Natchez Trace-how long does it take
 

I'm riding from Nashville, Tn to Natchez, Ms along the Natchez Trace. The book says it's about 440 miles. I'm planning on camping most nights so I'll be moderately loaded. Has anyone ridden this route recently? How long should it take?

Many of us average about 50-60 miles/day... so I'd say minimum 8 days.... You may want a rest day or so along the way as well? Looks like a beautiful trip :)

I've heard of one guy who did it in 4 days (didn't see a darned thing) and another who did it in 12 (stopped and smelled every rose on the trail.

I rode it in mid April of this year north to south and enjoyed it. I would have no problem doing it again in the future. It will take you 7 to 9 days depending on your daily miles. If you plan on getting off the Trace along the way be careful. The roads have no shoulders and are much busier. Depending on when you go the direction of traffic may be heavier. In the spring people in RV's are heading north and in the fall they will be heading south. If I was to do it again this fact is a determining factor on the direction I will take. Good luck with your trip.

minor hijack- Does the Trace ride better in one direction over the other? Prevailing winds/ Elevation/ etc...

Well, elevation-wise, it's about a 700 foot drop total from Nashville to New Orleans (which is past the southern end of the Trace). So, elevation really isn't an issue on this ride.

Winds-wise, you're kinda at the mercy of weather systems passing west->east through the center of the US, so "prevailing" is a somewhat-nebulous concept. I say that because weather systems can stall out and sit for a couple days, rush past in a few hours, and slow down/sit on the "wrong side" of the Trace for you to have tailwinds.

That being said, go to wunderground.com, pick 4 cities/towns along the Trace during the period you think you'll be riding it and check the historical winds for that month over the last 5 years using the HISTORY function and you might get a sense of "prevailing". I think that's as good as you're going to get for the Trace, wind information-wise.


FWIW, I'm planning on doing it S->N at the end of this month, maybe beginning of Oct in combination with a N->S return to New Orleans via Memphis/MRT. I figure the Trace should be the easier "half" of my out-n-back loop.

Thanks for the info. I too am planning on making the ride in early October and I think I am going to ride from MS to TN (if for no other reason than to be historically correct ;-) )

Thanks for all the info. I'll post something when I finish it.

I can't send private message yet so here goes. The National Park Service has a map with information on the Trace. It also has a great deal of information on line that will also help with camping, water, food, etc.

It is by no means a flat ride. Hillier in Tennessee and rollers thoughout but very doable. Only two cities that had heavier traffic, Tupelo and Jackson. Try not to hit then during rush hours and you will be alright. The RV traffic is very heavy in the spring and fall and would determine the direction I would take. The ratio was 50 to 1 going north when I did it in the spring. If you get off the Trace expect no shoulder and more traffic.

The only problem I had was getting back to starting point.

I enjoyed my trip and hope to do it in the future. Joel

I just returned home from a Tour around the middle sections of Tennessee and used, and have used, the NTP as a means to and end traveling. I prefer doing country roads to the NTP, because there is very little to see, rairly any respite from the sun, and you need to know where the little stores are close off the NTP. I was so boored I made a game out of seeing how many catapillars I could run over!:twitchy:

Advantage of NTP? You can't make a wrong turn and get lost. The road condition in TN is very good. Most of the time trafic is very low.

Disadvantage of NTP? Not designed or intended for cyclist. Very little to see, with no local contact. Difficult for a cyclist to resupply, at times even water stops are far apart.

One thing I will add is that, most, of the roads in TN, either have a decent enough shoulder, or low enough traffic to make a shoulder a moot point. On my most recent trip I did encounter one road in my plan that was a cycle tourist nightmare, but was ablet to trek across a little way and pick up another that was going in the same general direction.

Not a big fan of the NTP by bicycle, but your MMV!:p

My very first loaded tour was the Trace, south to north. I did it in seven days total, with a rest day in the middle (at Tupelo), so six days of riding. I thought that was pretty reasonable, and gave me plenty of time for sight-seeing. I did it staying in motels along the way.

I disagree with the comment that water stops were far apart. There are plenty of rest areas along the Trace, as well as a number of locations a short distance from the Trace. The Natl Park Service map is useful, as is a book entitled "Cycling the Nathez Trace" (don't recall the author's name right now, but you should be able to find it fairly easily).

As another poster pointed out, watch the traffic around Jackson and Tupelo.

I agree with uciflylow. I found the NTP to be an extremely boring road to cycle. Easy, but boring. As I recall, camping, except in designated areas(not many), is prohibited. If you've got the time, you can do a bit of research and periodically exit the Trace to relieve the sameness. I mean, you'll be passing right by Elvis' birthplace. Wouldn't want to miss that. Seriously, there is a lot to see and do within 5 miles either side. Just got to be aware. And yes, the side towns are not cycle friendly. But, then most towns aren't.