A day trip to Natchez, the Mighty Mississippi and the Natchez Trace Parkway!

Sunday we had a plan--get up super early (6 or so) and head for Natchez up on the Mississippi River, about 200 miles away.


The plan worked well, except for the getting up super early part.  Donna and Keith and the Hard Rock Casino called us Saturday night and before we knew it, it was late!

The drive is the longest we have taken since coming over to Gulfport from the Keys--a good chance to get back into our audio book, Stephen King's Duma Key. Before we knew it, we rolled into the wonderful new Visitor's Center that looks out over the Mississippi and the bridge that crosses over into Louisiana. Click here for a direct link.

Natchez sits on a bluff and the city has built a glorious walkway along the very top...a great place for a Sunday afternoon walk.

Benches for viewing are scattered along the length and the rail design makes it easy to see what's happening along the river.

Like this barge chugging along below, no doubt headed somewhere down in the delta.

One spot along the river below the bluff is called "Under the Hill" and has some long-standing pubs and restaurants as well an old riverboat made into a casino.

The casino was mostly slots with just a few table games so we moved along to Fat Mama's Tamales for lunch. They have a great dog friendly outdoor patio.  Yum!

 One of the delights of Natchez is the architecture. The bluff was inhabited by the French (early 1700's) and then the British--all, of course, after the Natchez Indians. You can see the different influences, along with some magnificent antebellum estates.

Nice Mardi Gras festoon!!

And one of the belles of the ball, "Rosalie."

We weren't on schedule for a tour, so will have to return on our next trip. Click here to see the website with photos of the gardens in bloom.

One of the things we wanted to do was drive a few miles on the famous Natchez Trace Parkway.

The southernmost tip of this 400-mile plus scenic drive is just northeast of Natchez. It ends near Nashville, Tennessee and has eye-popping scenery (in season) and lots of history as well as hiking, biking and more.
Click here for the National Park Service link.


Sadly, we could still sense winter along the route.  In the spring it must be a wonder.  Driving the whole route is now on our list of must-do's in the south.

Imagine this in the spring, summer or even fall!