Day 10 - July 1 - Jackson TN to Union City TN - hottest day yet

 Weather - 82F (29C) at 7am with 95% humidity.   The forecast for a heat index of over 110F (43C) turned out to be an underestimate at it reached 115F (46C) by the time I got to the hotel in Union City with an air temperature of 98F (37C).   Wind was very light and if it blew, it was a cross-wind from the west.  Sun was out all day and there was very little shade from trees since now I'm getting into the prairies.

Distance: 63.6miles (102kms)

Average Moving Speed: 13.7mph (22kph) in 4hrs,32mins of riding

Elevation Gain: 1752feet (534 metrs)

Calories: 3687

Shvitz Index: 9.2 (only because I got an early start and was not riding in the hottest part of the day after 1pm)




I knew that I had to get an early start and was actually on the road just after 7am, a record for me.  
My sun glasses fogged immediately in leaving the air-conditioning as the humitity was close to 100%.  Traffic in the morning in Jackson was busy but after about 8 miles I was on US45W, a 4-lane highway with a good surface and a very wide shoulder for about 25 miles.  I made good time early and especially after the hills disappeared, speeding along at 18-20mph. 

I stopped for iced coffee and a quart of chocolate milk (about a litera0 in Trenton, and was quite surprise to see a speed limit sign with a very unusual number (31mph).


The center of Trenton has a very impressive courthouse (1909) in front of which is a Confederate was memorial (1907) and a plaque explaining the arrival of the civil war there



Up the road was Rutherford, the last hometown of Davy Crockett, the famous frontiersman who died (or was martyred as the sign said) at the Alamo in San Antonio, TX in 1836.  

There is a small house that replicates his last one and a museum (closed) beside which his mother  is buried.







Beyond Rutherford, the landscape opened up even more as corn (maize) and soybean fields became more apparent.  It was beginning to look a lot like the Midwest.



The heat on a new section of the road with blacktop was intense as heat rose in waves from its surface. 

I made it to Union City by 1pm and hung out with massive amounts of lemonade from a friendly waiter in a super-cooled restaurant while the temperature continued to rise outside. 



Tomorrow, I will cross into Kentucky and hopefully get to the Ohio and the crossing into Illinois.  The forecast is for about 3 more days of intense heat before slight cooling.

I have seen over a dozen fireworks sellers in the last few days.  I think that this 4th July fireworks will be epic.






















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