Day 6 of Eastbound, with the Hammer Down … Not Really! – Mississippi to Alabama

The Starkville KOA is located on the sandy shores of Oktibbeha County Lake, it is a 513-acres. It is the largest state fishing lake in North Region, was first opened in 1967. It is one of the 19 state fishing lakes operated
by the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks. 


Known for its good population of catfish and largemouth bass, the lake also offers fine crappie and bream fishing. The lake is stocked with the following species: Largemouth Bass,
Crappie, Bluegill, Redear, Channel Catfish, Flathead Catfish and Blue Catfish. Flathead and channel catfish in the 30-pound range are not uncommon. Don’t expect to get many largemouth bass bites, but the ones that do will be good ones.

Our campsite had a great view of the lake, the only issue was .... there was no water in the lake. The reason for no water is a portion of Oktibbeha County Lake's levee shows signs of excessive failures and requires major repairs. To fully understand the scope of the problem, they had to lower the lake's water level for a closer inspection. That is where we are now, the water levels are low enough now to access the levee.

The rally sad part of all of this, is there is a Wet & Wild Water Park at the KOA. Since there is no water, there is no water park. I am sure that is a big loss for their summertime revenue.






















One last picture of the "missing" lake. We turned back onto US 82 East. We should be on this route all day today and most of tomorrow.

Mississippi State University Research Farm is part of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. They offer several academic programs, including Plant and Soil Sciences offering programs in agronomy, horticulture, environmental science, and weed science. Our programs integrate teaching, research, and extension missions to find answer to some of the major issues facing agriculture today.

We saw several business named, The Golden Triangle Hospital, Golden Triangle Railroad... Why is this area called the Golden Triangle? The Golden Triangle references an area in Mississippi encompassing Columbus, Starkville and West Point. The triangle boasts a 15-mile radius that includes three distinct communities, offering a cumulative area of prime development potential. The "triangle" has a population of more than 128,000 and is formed by the three cities and their respective counties (Lowndes, Oktibbeha, and Clay). The term was created to encourage greater economic ties and development among the three cities and counties. The three cities share Golden Triangle Regional Airport, which is the third largest in the state. This area has been considered part of Mississippi's Black Belt region, and its economy was largely based on cotton production well into the 20th century. 

Columbus, Mississippi, is a noteworthy heritage destination on the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway. With three National Register Districts, the city boasts nearly 700 nationally significant properties and one of the largest collections of 19th century homes in Mississippi. It is also noted as the birthplace of renowned playwright Tennessee Williams. The modern city traces its history to 1810, when Choctaw interpreter John Pitchlynn established a home four miles from what is now Columbus. Pitchlynn's farm on Plymouth Bluff was fortified during the Creek War of 1813-1814 and became an important strong point on the Choctaw frontier.

One of the many factors that makes Columbus unique is its long-standing commitment to education for women. The Columbus Female Institute was founded there in 1847. One of the city's best known ghost stories originates from this time. Callaway Hall at Mississippi University for Women was one of the original buildings of the Columbus Female Institute. It served as a hospital during the Civil War and is supposed to be haunted by the ghost of a nurse known only as Mary. It is said that she committed suicide by leaping from an upper floor after the death of a soldier with whom she had fallen in love. In 1884, the school that eventually became the Mississippi University for Women was chartered in Columbus. The city offered up the buildings of the defunct Columbus Female Institute. The "W" is the oldest public university in America founded for women. The university has admitted men since 1982 but still focuses heavily on leadership opportunities and professional development for women. Among is best known former students was famed novelist Eudora Welty who attended from 1925-1927. She won the Pulitzer Prize for The Optimist's Daughter.

Columbus, in fact, has ties to two Pulitzer Award winning writers. Thomas Lanier Williams III was born there on March 26, 1911. Under the name Tennessee Williams he became a world renowned playwright and received Pulitzer Prizes for "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" and "A Streetcar Named Desire." Williams' maternal grandfather, Walter Dakin, was an Episcopal priest and the future writer was born in what was then the rectory for St. Paul's Episcopal Church. Dakin baptised his grandson at St. Paul's and both structures have a strong association with Williams. The Tennessee Williams Birthplace has been restored to its 1911 appearance and now serves as a welcome center for the City of Columbus. 

We crossed from Mississippi into Alabama with a little bit more sunshine and a few less clouds. In 2003, forty-one years after Lynyrd Skynrd recorded "Sweet Home Alabama," the state began adding the slogan for signs welcoming visitors at the state lines. Alabama had previously used the song title on state license plates and in tourism promotions. The song is recognized all over the world and the phrase "Sweet Home Alabama" makes people happy.

The location of the City of Tuscaloosa is on the "Fall Line" of the Black Warrior River, the location has been well known to the various Indian tribes whose shifting fortunes brought them to West Alabama. The river shoals at Tuscaloosa represented the southernmost site on the river which could be forded under most conditions. Inevitably, a network of Indian trails converged upon the place, the same network which, in the first years of the 19th Century began to lead a few intrepid white frontiersmen to the area. In honor of the legendary "Black Warrior", a great chief who had had a fateful encounter with explorer Hernando DeSoto centuries before somewhere in Southwest Alabama, the settlers named the place Tuscaloosa (from the Choctaw words "tushka" meaning warrior and "lusa" meaning black). 

The City of Tuscaloosa is one day older than the State of Alabama. In 1831, the University of Alabama was established. Establishment of the Bryce State Hospital for the Insane in Tuscaloosa in the 1850's helped restore the City's fortunes. During the Civil War, Tuscaloosa County furnished about 3,500 men to the Confederate armies. During the last weeks of the War, a Federal raiding party burned the campus of the University. Tuscaloosa shared fully in the South's economic sufferings which followed the defeat. By the advent of the 20th Century, the growth of the University of Alabama and a strong national economy fueled a steady growth in Tuscaloosa which continued unabated for 100 years.

We were driving through Tuscaloosa looking for a place to pull off, on the map I found University Mall, which looked like a good place. What we found at the mall was a bonus! A Veterans Memorial Park! It was developed as a memorial for all veterans of the United States Armed Forces and as a tribute to Northington General Army Hospital, one of the largest military hospitals in the world at the end of WWII. 

When the hospital closed, it was stipulated that the one-acre site could only be used as a shrine, a memorial to veterans or a denominational church. The Park was first dedicated in 1978 as a memorial for veterans of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps and Coast Guard. In 2002, surviving crew members of the USS Tuscaloosa held a joint reunion with their sister ship the USS Wichita. Starting in 2003 the Tuscaloosa Veterans Memorial Park Association has presented a Memorial Day service for those who sacrificed for our freedom, country and way of life. Today the Park serves as an invaluable patriotic reminder for our children and future generations.

Just before Centerville, we hit some rain with sun shining! It is very interesting, every time I see it!

Just after the rain, a guy pulled in front of us with a truck that looked like Charlie's truck in Florida. Except he had a rack of elk horns, and I am sure the head! Wow, that rack is big!

We passed the Tallledega Forest, to the south of our route. The Talladega National Forest offers a peaceful atmosphere that is filled in wild game, camping, and hiking utopias. The forest also features picturesque scenic waterfalls throughout its striking setting. The total Forest covers almost 400,000-acres. Before it was bought by the federal government in the 1930s, the area that comprises the Talladega was extensively logged and represented some of the most abused, eroded wastelands in all of Alabama. Pine forest regrowth now hosts a diverse eco-system. 

We passed by stand after stand selling Alabama Peaches. What is the deal with Alabama Peaches? Georgia's nickname may be the "Peach State" but Alabama peaches are some of the sweetest. And for all you peach lovers, the delicious fuzzy fruit is now in season. Farmers have just started picking their peaches. We will stop and pick some up tomorrow.

Just outside of Prattville, Alabama we arrived at Kountry Air RV Park. The "Mom" of the Mom & Pop operation met us at the office, got us checked in and led us to our site. It is an over-sized pull-thru at the back of the park, with a nice view of the park and the woods! It is our home for just one night! See you tomorrow in Georgia!