Day 5 | Kosciusko, MS to Jackson MS

Well we woke up early this morning hoping to get some riding in early.  Great night of sleep, and no weather to wake us.  So I looked at the radar, hoping that the storm I saw yesterday had passed by or missed us, and this is what I saw..

Not very promising, but thought, if we hurry I might be able to get some miles in this morning.  So we packed and ate in the car, as we drove south to my start point for the day.  By the time we got there it was already raining, and I am heading southwest on the trace.  As you can see, a very big storm and not likely to move out of my way, any time soon.  Then I saw this..

2-4 inches!! with locally higher amounts, heavy downpours.  Ok, I guess we will just have to wait for this slow moving storm to pass, so we headed to Jackson.  Hoping to get some miles in this afternoon.

Here is a picture of a river that I was hoping to ride along today.

Which eventually feeds into the Ross Barrett Reservoir, that is 50 square miles. The Trace goes along the side of  it for many miles, another beautiful ride.

The reservoir, unfortunately, you can't see very much, because of the rain.

The good news is that we got to Jackson and went to the hotel, Embassy Suites, that we are staying at tonight, and they let us check in!!  It's a little after 8:00 a.m. and they had a room ready.  I guess it pays to travel as much as I do some times.

So we checked in and got our stuff in the room and decided to go have another breakfast.  Then I checked the radar again.

The blue dot is us in Jackson, MS, pretty much in the middle of this big storm that stretches from Texas to Tennessee. And the Trace heads southwest, this storm is basically sitting on top of the trace from Nashville to Natchez. So we are sitting here hoping that it will move faster than it has been moving.  Well not all of us are sitting...

Some are thinking of getting a mid morning nap.

So I am sitting here, playing on the internet, waiting for the rain to go away and I look out the window, and I see...

The Washington Monument?? What the...?  I can't be in Washington, can I?  So I google this thing, and here is what it is:

It may turn heads and pique curiosity for passers-by, but most Jackson-area residents know the Washington Monument replica on Interstate 55 in Ridgeland is simply a disguise for a cell phone tower.

But when the split-diamond Madison Avenue interchange is complete in 2014, the monument will take on a new identity – it will become part of the entrance to Colony Park, a mixed-use development along Highland Colony Parkway.

A cell phone tower, now that's a great idea, instead of the ugly metal structures.

1:30 update, it started to clear, and then more stray showers. 0 miles today so far.

3:00 it stops raining, the sun almost comes out, and then more rain.  Decided to call it a day.  A day of rest, does a body good.  So we will hit it early tomorrow and make a big day of it.  To Natchez, MS tomorrow.