Vacation ideas?

[nscrbug]

Catrin, the book I have is called Bicycling Middle Tennessee. I picked it up at the bike shop that's at the northern end of the Natchez Trace. They had several different books on the area.

Where in Tennessee are you from? I love the state--at least from a cycling standpoint. I'm trying to talk my DH into doing BRAT with me.

Since you happened to mention it....how would road biking be on the Natchez Trace? I know there is no commercial traffic allowed (like the Blue Ridge Pkwy), but how is traffic in general? And is there a sufficient shoulder to ride on?

[nc tam]

The book Blueberry posted is the one I have. (for western NC).

I was wondering about the Natchez Trace, too, for TN.

Happy planning!

[indysteel]

Since you happened to mention it....how would road biking be on the Natchez Trace? I know there is no commercial traffic allowed (like the Blue Ridge Pkwy), but how is traffic in general? And is there a sufficient shoulder to ride on?

My experience on it is somewhat limited. I did about a 40 mile "out and back" on a Sunday morning starting just south of its northern nexus. There were more bikes than cars. There's no shoulder that I recall. The cars I did encounter gave me a wide berth. I enjoyed it very much.

It is possible to do a self-supported tour of the Trace, but you have to keep in mind that there are no stores or the like along it. You have to get off the Trace go into adjacent towns for provisions. If you google it, my guess is that you'll find some good information on touring along the Trace. The biggest issue, of course, is that unless you plan to do an out and back, you need to arrange for transportation back to the start.