nebraska is my farthest point reached so far. I shall keep trying.