Blogs from Natchez Trace, Mississippi, United States, North America

This is day 3 & 4 of my 4 day trip to see the Natchez Trace on my 883 Sportster. Saturday, 11 April 2009 Well the original plan had me in Paducah KY tonight and that is where I am. Tomorrow is going to be a burger. KC high is supposed to be 48F. Its supposed to be in the 41F here in Paducah in the morning and similar all the way to KC.. It is going to suck riding that 400+ miles home tomorrow. I hate cold. I am in another $50 motel, the Paducah Inn. The last 3 nights all I have done is hmmhaw about the rate and the next words out of their mouths is a rate break. Todays food was under $7. I usually only eat one meal, if I get ... read more

We spent a leisurely morning and left the RV park around 11:00. Jodie and Nancy spent a half hour on the phone going over the mail. We saw our first dead armadillo by the roadside. Will we ever see a live one? A highway sign for an upcoming rest area said, "Security Provided". We decided we didn't need to stop.We passed through Jackson, the state capital. According to the guidebook, it was nicknamed Chimneyville, after Sherman burned the town in July, 1863. There were beautiful, new interchanges in Jackson, but the highway was old, rough, and bouncy. We were sure everything in the trailer would have fallen out of the cupboards and be all jumbled up on the floor. Shortly after Jackson, we got onto the Natchez Trace Parkway. We just happened to have brought along ... read more

After being bitten hard by spring fever and my recent camping trip in the Tombigbee National Forest, I decided to go for a day hike after work. I finally settled on Owens Creek Falls which is at mile marker on the Natchez Trace Parkway. ... read more

On my 39th birthday, Karen, Michael and I drove down Natchez Trace to Tupelo, Mississippi. In the 1800s, men walked up this trail after sailing flatboats down the Mississippi River. Along the Trace, we saw Indian Mounds and the burial site of Meriwether Lewis, the great trailblazer. Once in Tupelo, we visited Elvis Presley's birthplace. Natchez Trace is a project of the National Park Service and is kept free of commercialism. It makes for a pleasant drive. The trip reminded me of other excursions. The Land Between the Lakes is run by Tennessee Valley Authority. The two lakes are Kentucky Lake and Lake Barkley, formed by the damming of the Tennessee and Cumberland Rivers. Both rivers dump into the Ohio. Cairo, Illinois is where the Ohio meets the Mississippi. Down around this area, we saw an ... read more

We followed the Great River Road all the way down into Louisiana, stopping at a few interesting (and sometimes peculiar) sights. First, Onward, Mississippi. Onward is a corner store. We actually missed it and had to turn around. There's nothing remarkable on the inside: just chips, candy, beer and the like. But, Onward has a claim to fame. It was here that the story originated of the Teddy Bear. It is fabled that Teddy Roosevelt was hunting here when his hunting party came upon a baby bear. The guide lassooed the bear, but Roosevelt declined on shooting it. The party set him free, and Rossevelt's attidtude toward the bear caused a great many cartoons to be printed about it. Then a stuffed animal company wrote to the president requesting that they be able to name their ... read more

After completing the Natchez Trace Parkway, we decided to spend the evening in Natchez, Mississippi. Natchez is a quaint little town located on the Mississippi River. The town is located on the top of a hill overlooking the river so you have an excellent view. It is a very small town as the pictures will show, however it does have a riverboat casino. The casino seems to be the thing to do in Natchez. We are not much into gambling, so we decided to leave the gambling for when we reached Vegas and stuck with a nice dinner overlooking the river. Natchez is a nice town, however we would only recommend spending a day or two there. ... read more