Let me tell you about a thoroughly questionable experience in touring. I found Pedigo electric bike tours in Franklin through a fairly well known travel blog who talked about taking the Natchez Trace tour. I signed up and paid for that one for me and a friend. A week before the tour the company called me having to cancel and wanting to know a new tour date. I said after the summer I could only go on Saturdays and got a new date to go. What the Pedigo people didn't tell me was THIS WAS A DIFFERENT TOUR. We got there and were shocked to find out we were going to Leiper's Fork rather than Natchez Trace. I don't remember the person I talked to EVER telling me that I'd have to do a different tour if I couldn't go on a weekday. After dealing with that surprise the lady running the computer for safety forms and information rudely berated us all for not having filled the waivers out. All of us said we had the night before, to which she still very angrily said "that changes everything because I printed them off yesterday". Nowhere on any of the forms did it say we had to have them filled out 48 hours before the tour. Fastforward to the tour which was...fine. The road you have to practice riding on is very cramped and hard to navigate an electric bike on. I was also put on a bike that was too big for me which was so noticeable that one of the guides apologized at the end of the tour. After we got to Leiper's Fork we were given all of 15 minutes to do anything and I had to return a voicemail from Pedigo claiming I NEVER SHOWED UP FOR THE TOUR. There was also a huge amount of traffic in Franklin as we tried to weave our way back because of a festival going on. This was the point where I nearly ran into a car. We'd already had one woman in the group ride off the road and another having difficulty figuring how to throttle. Once back at the business, the initially rude woman tried to claim she wasn't the one who took my license which was why she didn't know I was on the tour. My friend answered "no, you took both of ours this morning" which seemed to throw her off. The whole thing was thoroughly disorganized and confusing. Basically electric bikes were a fun experience, but the Pedigo Company was not.
0 Comments
One of the best friends got a free pass to the US Space and Rocket Center because she was picking her kids up from space camp. I hadn't been there in a long time so was pleasantly surprised by how high tech and interesting it was. We went to the planitarium first and saw a good show about the planets. The first discovery area has a lot of hands on exhibits that the kids were interested in. The second discovery area is of the Saturn V rocket. That area has more adult seeming exhibits, but there are a lot of play areas for kids and a lot of special exhibits being run by volunteers the day we were there. There was also a place where you could meet a rocket scientist. The outside area we didn't hit very hard because of how hot it was that day, but we did ride the gravity force ride and there are a large amount of vehicles and rockets exhibited. In all we had a fun time and the center is well worth going to even if it was VERY crowded the day we went. I would try going more on a weekday rather than the weekend because apparently Monday had been much slower. The highest point in the Smoky Mountains, Clingman's Dome is a highlight of people travelling through the park. It is a steep .6 mile walk to the top of the observatory that I just saw an article claim was "not very hard". That is a lie. It's like doing half a mile on a stair stepper. Also keep in mind that the observatory tower can get crowded and I saw more than one person "jokingly" push or hold someone over the ledge which just seems like stupid behavior to me. The views are unmatched, though it is recommended going on a clear day otherwise visibility will be very limited. Also parking can be hectic. Do not park in the authorized vehicle only spaces as I saw several people doing and then getting tickets from park rangers. The signs are there for a reason. The summer yields beautiful wildflowers on the walk up and the hemlocks have started to come back since their devastation by the hemlock woolly adelgid that was killing them off in vast numbers. The introduction of predator beetles has slowed down the damage and allowed many of the trees to avoid being eaten now. Determined to get in another weekend trip before the summer ends, a friend and I headed down to Decatur, Alabama about a mile beyond the Tennessee border. We spent the night at the lodge at Joe Wheeler State Park, which is about 50 minutes away from Decatur. There's a restaurant there that we used for dinner the first night and breakfast both mornings. It was incredibly hot so other than walking down the marina we didn't do much when we got there. Saturday we went to Decatur. First stop was the Historic Train Depot. Trains still go by the depot regularly since Decatur is still a major shipping area across the Tennessee River. We ran into the town historian who runs the depot on the weekend. He's a wealth of information, so look for David Breland while you're there. The place is a hot spot for train watchers. From there we walked up to the Old Bank, a picturesque spot on the main street. Stop by Bank Street Arts & Antiques for three floors of unusual antiques to root through. Make sure you hit up Tennessee Valley Pecan for some tasty pecan treats and then go through a stroll in one of the two historic districts in town: Old Decatur and Albany. One was for northerners who moved into the area and one was for southerners. The houses are beautiful and there are over 23 on the historic record. After that head over to Cooks Museum of Natural Science, a great place to take kids OR adults. There are animals, fascinating exhibits and all sorts of special programs on the weekend. The place has a nice cafe for lunch and the museum is incredibly up to date and interactive. I am not exactly one for the water, especially lakes, so it was quite the surprise when I decided to learn to stand up paddle board. I headed up to Percy Priest Lake and took a lesson with Nashville Paddle Company. Getting a run down of the strokes and how to get up on a paddle board, I caught on pretty quick (apparently my canoeing experience from back in the day was a plus). It was VERY hot. I would suggest going in cooler weather to really enjoy your time because I was definitely getting overheated by the time I got back. Nashville Paddle Company was very professional and I had a great time. They were pleasant and easy to work with. They rent paddle boards for 25 an hour for those who already know how and just want an excursion. Nothing but good things to say about them. Paddle boarding is definitely something I want to do again now that I know how. I recommend learning it for a new way to enjoy the water or the lake for those who aren't into boating. |
AuthorA librarian doing the travel. Archives
May 2024
Categories |