To Natchez

Some rain showers overnight and a bit windy and cooler this morning . We leave Grand Gulf and set out one last time through the streets of Port Gibson onto the Trace on our way to Natchez. This last section is only 38 miles long but very pretty. Not many historic points of interest along the stretch. We are passed Mt Locust..the oldest remaining 'Stand' or Inn along the Trace before we see the signage. The road is narrow with no shoulders so we cannot turn around.
It's a National Park land so there is no commercial advertising, no residences just pure peaceful driving with only the ghosts of first the native Indians that used the trails for hunting and trading, then the 'Kin-tuck' boatmen that floated their goods on barges down the Missipi to sell at the Gulf ports. They then sold their boats for the lumber and walked back to the Tennessee and Ohio Valleys along the Trace.
Some parts of the trails were so well used that the trails are, in some places, 30 feet below the adjacent land.
Into Natchez and at once we are among antebellum homes. We stop at Melrose, now a National historic Park. It was originally built in the 1840's as a family home for the McMurrans. Although it was on 80 acres it was not a working plantation. The family had several other properties and holdings that did produce cotton. They thrived until the Civil War when economics and the ability to produce their cotton declined and sent them into bankruptcy. Their home and property was sold for $50,000 and they had to move in with the inlaws:)
For a $5 fee we went on a tour with a National Park guide. An interesting look into the lives of both the landowners and the slaves that looked after the land and the family. Every room had a bell on a rope, each with with a different tone but all connected to the slave quarters so that they knew where there services were required.
After we wandered through the grounds under huge live oaks and Magnolia trees, (which is the state
flower.) Unfortunately it's not the season to see them in bloom but if the seed pods on the ground are any indication of the size of the blossoms they must be an awesome sight to see.
Natchez is described as "a progressive city on the River, with a rich cultural history and old world manners".
Everyone talks about the time of owners and slaves, the Civil War ....it is a fact of life. But as a woman in the National Park display in the Visitors Center told me in her honey sweet voice "We try not to talk about the Civil War anymore", something about being politically correct. I'm not sure why but again my inquiring mind will continue to ask the questions. As Canadians they don't expect us to know a lot of their history, surprise! The Ranger that conducted our tour of Melrose today told us about local school classes that come on the tour and don't even know when the Civil War happened.
We continued into town looking for a place to stay for the night. The Walmart was busy, noisy and pretty ugly so we decided to try the Magnolia Bluffs Casino. We should have known that the word 'bluffs' meant bad news for us but the Casino told Bob that there was a turn around spot and 'semis' came down the hill. Wrong, wrong, wrong but once committed on the steepest hill yet encountered we are at the bottom and in a small empty parking lot right on the river. The afternoon sun is starting
to set behind the Missipi River double span bridge over to Louisiana. Push barge traffic is going up and down, sometimes waiting their turn, other times passing side by side. It is exciting to see the volume of traffic that we had heard about when in the north where one barge would sometimes take 6 hours to pass through the lock. It is an amazing mode of transportation. One tug can push a minimum of 15 barges, 3 wide and 5 deep.
We cook our last Manitoba perogies for dinner, watch the evening lights on the bridge and across the river twinkle on like Christmas icicle lights. It is a beautiful setting and we will worry about getting up the hill in the morning, maybe even during the the night.

 

 

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