Clifty Falls

I took off for Madison on Saturday morning. It was only 44 degrees so the ride down to Indy seriously made me doubt the wisdom of camping that night, but no guts no glory! Kirk had suggested that I might like to stop at Metamora to eat at a restaurant just outside of town, but since I was stoked on some of his super strength coffee and adrenaline from the ride, I wasn't even hungry. I did stop at a little store called the Smelly Gourmet. It had a coffee counter where I sipped a Black Forest with a marschino cherry surprise. The proprietors were a cute couple. The Mr. was plus selling a lotion that his wife had mixed up called Lick Me All Over. When he credited her with the formula, she just turned and smiled. Cute! I made the mistake of asking for directions to Madison since I wanted to make sure that there weren't any high water surprises. Before I could get out the door I had 4 different variations of directions with a multitude of turns landmarks and 2 hand drawn maps. I ended up trusting my own map reading skills. The ride down 229 beside the White River was gorgeous, but I didn't see as much as I wanted because of all the unfamiliar twisties.

Arriving in Madison on 421 was so dramatic, riding through those towering cliffs with the spring waters sluicing down. I took the turn on 62 to head for the north entrance of Clifty Falls. I wanted to get my tent set up and into town to eat and back to enjoy a campfire at dusk. The campsite I chose was gorgeously secluded with tangly brush on three sides that looked like wild honeysuckle. I set up the tent in record time and rode into town. Some towns attempt the tourist scene and some are successful. Madison is a class act with loads of interesting little shops in turn of the century buildings and grand old homes on the side streets. I rode along the river and stopped on Broadway beside the fountain. One of the town cops followed for a few turns and made me nervous, but I ignored him and he got tired of following the law abiding biker in circles. I picked a restaurant that appeared to be frequented by locals and the Downtowner was a great choice! I had the most wonderful homemade chicken salad sandwich, cole slaw, ice tea and a big slice of double chocolate cake for $8. I got back to camp before dusk and enjoyed a fire under the stars until only embers were left. That night it got down to 29 degrees. I didn't dare put my sleeping bag directly on the ground. That would have sapped my body heat . I read the book I brought along about Scotland, Seasons on Harris, with my headlamp until I got sleepy and then spent a very long night tossing and turning in my reclining beach chair. I slept for a bit and when I woke I could see my breath in the tent. It made me think about all the homeless people and what a struggle it must be for them to survive. When the birds started twittering it was such a relief. I knew the temperature could only go up from there. Thank goodness the showers were open with an abundant supply of exceptionally hot water. By the time I got out of there with my hair dried the temperature had warmed enough to ride into town for breakfast. I spent the day hiking the Tunnel Falls trail all the way down to the creek and back up since trail 2 followed the creek bed and was closed due to flooding. The trails were challenging and muddy with a smidgen of vertigo thrown in from the precipitous drop, but it was well worth it for the view overlooking the creek bed and all the wildflowers. I saw lots of bloodroot and harbinger of spring. I took some pictures but they never do justice to the real thing.

That afternoon I rode into town and sat down by the river basking in the sun. A biker named John stopped and asked if I were riding alone. He was riding a Gold Wing that had a front fairing like a Harley Street Glide. He invited me to the local biker bar called Tugboat's Eatery for a beer. While we sat there nursing our beers there was a constant flow of bikes coming and going. The food was only mediocre, but the view of the riverfront and the traffic processional was front row center. John told me about his wife of 30 years leaving him with a letter saying that she didn't want to argue about the "dog treats" anymore. He did say that the letter went on for three pages so I'm guessing there were some other complaints that he kept private. I must have looked like someone he could talk to because boy did he talk! He told me that he's diabetic, but stopped taking insulin years ago and controls his diabetes with diet and exercise. He expressed bewilderment when I told him my man back home didn't have a bike and sometimes rode on the back with me. He said,"People from around here wouldn't understand that, don't bring him down here like that." Then he softened that by shaking his head and saying, "That's just wrong", but I got the impression that he was showing some genuine gender attitude. All of the other bikers were very curious about John's little dog and wanted to know if he rode. Not only did he ride, right in front in his Scooby Doo backpack, but he also wore a matching biker hat. John invited me to join him at some friends' house for a barbecue, but my single white paranoid female kicked in and I opted out.

On the way back to the camp site, I had a near deer experience with a herd of deer bounding out in front of me. I was going slow and I didn't have any problem stopping, but I just couldn't tell how many more deer were coming. When I got back to the campsite, Kevin, a Clifty State Park employee gave me some outstanding service. Not only did he deliver firewood to my campsite, he also gave me the lowdown on all the local eating spots. He told me about the buffet offered at the Clifty Falls Inn and about a little hole in the wall called Hammonds where I could get breakfast the next morning. I took Kevin's advice and had a wonderful relaxing meal at the Clifty Inn while watching the turkey buzzards do acrobatics over the Ohio river. Thank goodness the temps were only down in the 40's that night.

The next morning I found Hammond's and enjoyed a fantastic fresh off the grill breakfast and talked scenic routes with the locals. I took 7 out of town and encountered the second riding scariness for the trip. I was following a flatbed loaded with bales of straw, followed by a construction truck, and then a pickup truck. All of a sudden bales of straw started exploding off the flatbed. Thank goodness there were vehicles in front of me to bust up some of the bales. I dodged the whole bales and was afraid the loose straw would be slippery as ice but I let off the throttle and coasted over it uneventfully. Whew!

It was refeshing to ride on my own. I wanted to stop at Brown County State Park, so I just did! There wasn't any consultation, or permission sought which was a new experience for me. I had been there before, but never explored the whole park. It was gorgeous, but I still think Clifty Falls had more interesting terrain and more natural camp sites. I rode through little Nashville and stopped in at Pitt Bull Leather for a couple of new biker t-shirts. When I saw it was getting late in the afternoon, I hit the road again. The wind picked up and made the hammering trip up 69 a treat. I was so tired by the time that I got back that I just left my bike packed until the next day and 628 mi. later I put another successful solo bike trip under my belt.