BIKING THE NATCHEZ TRACE PARKWAY 

From May 11 to 19, 2009, I biked the Natchez Trace Parkway (NTP) from just south of Nashville, Tennessee, through the north-west corner of Alabama, and mostly in Mississippi,  USA. The Parkway is 442 miles (700 km) long but I cut a few corners (54 miles) when going into towns and when avoiding busy traffic.
  Accommodations and shops near the NTP are few and far between, so I was glad to have Julie Jang to be the driver for my "sag wagon" (support vehicle).
          icons show where we stayed at night, with two nights at Starkville near the halfway point.
  Here are pictures from our tour. Put the cursor over a thumbnail to see its caption, click the thumbnail to see a larger picture, and hit Back on your browser to return to this page. Thumbnails with an orange - green border are video clips.
 

Natchez Trace Parkway map from National Park Service Video clip of entry to NTP Video clip of Julie and the sag wagon Video clip of turning off the NTP to Collinwood Video clip of preparing to ride in the rain, with help from above Video clip of sponsors' messages at Owens Creek Readying the tour bike at the start of the NTP tour Double arch bridge near northern terminus of NTP   Box turtle rescued from the NTP Julie making a video record of our NTP tour Indian burial mound at Bear Creek on the NTP Description of Bear Creek Mound  A snapping turtle that we rescued from the roadway on the NTP Julie guards the Natchez Trace At State Line we cross from Tennessee to Alabama Bill has just crossed the state line from Alabama to Mississippi The eight Pharr Mounds are about 1800 years old Sign at Pharr Mounds describes their significance Sign at TwentyMile Bottom explains the difficulties of the Natchez Trace Assembly of God church beside Elvis' childhood home Childhood home of Elvis Presley in Tupelo  Sign describing Elvis' connection to the blues, beside his childhood home Halfway down the Natchez Trace Parkway Typical landscape along the Natchez Trace Parkway French Camp post office, closed in 1964 French Camp Academy class making a quilt  Main house at French Camp Academy Julie taking a nap at French Camp Bill is smoking along the NTP Yockanookany rest stop is near the river to the north east A field of poppies along the NTP Natchez Trace is often near the Parkway and is sunken from much use Bill refuels for the next stage on the NTP Sign explaining the Natchez Trace Getting ready for the last stage of the NTP End of the road on the Natchez Trace Parkway The Daughters of the American Revolution campaigned for building the Natchez Trace Parkway Mississippi River bridge at Vidalia, Louisiana Bill on the Natchez Bluffs with Mississippi River behind Julie on the Mississippi River bluffs at Natchez
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