Month: April 2025

Natchez Trace Tour Day 2: Natchez to Rocky Springs Campground (April 8)

After a hotel breakfast we loaded our non-biking gear into the van, gathered our lunch and snacks , and pedaled a mile and a half though Natchez to the start of the Trace.

It was chilly and I wore multiple layers. I was overdressed and stopped three times in the first two hours to de-layer.

The road surface on the Natchez Trace Highway is perfect. The terrain went from level to gentle up- and down-slopes.

After 13 miles we left the Trace for a mile to check out Emerald Mound, the second largest Indian mound in the country dating from 1300 to 1600. It features two tiers and is enormous.

The lower portion and right half of Emerald Mound

Back on the Trace we cruised along for another 20 miles. There we left the Trace to check out Windsor Ruins. These columns are what remains of a massive plantation house that burned to the ground in 1890 when a party guest dropped a lit cigarette.

Windsor Ruins
In Port Gibson, we briefly rode on Highway 61, the famous Blues Highway

This side trip was hillier and bumpier than the main route. We were ducking wind until the descent into Port Gibson where we raided a small grocery store (that was once a Piggly Wiggly).

After snacks and drinks we continued on for another 17 miles to Rocky Springs campground. We were expecting pit toilets but were happy to see actual restrooms (with no showers and no potable water).

We’ve been stopping at nearly every historical sign, most of which seem to describe Grant’s grind toward nearby Vicksburg.

Dinner was a feast cooked by Jeff and Beth Ann our tour leaders. No complaints from my tummy.

I neglected to mention The Mule hit 79,000 miles recently.

The Mule Abides

Miles today: 73.5 Tour miles: 86.5

Natchez Trace Tour: No Trace, Just Natchez

Today began with the entire 15-person tour group assembled after a pretty decent hotel breakfast. Tour co-leader Jeff climbed atop the mega-van and loaded all 15 bikes without injury to anyone or anything. Pretty impressive. Meanwhile Beth Ann loaded the trailer with our gear. I worried that I had over done the gear thing but a few others had even more stuff.

We didn’t lose a single bike.

We piled into the van and Jeff drove us two hours south to Natchez. I wore an N 95 mask and had a pretty good headache when we arrived at the hotel. We put our gear in our rooms and met at the van. Jeff expertly unloaded the bikes and Beth Ann set up a mini-deli where we made sammies and grabbed snacks.

After that I headed out on a 13-mile ride around Natchez. It was chill, literally and figuratively. I wore all the things.

During the ride I was chased briefly by a ferocious dog. This chihuahua gave chase but stopped at the first speed bump.

Natchez is your basic southern town; think Mayberry but poor. I stopped at the Melrose estate with its Greek Revival mansion; the Spanish moss on the trees was more interesting to me. Another stop was the Grand Village of the Natchez Indians, which had three burial mounds. Interesting but kind of underwhelming . The best stop was atop the bluffs overlooking the Mississippi.

Spanish moss with Melrose in the distance
Looking up the Mississippi

After the ride we had a couple of organizing meetings and some dinner in the hotel lobby. I must say the tour leaders seem to have their act together which is a big relief.

Tomorrow we start the tour on the Natchez Trace in earnest; a 60+ mile day to a primitive campsite. There is an optional side trip to the ruins of a plantation but I’m going to stick to the main route.

The weather forecast is about as good as it gets. Fingers crossed.

Miles today and tour miles: 13

Natchez Trace Tour: Getting More There

Despite its outrageous price tag, last night’s hotel was meh. Storms raged outside all last night and into the morning. I left at 8:30 with my bike sure to get a good washing.

Five mikes into the drive the interstate I was on was closed because of a crash. I followed dozens of cars as they bailed out down (off) an on-ramp.

The storm continued its rage but the road wasn’t flooded so I made good time. There were several signs of tire tracks where vehicles had left the roadway.

The highways here are in tough shape. For some reason there were cars parked every so often on the side of the road, as if the drivers had run out of gas. I’ve never seen so many tire treads littering a highway as I have these last two days.

I made it to the hotel in Ridgeland outside Jackson by 1 pm. I was allowed to check in early. My room is very nice; twice as nice as last night’s at half the price. Go figure.

I reconfigured my baggage for tomorrow’s van ride to Natchez. Then I went out to lunch at a pretty decent eatery nearby.

Back at the hotel I did some back exercises, showered, and went to the lobby to watch the UConn women trounce South Carolina.

I dropped some dirty clothes in the car and saw our group leaders in the parking lot. One was discussing the closure of a side path on the Trace nearby. I keep hearing how dangerous the road is in the immediate area and all I can think of is “Hold my beer.”

Some of the tour group are heading out for dinner at 7-ish. I’ll probably join them unless my nap gets the better of me.

It’s chilly here but by tomorrow afternoon we expect near perfect weather for riding.

I’m very happy to be out of the car.

Natchez Trace Tour: Getting There

I left home at 8 a.m. and arrived in Titusville, Alabama, just east of Birmingham, at nightfall. Traffic was mercifully light with only a couple of slowdowns in eastern Tennessee.

My bike rack made buzzing noises the whole way but I fought back with loud music. I’m deaf now but them’s the breaks.

I took a bio break at a truck stop and checked hotel prices in Birmingham. They’re very high. So I grabbed a truck stop salad to save some money on dinner and drove until I saw a decent hotel. They gave me a 10% discount which was more than offset by over $40 in taxes. I kid you not.

The room is nice and the place is quiet. Tonight there are raging storms about 300 miles west of here. Some will pass through overnight. I expect to drive in heavy rain for 4 or 5 hours tomorrow. At least my bike will be clean.

Time to shower.

Come On Baby, Drive South

My training taper is done. I did 53 miles on Monday then 20, 30, 28, and 30. The last 30 miler was today. I slept not a wink last night and wondered if I was a little insane for riding to Friday Coffee Club. It was unbelievably 70+ degrees when I stepped outside to start the ride. There were a couple of minutes of light rain about halfway to DC but otherwise the conditions could not have been better.

The ride home featured a mild tailwind which was just what my groggy head needed. I had a shower and a snack then hit the sofa for a much needed two-hour snooze. (Tonight I am taking Gabapentin to make sure I am rested tomorrow.)

We were instructed to bring only two bags for the organizers to transport. I was also told that I could not leave my pannier on my bike for the shuttle on Monday from Jackson to Natchez. There was no way I could pack the pannier in either of my two bags. Then I got an idea…

After some of my tours, I shipped my bike home using a bike shop at my destination and Bike Flights, a shipping service. My gear had to either get checked at the airport or go on a train. The easiest way to do this and minimize baggage charges was to buy a cheap duffle bag at the destination city and put all my on-bike stuff in it.

When I started packing for this trip, I could only find one duffle bag. I am certain that I have at least four, one from each tour to the west coast and another from my trip to Key West. After some groping around in a closet, I found another duffle. In about ten minutes I had re-organized my luggage. Duffel number one contains my off-bike gear. Duffel number two contains camping gear and my pannier. When we get to Natchez, I will put my rain gear, a third bottle (insulated), and a few small items in the pannier. There are three nights when we stay indoors, so I won’t need to open the camping duffel which will simplify things. I have a third small duffel that contains clothing for the trip home. It will stay in my car.

The Day One shuttle from Jackson to Natchez involves putting our bikes on the roof of the van and putting our luggage in a trailer. The other day, one of the trip leaders said we should bring a small backpack for this two-hour drive and for riding around Natchez. Um, what happened to the two-bag rule? Yeah, well..

I am not bringing a back pack. My handlebar bag, cane, water bottle and helmet won’t fit so I’ll likely use a tall kitchen garbage bag instead.

After re-jiggering my baggage, I put everything but my off-bike bag in the car and attached the trunk rack. In the morning I’ll put my small toiletry and medicine bags in the remaining duffel, drop the Mule on the rack, and take off for points south. The drive will take 15 hours so I am planning on staying in Chattanooga (9 hours away) or Birmingham, 11 hours away. I gain an hour on the way so I can easily make Jackson on Sunday in time for check in.

As for weather conditions for the ride, it looks like we are in luck. There is likely to be some flooding of the Mississippi when we get to Natchez but the tour heads northeast, away from the river. Prevailing winds will be out of the south for five of the seven days including the two hardest days at the end of the ride. No rain is forecast for the entire week. We will deal with cold temperatures (40s) on our first couple of days of riding, after that temperatures will rise from mid-50s to mid-80s. That’s about as good as it gets!

13 hours to lift off….