What It's Like To Bike The Natchez Trace Parkway ...According To Cyclists Who've Biked It Before

Written by Lynnette on October 10, 2007 | Comments (3)

What follows is a growing collection of quotes from bicyclists who have pedaled their bikes along the Natchez Trace Parkway.

Hear firsthand from other who've been there, done that...

Don't forget to click on their names to go to each cyclist's own personal website.

Most likely, they offer more great information about biking on the Trace there.

Last Saturday I rode 75 miles on my bike, mostly hills on the Natchez Trace parkway - perhaps the most beautiful road in the world. When you get on it, it feels like you're in the middle of nowhere. The road curves and winds through the countryside until it ends up in Tupelo, Mississippi. On my way, I went across a bridge that was as narrow as a 2 lane road, but suspended several hundred feet in the air. As I rode close to the edge, it actually felt like I was flying."
-- James

"The 55 miles of the Natchez Trace was great and I had it almost to myself -- only about 25 cars in the 4 hours I was on it today."
-- DeWayne

"The friendships that I was able to forge while gutting it out on the Natchez Trace are the images that I take with me. As I reflect on the past week and the innumerable faces that will forever pass through my mind, my memory is a collage of mixed emotions on the road to Nashville. Some faces were those of jubilation and expressed joy beyond measure; usually those were the faces seen on the descents. At other times I would come along individuals who had a pained sense of gratification on their faces. They would turn to say hello with a smiling huff and a puff and then continue on. But the most satisfying moments for me were when I would pull up along someone to say hello and they wouldn't answer back. Their faces would be contorted into grit and agony, determined to accomplish their goal, whether the goal was to finish up the day or to get up those damn deceptive hills whose gentle grade mocked us for miles. That, or they were listening to their iPod and couldn't hear me. Whichever it was I didn't want to mess up that kind of focus, that's just bad karma."
-- Seth

"The Trace was beautiful in the morning and we had it all to ourselves. Shady tree lined avenues opened up to fields of quiet cattle."
-- Stephanie

"If you finish off a 25-mile bike trek on the Natchez Trace with lunch at Puckett's or the Loveless Cafe, than you're already hip to this. Today's Nashville City Paper points us to the news that Nashville is the second best city to live and play in, according to National Geographic Adventure's 2007 top 50 adventure towns, state-by-state. Second only to Chicago, the magazine says "Music City flexes its multisport cred in 10,500 acres (4,249 hectares) of urban parks, while down-home city life plays out at Nashville's 2,000-plus eateries, honky-tonks, and Tennessee Titans NFL games (a hotter ticket than the Grand Ole Opry).'"
-- NPT

"A serious scenic route for bicycles -- we reveled in every mile! We get to do it again on our way to Florence, AL tomorrow."
-- Doug

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3 Comments

Lynnette said:

Pete -
Thanks to Tim for tackling the weather & wind questions...

I couldn't keep my answer 500 words or less, so I've posted info for long-distance bicyclists interested in pursuing the Natchez Trace Parkway as an entire article.

Hope that helps some...

January 10, 2008 1:06 PM | Reply to this Comment

Tim said:

Pete,
I think your intuition is pretty much on the money. Average high temperatures top the 80 degree mark by mid April and go over 90 on the Southern half of the route by early June. The prevailing wind will be from the South or Southeast. A front in late spring can be real trouble as severe weather is certainly a possibility. A wind from the North behind the front wouldn't last more than a day or two.

January 9, 2008 9:05 PM | Reply to this Comment

Pete said:

I've seen several postings on the web by other bike riders who've done the NT so I know a very little about it from that aspect. Also, I drove the entire length last summer (2007) in July in my car - and a major portion in 2006 - so I know something about the terrain and what to expect concerning distances, services, traffic, etc. For example, I realize I'll have to get off regularly to find lodging, water, food, etc., but that much stuff is available nearby at certain points, i.e. Jackson, Tupelo, etc.

What I don't know is:

1. What's the best time of year? - I'm thinking late April or mid-May - and then trying to pick a full week of predicted relatively clear weather - but of course that's hard to plan ahead for very far. I prefer hot to cold i.e. 80 degress to me is cool - and 90 is fine. Above 95 is hot - but I'm used to riding early and late and snoozing in the really hot parts of the day.

2. Which way to ride? I'm thinking the prevailing winds are probably going to be south to north that time of year - with exceptions of when cold fronts blow through and then the opposite is true for a day or so. But around here (Dallas) the last major front of the season is usually past by mid-May - how about over there? Anyway, I'm thinking of driving to Natchez and parking my car somewhere and then riding from Natchez to Nashville and then taking the bus or Amtrak back.

3. Shuttle service - bus - Amtrak - hitching a ride with a trucker or whatever? I need to get me and my bike and gear back to Natchez from Nashville somehow. Any ideas?

4. Whether to camp or motel-it. Right now I favor moteling, because of the weight of hauling all the camping gear - but camping is cheaper - and in some ways more convenient - unless I hit 3-4 days of constant rain. Bummer. It doesn't seem very practical to mix camping and motelling, but that may be the best. Your thoughts?

Can you point me to any bike associations or clubs in the area - or to others with biking experience on the Trace?

Many thanks,

Pete