Aberdeen to Fulton, Miss.

Saturday, May 16
Miles Traveled: 44
Average Speed: 14.6 mph
Elevation Increase: 1,000 feet
Maximum Speed: 32 mph

Black clouds in Aberdeen delayed Mike's start on Saturday for about an hour.



But he still got into Fulton by 12:15 p.m. as it was only a 30 mile jaunt. When he reached Fulton, he reached the end of his first map. The entire Underground Railroad Bicycle Route is laid out on five maps. You can see what those maps look like at http://biketour.lipscomb.edu and click on "Routes & Maps" and look at "Where is Mike Today?" The Fulton Church of Christ provided lodgings for Mike in a Days Inn, and he had dinner with the retirees from Atlanta who are also biking the route.

During his first week of riding, Mike has crossed the Tombigbee River four times. The Tombigbee flows from upper Mississippi to connect to the Alabama River and form the Mobile River and flow out into the Gulf of Mexico. As it was a more convenient route to the Gulf than the alternative -- the Mississippi River which hooks up with the Ohio River, a canal was created to hook up the Tennessee River farther south to the Tombigbee, so barges could travel to the Gulf faster.



Here's the Tombigbee at Mike's fourth crossing.

Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway
(according to the Encyclopedia Britannica)
American waterway linking the Tennessee River in northeastern Mississippi with the Tombigbee River in western Alabama. The 234-mile (376-kilometre) system of locks and canals along the upper Tombigbee River south to Demopolis, Ala., gives access via the lower Tombigbee to the Gulf of Mexico at Mobile, Ala. The waterway was built (1971–84) to provide an alternate and shorter route to the Gulf than the Mississippi River for Appalachian coal and agricultural products from neighbouring Southern states, as well as to draw more businesses to the region. Barge traffic began moving along the system in January 1985.

Don't forget, if you are interested in supporting Mike in his goal to promote diversity at Lipscomb University, make a donation to Mike Smith's Underground Railroad Diversity Scholarship Fund by going to biketour.lipscomb.edu and clicking on "Give Online."