UGRR Day 17 Morganfield to Henderson

Memorial in the center of Henderson, Kentucky

Today's ride was a short ride of 27 miles through gently rolling almost flat Sunday countryside. Although the short distance was simply to break up a middle 90 mile section so that we wouldn't have to do 3 90 mile days in a row, it was much appreciated by everyone who finished yesterday's "challenging " ride. I think everyone's legs took until about the 15 mile SAG stop to get warmed up and decide to move.

Cows on a Sunday morning

Even early, well relatively early, since we got to sleep in and didn't have to get breakfast until 8:30, the cows were already standing in the pond to cool off. This was a common sight in the canals in the Netherlands, but a lot of the ladies had never seen this before.

Some of the fields we passed through had working oil well heads, the type that look like a grasshopper and bow up and down. I had never though of Kentucky as having oil, but apparently it does. Who knew?

The SAG stop was in a church parking lot, and as a group of us were refilling our water bottles and chowing down on fresh strawberries, a lady came over wanting to know if we were part of the group of 30 women heading for Canada that she had read about during the week in her local paper. Apparently we are becoming notorious in Kentucky, just as we did in Tennessee.

The minister very kindly came out and extended a bit of Christian charity in the form of permission to use the bathrooms, and an offer to have us sing in the choir if we wanted to hang around for the 11:30 service. While we availed ourselves of the toilets, we chose not to hang for 2 hours to sing. It is so nice when someone offers us a bathroom. Many of us have picked up deer ticks and or fire ant bites or poison ivy while using the outdoor facilities that mutual tick checks are now part of the post ride routine.

One of the more interesting signs we have passed in riding was one pointing the Mousetail State Park. Further Google inquiries state that just prior to the Civil War there was a tannery upstream that had burned down and all of the mice and rats fleeing the fire by jumping into the water, had come ashore here. It makes a good story but inquiring minds would like to know who was standing around counting the mice?

Henderson is known as one of the crossing points into then independent Indiana for the Underground Railroad, and according to an old timer I met down town, several of the older historic houses in the charming district of old houses we had ridden in through, had tunnels down to the river that were used to move the freedom seekers through. Apparently down on the river itself just south of town is the old "slave house" a haunted slave barrack that an enterprising business man built to house the slaves he had recaptured in Indiana, just across the river and brought back to hold for bounty hunters coming up from the south.

John James Audubon statue in the Riverside Park in Henderson, Kentucky

We got to the Comfort Inn too early to check in so got a map of downtown and rode back the 4 miles to see the sights. We were able to follow a riverside walk, bike path for most of the way, with the rest being on a quiet side street running parallel to the main drag. The part closest to the Ohio River had lots of informational and historic signs about John James Audubon, the bird illustrator and naturalist, the Lewis and Clark group that passed through, and the big 1939 flood from which Henderson gets it's town motto " on the river but never in it." The town was saved from flooding by being 19 feet above the flood plane.

While we were wandering the park we asked a local where was the best place eat was and were referred to the Hometown Diner. We knew we had found the spot when we spotted several other bikes outside. Along with just basic good home cooking, the diner did excellent fried green tomatoes, a southern treat I had been hankering for since Mobile, so I finally got my fix.
After lunch we rode up to the city square with the courthouse and park. The park had been decorated in honor of Memorial Day with about 1500 white crosses, each marked with the name of a Henderson County citizen who had died in combat, starting with the Civil War and continuing to the present day.

While we were walking around examining the crosses, several people again came up to us and asked if we were with the group of women riding to Canada. and wanting to shake our hands. Around the dinner circle tonight, several ladies mentioned that people had offered to pay for their electrolyte drinks, given donations or in one case bought them lunch.

Just as we got back to the hotel, "Bo Peep" was headed off to the bike shop in Evansville, Indiana, just across the river to get the seat post on Judy from Canada's bike, so I jumped in and went along. Following local directions that included phrases like "turn right after the second set of pylons in the road reconstruction, and take the first exit left after the construction rubble dies down" we eventually found our way to Gilles "feet to the road" bike shop. Judy got her bike seat stem fixed, while several others of us bought chamois butter, sun screen, GU, gloves, and eyed the jerseys and all the latest models of Trek bikes.

Shopping done and back to the Comfort Inn in time for a rest before dinner. Tomorrow's ride looks relatively flat, so the 65 miles shouldn't be too bad to ride, but the weather is looking a little chancy so we'll have to see what the morning brings.

Quote from one of the Memorial Panels encircling the Memorial Plinth

Today's Stats

Distance 33.78 miles

Ride time 2:43 including in town playing tourist

Average 14.3

Elevation gain 1208 feet