NatchezTrace

 Thursday  We had a busy last day seeing the sights in and around Nashville.  Starting in Franklin for 100 layer donuts at Five Daughter's Bakery.  We tried pumpkin spice and maple, both were delicious.  The bakery is located at the Factory Mall and is across from the Fork of the South store.  We picked up the extra Aventon battery which was mailed there.  We also found some unique gifts. A quick tour of Nashville included the Parthenon, a replica of the Greek Parthenon built for the Tennessee centennial.  On for a walk of lower Broadway which was hopping.  We walked to the river and then by the Ryman Auditorium.  We ordered a take out lunch at Jack's and headed to the Hermitage, the home of Andrew Jackson.  We ate our lunch at the picnic table and headed in for our tour of the mansion..   The home still has many of the furnishings dating back to Andrew Jackson's time.  The General and his wife, Rachel, are both burie...

 Our last day of biking the Trace started with breakfast by Bobbye at the Isabella B&B in Port Gibson, MS.  Our traditional Southern breakfast included scrambled eggs, grits, bacon & toast.  Bobbye shared with us the history of the house which she named for it's long time resident, Isabella.   Bobbye, our hostess Isabella Dining Room Before getting on the Trace we stopped at the Windsor ruins, a plantation home which survived the Civil War but burned in 1890.  Only the columns and iron work remain.  Bennie flew the drone before we headed for the 30 mile marker on the Trace.  We had a few sprinkles but it was mostly a rain free ride.  We stopped at Mount Locust for snacks.  This home is one of the oldest buildings in the south and the first stand on the Trace and now the only one remaining.  Most travelers would make it this far on their trip home on the Natchez Trace, about 17.5 miles from the Mississippi River in Natchez. D...

 Tuesday October 26 - Day 6 Our day started with a lovely breakfast in the Fairview dining room.  Phil drove us to Vicksburg where we toured the National Military Park.  The surrender of Vicksburg was a major turning point in the Civil War but it came at a high cost as many Yankee and Confederate soldiers lost their lives. Following our visit we started our ride just south of Clinton at the 86 mile maker.  We had lunch at Rocky Springs and then rode another 2.5 miles so that the total for the trek is now 270 Miles [note that 270 is what Ann's odometer reads...not the 268.5 noted below, which doesn't account for some of the stops/side trips we did along the way] Phil then drove us to Port Gibson (which is not a port) for our overnight stay at the Isabella B&B.  After checking in and meeting our hostess, Bobbie, we headed to dinner at The Camp in Natchez under the hill to watch the sunset.   Natchez was the starting point for many travelers back to t...

 Day 5 - Monday October 26 After another hearty southern breakfast at French Camp Bed & Breakfast we were able to get right back on the Trace.  Although the sky looked threatening we never had any rain.  We stopped at the visitor center at Kosciusko.  The greeter there lost her husband in a biking accident on the Trace and is now a big safety advocate for bikers.  We all had on our new bright green Natchez Trace shirts and she complemented us on our good visibility.   We ended our 50 mile ride at Yockanookany and stopped briefly at the Pearl River.  Next sop was the Cyprus Swamp with a short hike.  We did spot an alligator as Phil had predicted. Gator in the Cypress Swamps The Fairview in Jackson provided our accommodations for the night.  After cleaning up we had a cocktail in our room before heading to dinner at the Babalu.  The guacamole was made tableside and we had a variety of tacos.  We then headed back tot he Fairview an...

 Sunday - October 24 - Day 4 Jane prepared an elaborate breakfast including sausage, egg casserole, biscuits, stewed apples, cheese grits and four types of homemade jams.  We enjoyed talking with both Jane and her husband, Toby, who is a direct descendent of Patrick Henry and a retired Social Security judge. After our filling breakfast we headed back to the Trace to start our ride at Witch Dance Milepost 233 (these mileposts are distances from Natchez, MS).  We rode 52 miles ending at Historic French Camp which is right on the Trace. We stopped at the "Old Trace" to check out the historic sunken trail.  Ellen and Ann left the Trace for a short ride to a gas station for a restroom break. We had lunch at the Busby campground followed by a 13 mile end to our ride.  Unfortunately the Caffe at French Camp is closed on Sunday, so Phil drove us to Starkville, the home of Mississippi State, for dinner at Harvey's.   After an enjoyable meal, we returned to Fren...

 Saturday October 23 - Freedom Hills Overlook to Pharr Mounds After another hearty breakfast we started out day at "The Wall", a 30 year project of the descendent of a native American healer who was on the Trail of Tears to Oklahoma but returned to Tennessee on her own.  In her honor the wall was laid one stone at a time and is now an immense memorial. Philip advanced us to the Freedom Hills to start our ride down hill rather than a big up.  We walked up to the viewpoint and then mounted our bikes.  We ended a 30 mile leg at Pharr Mounds, a Chickasaw burial grounds.  Along the way we crossed the Alabama-Mississippi state line and crossed over the Tenn-Tom Canal which connects the Tennessee and Tombigbee Rivers.  We had lunch at the mounds and Bennie flew the drone (illegally, we think).   The road resurfacing project is now at Tupelo so Phil drove us to the visitor center where we watched the Natchez Trace National Park video and bought matching b...

 Thursday October 21 st Our ride started with a visit to the famous Lovelace Café.   There was a festival going on, so we opted for take out.   We took our eggs, grits, fried chicken, country ham and homemade jams to our starting point, about 7 miles from the northern terminus of the Trace.   There were no picnic tables, so Philip set up a folding table and chairs. After our filling breakfast we started our ride at milepost 437 about 11:30am.   Philip drove ahead and we stopped every 10-15 miles for snacks, lunch and water refills.   The terrain is hilly and we crossed the Tennessee Divide.   Rain at the top goes to the Duck and Tennessee River on one side and to the Cumberland River on the other.   It is a north/south divide.   This point was known as the beginning of the wilderness as it was the boundary of the Chickasaw Nation. About 29 miles into the ride, Ellen switched to the electric Aventon.   Ann was on an electric bike the ...