GREETINGS FROM MEMPHIS, Tennessee (TN) USA
Back to familiar territory for us, Memphis, but this time staying in a different part of town.
We are staying on Mud Island and thankfully it is considerably better than the name itself conjures up ! The area is actually called Harbor Town and it is relatively new and seems up-market.
Mud Island is basically in the middle – well not quite the middle – of the Mississippi River. In fact, its not really an island but a small peninsula surrounded by the river. The whole area has been developed in the last 30 years and it also has the local airport on it.
But the first part of our day had us heading south on the Natchez Trace Parkway. As you will no doubt know from our travels, the United States is full of scenic byways and they have been a major part of our travel planning.
The National Scenic Byways Program is administered by the Federal Highway Administration and the roads within the program are rated on six “intrinsic qualities” – archeology, culture, history, nature, recreation and scenery. To be classified a “National Scenic Byway”, the drive must have at least one of these qualities. An “All-American Road” must have at least two of these qualities and the Natchez Trace is one of those. The road follows an historic trail which has been used for centuries – first by the Native Americans and then later by explorers, traders and emigrants.
The start (or end !) of the Natchez Trace Parkway – the bridge above is actually part of the Trace
In total in runs for over 440 miles through Tennessee, Alabama and Mississippi – we did a very small section on our across the USA 2012 trip when we stayed in Natchez in Mississippi. There is no commercial traffic allowed on the road and the speed limit is slower – generally only 40 to 50 mph – which means only “diehard” travellers are on the road. Coming from Nashville, we started at the “440 mile” end – the markers being helpful to find certain scenic or historical points along the drive. We did about 100 miles on the Trace today – although at one stage we had to detour away due to roadworks.
Along the drive …
Miles to go !
Picturesque pullouts …
… and sections of the old Trace
Along the Trace is also the grave of the explorer Meriwether Lewis – famous from the Lewis and Clark “Corps of Discovery” expedition we have crossed paths with on this and previous tours. Lewis was travelling the Trace in 1809 when he died in mysterious circumstances. Was he murdered or did he commit suicide ? In either case it was an unfortunate end for such a person.
The Meriwether Lewis grave and monument on the Trace
After leaving the Trace, we headed west to visit a significant Civil War site – The Battle of Shiloh. It was one of the first major battles in the Western Theater of the American Civil War. The two-day battle, April 6 and April 7, 1862, involved about 65,000 Union troops under Ulysses S. Grant and Don Carlos Buell and 44,000 Confederates under Albert Sidney Johnston (killed in the battle) and P.G.T. Beauregard. The battle resulted in nearly 24,000 killed, wounded, and missing. The two days of fighting did not end in a decisive tactical victory for either side —the Union held the battlefield but failed to pursue the withdrawing Confederate forces. However, it was a decisive strategic defeat for the Confederate forces that had massed to oppose Grant’s and Buell’s invasion through Tennessee. The battlefield is named after Shiloh Methodist Church, a small log church near Pittsburg Landing, Tennessee. Pittsburgh Landing is the point on the Tennessee River where the Union forces landed for the battle. The battlefields are vast and we drove around only part of it. There are markers where the armies faced one another and old canons showing where artillery was position during the battle to assist the infantry in their attacks.
Scenes of the battlefield
The National Cemetery at Shiloh. The small monuments have no name – an unknown Union or Confederate soldier
By the time we had finished at Shiloh, the rest of the day was spent getting to Memphis – which included a brief venture into Mississippi ( which will give us 11 states for the whole trip) as it was a quicker option using the highway than the backroads – so it was after 5pm when we arrived at our hotel. That in itself was a pleasant surprise as we were greeted with a glass of champagne and an upgraded suite overlooking the Mighty Mississippi ! The hotel is split on 2 sides of the street and we ventured back to the main section to have dinner in “The Terrace” on the 4th floor where we had a wonderful sunset across the river to watch as we had a drink and dinner.
Sunset over the Mississippi
Tomorrow it’s on to our last “new” state for this trip – Arkansas.
Today’s Trivia – The lion who roared at the beginning of all the old MGM movies, Volney, lived at the Memphis Zoo until his death in 1944 !
Oh – and if you need a Bugs Bunny fix (haven’t had one for a while) “Hillbilly Hare” should do just the trick for this neck of the woods !