June 1st...First day on the road

We got off to a good start on the trip. We got out of the house will little fuss and were on the road by 7:30. Instead of heading straight to Nashville, we stopped first near Rarden in southeast Ohio. We searched for Ali’s phone, repaired a cabinet, and checked the chickens….that’s right, checked the chickens.  

That detour took us away from any major highways, so we spent the rest of the trip on back roads from Ohio through Kentucky heading toward Nashville. Parts of the drive were beautiful. We drove through horse country, past million dollar homes and acres of fenced land. Even the road through the area was pretty…manicured lawn center divider with a hand-built stone fence.  We eventually found our way onto the Bluegrass Highway and the Kentucky Bourbon Trail.  There were signs for seven distilleries, so we picked Makers Mark which seemed to be on our way.  We drove down, around, under and over for miles before finally getting to Makers Mark.  The tour was worth the drive. We took the tour and learned about the location (it’s all in the limestone) and making bourbon. We sampled some of the mash and tasted the final product.  Ok, I admit it… I am not a bourbon drinker. The stuff tasted nasty.

Becauseof our detours, the 6 hour trip to Nashville took 10 hours. We rested a little then we cabbed it to Second Avenue, a really happening spot downtown. There were bars, and restaurants, and shops. We had a great dinner and walked around for a while, but didn't stay long because we were basically wiped out from the drive.  It was a really a good day.

One more thing….Abraham Lincoln was born in Kentucky.  In the bourbon trail area there are signs for his birthplace, homestead, and first school. We were on a back road heading toward the highway after Makers Mark and saw a ranger station with this….

.....Abraham Lincoln's childhood homestead. We pulled over, took a picture, and kept on rolling.