As a little background, I rode motorcycles when I was a teenager.  I was young, invincible, and slid on the pavement and gravel more than once.  I still have the scars to prove it.  I eventually grew away from them and didn't ride again for many years.  In May, 2006 I decided I wanted another one and bought my Suzuki V-Strom.  That was followed in August, 2007 with a Honda VFR.  Between May, 2006 and September, 2009, which is when this introduction was added, I have travelled a bit over 50,000 miles on my bikes and visited 16 states.  I also have a trip starting in about 12 days that will add another 3,000 miles and 6 more states to that tally.  I've seen places I never would have bothered to visit in a car, I've met a number of wonderful people who have become close friends, and I have truly enjoyed myself.  I won't say I enjoyed every single mile because some were hot or cold or wet or long.  After I stop the discomfort is quickly forgotten but the memories and experiences stay.  I wouldn't trade the overall experiences for anything.

Today it is a modern 2-lane paved roadway.  I have ridden about 180 miles of The Trace, from the northern terminus at Highway 100 in Nashville to the Tupelo National Battlefield in Tupelo, MS.  The northern 15 miles are, to me, by far the most interesting because it is virtually one long series of curves (82 of them to be exact!).  I only show two "Rides" down it but in reality I've been up and down portions of it many times.  If I just want a nice quiet ride for an hour or so I frequently head that way to clear my head.  There is a loop about 65 miles long from my home to the Northern Terminus at Highway 100, down The Trace to Leipers Fork (the best part of The Trace!), and back home through Franklin that is a great afternoon ride.  To me The Trace is just a fun place to ride a motorcycle.

The Trace is not technically difficult, the speed limit is relatively low, and it is frequented by rangers using radar to catch people who decide to violate the speed limit.  On the other hand it is a perfectly maintained 2-lane paved road with very few straight sections, at least on the northern 15 miles.  One curve typically feeds directly into the next one.  Commercial traffic is not allowed on the Trace so there are no large trucks.  I don't know how it is farther south of here, but in this area there is really very little traffic at all.  I will typically see a few cars, a motorcycle or two, and lots of bicycles.  The lanes are wide with wide grass verges on both sides, the surface is perfectly smooth, and there is little traffic.  In other words it is a perfect place to just relax and have a fun ride.

The National Park Service has an excellent web site pertaining to the Natchez Trace Parkway at This Link  It contains a lot of information about the history of the Trace as well as maps depicting the entire route as it is today.

I have ridden my motorcycle up there twice simply because it is a fun ride.  I also enjoy looking at the sites of the battle.  I'm not much of a historian, but standing there where the artillery is mounted and looking down the river I realized that what I was seeing was virtually the exact same scene that Confederate soldiers must have seen back in 1862.

The park encompasses 26 acres and has a 1/4 mile bluff trail, however since I presently have a fractured right foot I chose not to try it out.

The visitor's center has a very good display of relics from the battle as well as numerous paintings, photographs, and other documents describing the battle.  There is a tour through the park however there is a not a lot to photograph.  Those interested in the history of the Civil War would find the tour quite interesting but those seeking photographs might not find the tour stops as interesting.

I rode to Shiloh on October 8, 2006 with my friend and riding buddy AGirl.  It was a gorgeous early fall day and we could not have asked for better weather.  To make it an epic day, AGirl got the last National Park Passport stamp that she needed to have all of them in Tennessee (not bad for a lady who lives in Arizona!) and also turned over 50,000 (that's fifty thousand!) miles on her DL1000 since last November.

What amazed me most about the entire facility was the lack of modernization.  The distillery dates back to 1866, and was the first registered distillery in the United States (which, obviously, makes it the oldest registered distillery in the United States!).  Much of the process equipment is very old (I wouldn't hazard a guess as to how old!) and the only concession to modern times I saw was some computer process controls in the distillery itself and some PVC pipe in places.  There is even very little stainless steel piping in the process itself, most of it is still copper.  The tanks are copper, the barrels are Eastern White Oak, and the whiskey is mellowed through Eastern White Oak charcoal much as it has been done since the beginning.

The Jack Daniel's Web Site has a lot of interesting information about the facility including a "Virtual Tour".  The onsite tour lasts about an hour and 15 minutes, and is time well spent if you are in the area.

The US Army Corps of Engineers oversees the dam and lake, as they do most navigable waterways in the country, and their web site for Cheatham Lake is at This Link