Southwest to Natchez Trace

 

 Pie Town, NM

What can we say about Pie Town? The Pie Store is the town...and that's no joke! We asked where we might find a market...and it was 28 miles that way or 25 miles the other way. When we pulled up to the pie store, there's a sign on the door saying, "Pies Sold Out". Luckily, there were some fresh ones coming out in a couple of minutes...mine was Southern peach and George's was apple.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Palo Duro

Known as the Grand Canyon of Texas. It wasn't grand but the campground was on the floor of the canyon, so an interesting drive down into the canyon with nice sunrises and sunsets.

Palo Duro Canyon

Santa Fe

Santa Fe was a little cool and wet, so it wasn't crowded. We walked around to see the architecture which was lovely, peeked into a few shops of which there were many and went to the New Mexico Art Museum. Throughout the square the lampposts had long bundles of chilies hanging like we would have hanging flower baskets in town.

New Mexico Museum of Art

Courtyard at the New Mexico Museum of Art

Among the Aspens-NMMA

Natchez Trace

The Natchez Trace Parkway National Park is a 440-mile scenic road from Natchez Mississippi to Nashville Tennessee. It roughly follows a historic travel corridor through what was Chickasaw and Choctaw land before their forced removal to Oklahoma. The Trace was used by Native Americans, "Kaintucks", the river boatmen who floated goods down the river to Natchez and New Orleans, slave traders, travelers, settlers and the military.

The Kaintucks would float their goods down river, dismantle the flatboats, sell the lumber and then walk home to Ohio. The 500 mile trip on foot took about 35 days. Riders on horseback could cover it in 20-25 days. Research shows that 10,000 Kaintucks walked the Trace in 1810 alone.

A flatboat used by the Kaintucks

A section of the "Old Trace"

Native American mounds along the Trace

Native American mound along the Trace

 

The Trace is a lovely drive, like a Sunday drive in the country. There are no stops signs, no lights etc. just countryside.  There are campgrounds (which are free) picnic and rest areas and points of interest, like the mounds, along the way. How long would you like your Sunday drive to be? 50 miles? 100 miles? We probably did 250 miles over three days, which I enjoyed, but I don't feel the need to do it again.