This entry is for Friday, 20 May 2011:
Today's ride was over about 285 miles of the Natchez Trace. This was an easy and relaxing ride compared to some of the previous days. Temps were in the 60s and it was overcast in the AM getting up into the high 80s and sunny in the PM with high humidity throughout the day. We did get a few sprinkles in the AM but not enough to require rain gear.
The original Natchez Trace was the pathway the "Kaintucks" used to return home to the Ohio and Mississippi River valleys after transporting their goods to market in Natchez or New Orleans via flat bottom boats in the early 1800s. Their goods included agricultural products, coal, and livestock to name a few.During this time and way prior to that Native Americans from the Choctaw and Chickasaw Tribes occupied the land adjacent to the trace.
Today, the Natchez Trace is a 444-mile paved parkway that extends from Natchez, MS to just south of Nashville, TN. Today's trace follows portions of the original trace pathway. This parkway is under the management of the National Parks Service and has numerous historical markers/points of interest and other points of interest marked along the parkway. I have posted a few photos of some stops we made today. They include:
Emerald Mound - 2nd largest Native American burial mound in the US
Buried Trace - section of the original trace
Cypress Swamp
Dean Stand Site - served as inn for travelers from 1820 - 1830s
The ride itself today was easy and relaxing. The speed limit is 50 mph and there is very little traffic along the parkway and no commercial vehicles are allowed. Riding the trace is like riding over a private road through the woods. The trace is tree-lined and frequently has a tree canopy as you can see in the posted photos.
We encountered two sections along the trace that were clearly hit by recent tornadoes. Many trees have been uprooted and/or had their tops sheared off in the wind. This occurred over about 15 - 2o miles of the parkway, located about 60 miles south of Tupelo.
Tomorrow, we will do more of the trace to the north before departing it to venture into Tennessee tomorrow.
The land seems pretty flat around there, and the Cypress Swamp seems gross!
ReplyDeleteThe terrain along the "trace" was generally wooded rolling hills with some flat farm field areas. The Cypress Swamp was interesting to me because we do not have any in New England.
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