What a beautiful day, blue sky, sunshine, and 67 degrees. We left the Walmart parking lot this morning to continue our trek up the Natchez Trace Parkway. We have been stopping at most of the points of interest and historical markers. Many are just signs pointing out what used to be there or what historic event happened there.

Milepost 269.4 Confederate Gravesites and Old Trace. During the Civil War soldiers marched, camped and fought along portions of the Old Trace. Here are gravesites of 13 unknown Confederate soldiers. The original headstones, which may have had names, disappeared long ago but the National Park Service has replaced them.

Coins have been placed on all of the headstones as a token of respect by visitors to the graves, and flags and flowers also decorate each one.

Confederate Gravesites on Old Trace

Milepost 286.7 Pharr Mounds. There are eight large dome-shaped burial mounds scattered over a 90-acre field here. A large sign here says that these mounds were built and used about 1,800 to 2,000 years ago.

Pharr Mounds

An access road to Tishomingo State Park is at Milepost 304.5.  This is only about 40 miles from where we were last night. We will stay here for the next three nights while we wait for a cold front to pass and the weather to warm before we continue. There are 62 campsites, but there are not even 10 campers here so it’s pretty quiet.

Tishomingo State Park, #30

• Gasoline Expense:  none
• Lodging Expense:   $13