Day 12 - Goodbye, Friends. Hello, Nashville!

SOUTHWEST ADVENTURE - Day 12
Starting Point: Hot Springs, AR
Destination: Franklin, TN
Day 12 mileage: 419.1
Cumulative mileage (GPS): 6058.9
Cumulative mileage (Odometer): 6176.5

Day 12 was the last day the five of us would ride together. Randall and I were headed to Nashville to re-join our ladies, who had flown to Nashville from Colorado Springs. A party celebrating the marriage of our daughter awaited us there - and not reaching our destination on time was not an option. The rest of the New Orleans gang was headed home.

Before we said goodbye, however, we enjoyed a quick visit with an old friend. Bill Chappell grew up in New Orleans and attended church with four of us. A resident of Arkansas, Bill came to our hotel to say hello before we headed out. We enjoyed a good time catching up and laughing together. Friendship is a good thing!

From left to right: me, Bill, Trent, Randall, Matt

Leaving Hot Springs, Randall and I had one thing in mind: get to Nashville on time. The adventure of finding exciting scenic routes was in the rearview. We set the GPS to route us to our hotel, made our way to I-30, then on to I-40, and headed east. Gas stops and a stop for lunch were all this morning and early afternoon had to offer. Nearing our hotel, we tried to find a place to clean the bikes up a bit, but we didn't find any good options. Finally, we headed to the Drury Plaza Hotel in Franklin, TN with our bikes looking like this:

Friends from east Tennessee and Birmingham had already arrived at our hotel, so though we were nasty from the fast, hot ride, we visited with the very special people, grabbed a shower and a quick nap, then headed for the post-wedding party with Jaimee, Travis, and friends. I could post a bunch of pics of this time together - but I won't! Here are just a few:

The newly-weds - Jaimee and Travis Brown

The place - The Frothy Monkey

Some of the refreshments

From left: Son-in-law Bryan, daughter Lindsey, me, Annette,
great friends from Birmingham Donna and Lori, Jaimee, and Travis

More great friends - from Morristown, TN
Lindsey, Christi, Casey, Annette, me, Donna, and Jaimee

This friend flew from Orlando to be a part of the celebration
Lindsey, Jaimee, and Michel Lynn

Jaimee and Travis with Travis' sister Mallory