Alternative Routes

When I think about Mississippi River Boats the image that comes to mind is that of the Steamboat Natchez, which I saw on the Mississippi River a number of years ago. I watched this beautiful sight as the paddle frothed up the river and it slowly meandered down stream toward its dock in New Orleans. My ancestors in the 1800s likely used these paddle wheelers as they migrated across the county. A lot of our ancestors did. At the time I saw the Natchez my family and I were exploring the less traveled route from Natchez north to Port Gibson, and then our journey went north on U.S. 61 to Vicksburg where we went to the National Military Park. I would recommend a trip to the park to anyone who would like an entertaining vacation and enjoys American history. The monuments they have commemorating the Battle of Vicksburg are among the finest I have ever seen. My children really enjoyed seeing these unique monuments with the horses and riders of yesteryear being portrayed. Leaving the Park we followed a less traveled road that was Mississippi Route 1. This old Indian trail curls around the fringe of the cliffs above the Mississippi River. There are some interesting historical points along the route, and we enjoyed this back road excursion as we headed north up to Greenville. When I read a few years ago that The Delta Queen was about to take its last voyage, I was seriously shocked. Apparently, Congress refused to grant an exemption from the 1966 Safety at Sea Act, which prohibits more than 50 overnight passengers aboard wooden vessels. The Delta Queen carried nearly 3 times that many folks. I remember reading the book Life on the Mississippi written by Mark Twain in my youth. He wrote that book while a passenger aboard one of the paddle-wheelers, and it was a great read. Well, I guess that is another time gone with the wind.