Starting the Natchez Trace

 Note: this is not a "live" blog -- we have been back from our adventure. 

Friday morning, we get up, get the free breakfast, load up Blackie. Our night at the Days Inn wasn’t bad, and we like being able to pull our bike right up to the door for easy loading (and less worry). But, it wasn’t great (Tony really hated the remote control and we really had a lack of towels, including a bathmat). We drove by some other options to consider next time, including the Grand Hotel on downtown. 

Blackberry belted in for the ride.

Off to the Natchez Trace we go!

And off we go to find the Natchez Trace Parkway – we want to go from start all of the way to finish. We get on the Trace and ride a few miles up it, stopping at The Old Trace (https://www.natcheztracetravel.com/natchez-trace-mississippi/lorman-natchez-ms/176-old-trace-exhibit-shelter.html ). Doesn’t look like much but a path. 

Then off we go.

I love maps and this map I have of the Natchez Trace is awesome (and super long!). It has all of the markers marked – but I have to admit that I didn’t really pre study where we might want to stop along the way. And realized that each stop adds time. On day 1 we have about 260 miles on the Trace (almost 7 folds of a 12-panel map) – at 50 miles an hour, that takes some time.

Full map!

The road is nice and smooth – and the overpasses/bridges don’t have those big bumps that we’re used to in Texas). And we really have it to ourselves. There are lots of forests, then cotton fields, hay fields. Definitely not many turnoffs. At mile marker 90, we stop and gas up in Clinton (off of 20), and grab snacks for a “picnic” – just doesn’t look like many food stops until we get to Tupelo! Not that gas station food is a great picnic (also, they were out of mustard – waiting on the truck). After Clinton, we go through Jackson and the traffic picks up (think some people use the Trace as a shortcut) – also more bike bikers. We stop at an overlook before heading around the Ross R. Barnett Reservoir.

Cool fences

Reservoir

Reservoir

Reservoir

Cotton fields!

More cotton!

Our next stop is French Camp – (https://www.natcheztracetravel.com/natchez-trace-mississippi/french-camp-ms/159-french-camp.html ) about 10 miles before the stop I was planning, Jeff Busby. One thing about the Trace – there aren’t a lot of stops with rest rooms. And some of them are closed. Jeff Busby, according to my map, looked like a “big deal.” But French Camp was really cool. Old houses, “camp stuff.” Looked like they had a festival set up in the town, the October Fall Festival. We had a picnic lunch with our gas station pretzels. 

Picnic time

Me, studying the map, of course

We then headed out and stopped at Jeff Busby for the rest room.

We get to Tupelo but stop just north at the Visitors Center. We needed a patch and not sure what their hours are so decided to do before heading to the hotel. We get a patch (and I pick up another copy of my cool map) – and then talking to the nice people there, find out about the Natchez Trace detour we’ll have tomorrow. Takes us off the Trace (they say it’s marked the whole way), go about 30 miles, then get on 72 and go another 25 miles, then jog back over to the Trace, right before we cross the Tennessee River). Since I like maps, I also took pictures of their detour maps.

Then over to the Hotel Tupelo. This place is really new (I think only a year) and much “swankier” than Days Inn – but no view from our room. 

There’s another couple on a Harley who park next to our bike (we get to keep it out front). We shower and then go across the street to Mugshots for burgers. 

Our opinion: not nearly as good as Bellmont. They pride themselves on their buns – but they were really too sweet considering the burgers were pretty bland. But, it was next door. Then to sleep before our ride in the morning to Franklin.