Top of the Trace: The Natchez Trace Parkway - Tennessee and Alabama

Travel back in time on the 444-mile Natchez Trace Parkway. This All-American Road travels from Natchez, Mississippi, to Nashville, Tennessee, and clips the northwestern corner of Alabama along the way.

The Parkway was a long time coming; it officially opened in 2005 after being under construction and planning for 67 years! President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Natchez Trace Parkway into law on May 18, 1938, establishing it as a unit of the National Park System and officially protecting this historically significant highway of the Old Southwest. Seven segments of the Old Trace are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

This scenic drive closely follows and commemorates the historic Old Natchez Trace, jam-packed with over 10,000 years of history! Along the way, you can hike preserved sections of the Old Trace, read historical markers telling the stories of the people back in the day, see historical buildings, Indian ceremonial and burial mounds, and breathtaking scenic overlooks; there are rivers, lakes, swamps, picnic areas, hiking trails, and campgrounds. It’s not a road you can drive in a day or even a week if you wish to see it all. This is a pleasant, leisurely drive through beautiful country with a maximum speed limit of 50mph. Relax, take your time, and enjoy the drive.

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A Brief History of the Natchez Trace

The Trace began as a series of random Indian trails connecting the Natchez, Mississippi, area to what would eventually become Nashville, Tennessee. Animals created the first corridor traveling from the Mississippi River to the salt licks in the Nashville area. When the Indians came along, they followed these same trails when hunting those animals for food.

By the early 1800s, these trails had evolved into America’s first National Road, linking what were now two bustling hubs of commerce. While it was easy to build makeshift flatboats to float goods down the Mississippi River, fighting the current coming back upstream was impossible. Keep in mind this was the era before steam power.  The boatmen, AKA Kaintucks' solution, was to scrap their boats in Natchez, sell the lumber and everything else, and walk home along the Trace. In addition to the Kaintucks' traffic, the road was used for troop movements, a postal service, and general travel between the two frontier towns.

By this point, these Indian paths were so highly traveled that deep gullies were worn into the ground. Some of this Sunken Trace is as much as 30 feet below the land around it! It was quite dangerous, fraught with bandits and angry Indians that preyed on the now wealthy boatmen flush from selling their goods. There were also mosquitoes, poison ivy, and poisonous snakes that thrived in the swampier areas. Those swamps made for deep mud that could be found along much of the trail. The Trace was by no means an easy road; it took these travelers about six weeks to travel on foot or four weeks by horse.

By the 1820s, the invention of the steamboat had come to the Mississippi River, and travel on the Natchez Trace had all but stopped. You would think that traffic would still be visible with this being a national road. However, newer and better roads were being built. By 1830, Jackson’s Military Road was completed between Columbia, Tennessee, and Madison, Louisiana. In 1840, Robinson Road, which ran between Columbus and Jackson, was in use. Eventually, the railroads came along, offering even better and faster alternatives than traveling the Natchez Trace. The Trace was all but forgotten.

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This is Part 1 of a 3 part post, you may also be interested in reading:

Part 2:  Middle of the Trace: The Natchez Trace Parkway - Top Half of Mississippi

Part 3:  Bottom of the Trace:  The Natchez Trace Parkway - Bottom Half of Mississippi

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This post starts in Nashville, TN, and covers the 136 miles through Tennessee and Alabama to the Mississippi State Line. The numbers I have listed are from the Parkway's milepost numbering system. Mileposts are found on the east side of the road. 

For your own trip planning, you can download Natchez Trace Maps here.  Copies of the Official Natchez Trace Map can easily be found along the Parkway.  Please don’t travel the Trace without one, you will miss so much.

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Tennessee "Must See" Trace Sites

 #442.1 - Beginning of the Trace

Birdsong Hollow Double Arch Bridge

The Loveless Cafe - 8400 Hwy 100, Nashville, TN
Located about 150 yards east of the northern terminus of the Natchez Trace Parkway, they have been in business for over 65 years. Excellent Southern cooking. They are known for their fried chicken and biscuits.

While worth a stop, this place is always busy! We arrived at 2 pm on an off-season Friday afternoon and had a 30-minute wait for seating.

​#438 - Double Arch Bridge

This double-arched bridge spans Birdsong Hollow on the Natchez Trace Parkway. It was completed in 1994 and won the Presidential Award for Design Excellence for innovative design the following​ year. This beautiful bridge is 1648 feet long and rises 155 feet above the valley floor.

The bridge can be viewed from two different locations. If heading south on the Trace, take the first road to the left after crossing the bridge to see it from below.

The General Lee - This iconic orange 1969 Dodge Charger is one of General Lees from the TV show The Dukes of Hazzard. It's authentic, we checked the hood for signs of scratches and dents from Luke's famous "hood slide." Estimates vary greatly as to how many Chargers were used during the six years of the series; it ranges somewhere between 256 to 321. On average, at least two General Lees were totaled per episode. There are only 18 still known in existence, Warner Brothers kept one and sold off 17 to private owners.

​Leiper's Fork

This beautiful little historic town is worth a quick side trip. Located just one mile east of the Parkway, the Old Trace went right through the middle of it. First settled in the late 1790s, this village is a National Historic District.

If you are a child of the late 70s to early 80s, you'll get a thrill out of the iconic car from The Dukes of Hazzard parked at the town limits.

​#411.8 - Water Valley Overlook

Water Valley Overlook

You can drive the short road up to the top of the ridge for this fantastic 180-degree view of Water Valley.

​#407.7 - Gordon House Historic Site & Duck River Ferry Site

The Gordon House

The Gordon House, built in 1817-18, is one of only two original buildings left on the Old Trace.

Located just inside the Chickasaw Territory in the early 1800s, John Gordon entered an agreement with Chickasaw Chief George Colbert to operate a trading post, rest, and ferry service across the Duck River at this location. While the War of 1812 and military expeditions kept him away from home most of the time, his wife, Dorothea, oversaw the construction of this house and ran the business. Gorden died shortly after that, but Dorothea and their 11 children continued to live here and run the ferry.

The trading post and rest were not in business for long, but the ferry ran for almost 100 years until a bridge was built in 1896.

#405.1 - Baker Bluff Overlook

Baker Bluff Overlook Panorama

​Baker Bluff provides the best scenic views of the rural Tennessee countryside along the Trace.

A sign here states it's only 1/3 of a mile to Jackson Falls. That's to the Falls trailhead. There are no scenic views along this short, hilly hike. Just drive it.

​ #404.7 - Jackson Falls

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​Not seen in the photo, Jackson Falls starts on the right side of the image as a long cascading slide. It then turns to flow down this beautifully sculpted rock formation, which ends in a clear pool at its base.  This is a 900-foot-long paved but steep trail.

Jackson Falls

 #401.4 - Tobacco Farm & Old Trace 

Old Tobacco Barn

Old Trace Drive View

It may have just been too early in the year, but it doesn’t look like the state of Tennessee is keeping this site up as an example of early 1900s tobacco farming. There was grass growing where a small plot of tobacco used to be. You may find a few dried tobacco leaves in the back corner of the barn.  They look like they have been hanging there
 for several years. I thought it was interesting that the inside of the barn still smells like tobacco.

The real gem here is a two-mile drivable section of the old Trace. This is a one-way drive heading north, so there is no worry about meeting another car on this narrow road.

​#391.9 - Fall Hollow

It's just a short walk to a deck where you can look down on the largest waterfall. From there, it's a rocky and steep descent​ to the bottom. Since it was raining and very muddy, we didn't hike down.

#385.9 - Meriwether Lewis

While traveling the Natchez Trace to Washington DC, Meriwether Lewis died at Grinder’s Stand on October 11, 1809. He was only 35. There is much speculation as to whether he was murdered or committed suicide.  Most historians believe it was suicide. Visit the monument erected in 1848 to memorialize the location where Meriwether Lewis is buried. The column, broken intentionally, symbolizes a life cut short.

Meriwether Lewis Memorial

You can hike along the Old Trace to the ruins of the inn.  It’s about 230 yards south of the monument. There is also a small museum here giving the history of that night.

#382.8 - Metal Ford

Buffalo River - Metal Ford

Metal Ford

​The Buffalo River was a river crossing for frontier travelers along the Old Natchez Trace. Except after heavy rains, it was almost always fordable, ranging from ankle to chest deep. Travelers called it Metal Ford because the smooth stone river bottom reminded them of the day's stone-surfaced or “metaled” road. A small section of the Old Trace follows the water here.

Steel’s Iron Works was located here in the 1820s. There once was a charcoal-burning furnace to manufacture pig iron. All that remains is the slag pile and a bit of the mill race to pull water for operating the air blasting machinery.

#375.8 - Old Trace Drive

A 2.5-mile drivable section of the original Natchez Trace, it is a one-way road headed north.

​#364.5 - Glenrock Branch

Glenrock Branch

Glenrock Branch is listed on the Parkway map as a picnic area and restroom. It is gorgeous here, so don’t unknowingly miss this spot. It’s a short but steep walk down to the creek, where the limestone bluffs bend around the picnic area, creating a natural amphitheater.

Glenrock Branch

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Alabama "Must See" Trace Sites

 #330.2 - Rock Springs

Colbert Creek Stepping Stones

I went back to visit Rock Springs since it had been raining heavily the first trip through.

It's a beautiful area! To get to the Rock Springs nature trail, you have to cross the stepping stones across Colbert Creek. As long as the water is low, it is a very easy crossing​. 

The nature trail winds you through a lovely woodland area and down to the small natural spring bubbling up from the ground.

The Stepping Stones to Rock Springs

Beavers have dammed up the creek, creating a wonderful wetland. Turtles were sunning on logs everywhere, and there were lots of butterflies and some good bird watching. They had already passed through since I didn’t see any hummingbirds. They say, "Hummingbirds are in abundance here in the spring." The hummingbirds pass back through again in the fall.

It will take you about 20 minutes to walk the loop unless you are like me and need to check out every critter you see.

Rock Springs Panorama

  #328.7 – Lauderdale

John Coffee Memorial Bridge

The Lauderdale picnic area offers a fantastic view of the John Coffee Memorial Bridge, which spans the Tennessee River​. Colbert Ferry is across the river, on the other side of the bridge. 

The bridge is named for General John Coffee, who fought in the Creek War of 1813-14 and was one of Andrew Jackson’s Generals at the Battle of New Orleans.

​#327.8 - Colbert Ferry & Stand

​There’s nothing left to see here, but the land is beautiful and worth a quick drive around. Here in the middle of Chickasaw Territory was the location of George Colbert’s Ferry and Inn from 1800 to 1819. Being half Chickasaw himself, Colbert had an agreement with the Chickasaw people to run his business here.  He fought with the Americas against the Shawnee and the Creeks and was a tribal emissary in charge of protecting the Chickasaw people’s rights. Colbert was quite wealthy and a shrewd negotiator.

Groundhog

Don't forget to look for wildlife, it's everywhere along the Trace!

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Trip map created using Wanderlog, for making itineraries on iOS and Android

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About the Photographer

Susan Rissi Tregoning is the 8th photographer in the past four generations of professional photographers in her family. After a long career as an art buyer and interior designer, she put her career on hold in 2006 to travel with her husband and his job. In the process, she found her “roots” again,  developing a photography obsession far beyond casual snapshots that evolved into a desire to capture every location and object as “art.” By meshing her two loves, photography and design, she has come full circle. Only now, she is creating art instead of just purchasing it.  ​

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Not every image makes it into my blog. If you enjoyed the photos in this article, please check out my Tennessee, Alabama &  Mississippi  Collections for more pictures of from the Natchez Trace, or visit my Gallery with over 4000 images of locations around the United States.

Water Valley Barn - Framed Art Print

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