Our first venture through Mississippi was along the Gulf, and we had really taken the time to savor it, thanks to the advice of our friend Park Ranger Tim. So we figured we’d owed the northern parts of the state at least a little of the same love.
We came into Mississippi through Natchez where, as previously mentioned, we were finally able to get our wheels fixed. Our first night in Natchez took us along the Mississippi River waterfront, which was another surreal moment considering the time we spent along this same river all the way north in Wisconsin. The sunset along the water was stunning, and we were even able to spend the evening there, watching the lights twinkle across the water in Louisiana.
Natchez was a cute yet strangely quiet town on the river. The original location of Natchez was at the bottom of the bluffs, right along the Mighty Mississippi. As the town expanded, it slowly moved up the hillside until the entire center of town finally shifted up to the top. We took a walk down mainstreet, which was charming, but a little eerily quiet, as many stores seemed closed and there weren’t many other pedestrians about. In order to help you get a good tour of the town, Natchez had four walking trails, blazed out along the ground. There were the North and South Trails, which led you on a loop through different parts of town. There was the Bluffs Trail, which took you on a beautiful stroll along the waterfront from above. And there was the Nature Trail, which followed the river from below. As we wandered our way through these trails, we caught a whiff of that delightfully sweet aroma that had been following us through Louisiana. The scent was strong as we passed a tree with low hanging branches, and as we both stuck our noses in for a smell, we both were excited to find we had finally hunted down this mystery plant with our super sniffers! Thanks to photo identification on our phones, we were able to determine the source of this pretty scent - the aptly named Fragrant Olive or Sweet Osmanthus tree.
In our travels last fall, we came across the Natchez Trace Parkway outside of Nashville, and so we were excited to get to jump on this scenic drive from its namesake origin. We headed up the parkway to make our way north, when we got news of a pretty big storm approaching the Gulf and heading north. As our phones buzzed with tornado warnings and hail concerns, we decided we needed to find a spot to hunker down for the day. There was a gorgeous overlook off the Parkway, with wide views of a reservoir that also happened to have a trailhead for the Chiska Foka Trail. Craig was able to squeeze in a run, and we were able to give Reese & Winston a good walk, before spending the stormy day watching Netflix and refreshing the weather updates on our phones. Thankfully, we didn’t get much more than some heavy rain, and in the end, we were even rewarded with a stunning rainbow, peeking out about the water.
Having survived the storm, always a worrying concern with nowhere to go except our mobile home, we continued our way north to the Mississippi Petrified Forest. This dog-friendly stroll through the woods was $14 per person, a little steep, but they had an awesome, informative and comprehensive guide that gave detail on 20 well marked spots along the loop. Their website tells the fascinating tale of the origins of the petrified trees in the area. Long ago, 36 millions years long, a flooded river crashed through a forest, filled with towering ancient trees. The waters swept them away, and as the flood abated, the trees settled deep beneath the muck, beginning the process of being turned to stone. Glacial dust covered the area, which eventually led to the development of forests above the ancient trees. Over time, this loose soil began to erode, slowly creating gullies that revealed the hidden secrets of these now stone trees. The land was purchased with the goal of conservation and education by the Schabilion family, and as such, it’s still in great shape to be explored today. Along with the amazing woodland tour, they also had a neat museum, showing various rocks from throughout the world, as well as a map of petrified wood samples found throughout Mississippi. It was ultimately a pretty interesting and informative stop!
Being people who love to get a taste of local flavor, I knew I couldn’t leave Mississippi without trying some southern biscuits and grits. Luckily, we found a great campsite near Enid Lake that put us in a great spot to bounce around and see a few nearby spots. The first was Big Bad Breakfast in Oxford, MS, where we had a delicious spread of eggs and biscuits and grits and house hot sauce and blackberry jam. It was well worth the search, looking for the “best biscuits” in the state! While we passed through, we took a stop at the Batesville Mounds, a nicely put together and informative display about the ancient Native cultural sites in the area. The Mounds were believed to have been built from 500 BC to 500 AD, and originally consisted of seven mounds, believed to be sites of ceremonial and religious purpose. Over time, due to erosion and plowing, all but 2 of the mounds remained. It was a nice park, with good paths throughout, and it was really cool to see how the town had honored these Native sites.
From our campsite, we were also able to bounce up to the Delta Blues Museum. This wonderfully informative museum didn’t allow photos or video, so we don’t have much to show it all off, but it was an extremely cool collection of history of the music of the region. There were displays highlighting individual Delta Blues artists, with paraphernalia and histories. There were posters that showed the growth and span of the music in the region. There were intimate photographs of performers and locals, tying the Delta Blues music to the fertile Delta region that birthed it all. The coolest spot of the museum was the original cabin that Muddy Waters lived in, deconstructed and rebuilt inside the museum. Before the cabin was moved, it was in danger of being torn down due to neglect. Billy Gibbons from ZZ Top took a visit and left with a piece of lumber from the roof, and commissioned a guitar out of it to honor his idol. The guitar was painted with the curving waters of the Mississippi, to represent the Delta region that’s home and origin to such a unique and impressive style of music. Gibbons gifted this guitar to Delta Blues Museum, where it currently resides today.
Nearby, Google maps showed a pin for some legendary crossroads. The story of Delta blues legend Robert Johnson is rife in mystery and intrigue. An incredible musician, who some believed must have made a deal with the devil for such talent. Believers point to his many referential song titles, such as “Cross Road Blues” and “Hell Hound On My Trail”, as evidence of their claims. However, considering at least 3 cemeteries claim Robert Johnson’s interment, it’s hard to listen to any rumors when his whole history is so steeped in mythology it’s impossible to sort out the truth from the legend. But at the very least, our detour gave us a great excuse to listen to some of Johnson’s greatest hits!
Having visited a few key Mississippi spots, gotten a taste of biscuits and grits, and saw a few of the state’s outdoor wonders, it was time to start making our way to the end of our time in Mississippi. We continued our journey eastward to Alabama, stopping for an afternoon at Wall Doxey State Park. While there wasn’t much to do here, we did enjoy a nice loop around Spring Lake, which was just starting to show off spring wildflowers. We stopped in Corinth, MS, where we both took a run on the silliest, yet most efficient, running route we’ve found on our journey.
Conveniently, the high point of Mississippi fell decently on our exit route, and we decided to check another state high point off our list. It was a bumpy mountain road to the top, and when we arrived, we saw that we weren’t even the most impressive vehicle to have made the trip. We parked next to an 18-wheeler, and struck up a conversation with the driver and his partner, who happened to be from our home state of New Jersey! This was their first state high point, and we just had to let them know how disappointed we were that they hadn’t yet checked out NJ’s High Point (the name is a little on the nose…) but for a drive up point, the views at Woodall Mountain at least made this a pretty decent first stop. We took a few pics, including wrangling Reese and Winston together for a family shot, and then we were on our way to Alabama!
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