The Natchez Trace Parkway
The Natchez Trace Parkway, operated by the National Park Service, is a roadway that winds from Nashville, TN to Natchez, MS. Designed for passenger cars only, with limited access and no billboards, it is intoxicatingly beautiful!
It follows the route of the historical Natchez Trace - a trail used by both Indians and then settlers moving between Nashville and New Orleans, at the time.
A friend and former colleague of mine, Ron, introduced me to the Natchez Trace Trail when we worked together. He told me his trip south to New Orleans along the Trace was the trip of a lifetime. I can well believe it! Mary
From Nashville TN to the Tennessee Border: April 2021
Originally The Natchez Trace was a road that followed an old game trail, adapted by the migrating native peoples into a larger “road” or trail that meandered a bit, but eventually got a traveler from New Orleans LA to Nashville, TN. Andrew Jackson famously, (and by that I mean there is a plaque to the man and his forces every 10 miles or so) used the trace to save New Orleans and fight in the War of 1812. If you had never heard of Andrew Jackson you will know allllll about him when you finish the trace. It was the main trading route after the river systems. It went from a walking trail to a wagon road, to a paved road fairly quickly. Each improvement abandoned some of the old trace to make it straighter and more efficient, until only about 65% of the original trace was in use. As late as 1930’s the roadway was still in use as a major highway, but the construction of a different highway began to make it obsolete. In 1938 the US government created the parkway from that road further altering it to fit surrounding land use, ownership and efficiency. It is now a National Park roadway.
The designers of this parkway, either accidentally or on purpose managed to capture the heart of this countryside. It’s woods, bluffs, rivers, meadows, and lakes are laid out before the driver. Mile after mile the countryside changes up to surprise you again with its beauty. There are multiple stopping points along the parkway. Some are just overlooks. Others are the start of hiking trails. Some of those hiking trails are bits and pieces of the original trace. Some stops are actually old buildings that functioned as inns or rests. Each one is more splendid than the last. We drove all afternoon and never got bored. It’s a rare thing to be gifted so much beauty! I thank all the people who decided to make this a parkway and did such a good job creating the stops. We urge the reader to experience the Natchez Trace Parkway. On this trip. We only made it to the TN border. In June we will be exploring the parkway from Natchez to Jackson Ms. We will report back in on that segment of our journey. Go and have fun!
THESE ARE PHOTOS FROM THE TENNESSEE NATCHEZ TRACE
