NatchezTrace

 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 ...

Wednesday – October 20 Philip came out to assemble the new Aventon electric bike.   It took him about an hour and all the pieces were intact.   We also met the owner of the Bed and Breakfast, Steve, who lives in the adjacent home.   The 2 cottages were initially built to house family members as their place only had one bedroom.   It was a family member who encouraged them to advertise with AirBnB.   The cottages offer a lovely retreat near Franklin, TN.   Unfortunately Steve’s wife, Stephanie, was off on a business trip during our stay. We planned a tour of the Hermitage, home of Andrew Jackson, as his life story is tied to the Trace but it was closed.    We didn’t discover this until we drove there (about an hour drive).    On the way home we stopped at the bike shop for tail lights recommended by Philip. Ellen and Tom arrived at the South of the Fork before we returned.   Steve invited us over for pre-dinner drinks.   He ha...

Monday - Day 7 Back on the road headed for Tupelo.  We only had to make one stop to recharge in Jackson, MS. We spotted this wrapped and painted Model X at the Jackson, MS supercharger.  Turns out the group was on a 50 state road trip (they obviously flew to Alaska and Hawaii) this car and a similarly decorated Lamborghini SUV ($300K).  They are part of a pharmaceutical think tank/advisory group.   You can follow their progress here: https://www.pharmasalmanac.com/the-road-to-50-states.  I did a short interview with them.  We'll send you the link to the video if I make the daily report. Note above all the charging stations are between the back of the cars....giving more space between cars and no backing in. Nathan had recommended the Neon Pig for supper so we headed there for a smash burger, fish taco and a beer.  Our meal lived up to Nathan's recommendation.   Tuesday Oct 19 - Day 8 We had a few hours before heading to Franklin/Nas...