Loess Bluff

"As we continue our journey up the Natchez Trace Parkway we are now about 12 miles north of Natchez, Mississippi, at an exhibit called LOESS BLUFF.

"Loess, spelled L-O-E-S-S, comes from the German word for "loose." This loose soil was blown from the western plains, by almost endless dust storms, during the last ice age and deposited east of the Mississippi River. Once, the Loess covered a huge area to depths ranging from 30 to 90 feet. What's left now is a strip of soil that extends from Baton Rouge in Louisiana up into the state of Tennessee. The Natchez Trace cuts across the Loess Hills of Mississippi, and in some places has worn into this soil as deep as 20 feet.

"If you visit Loess Bluff you can see how easily this loose soil erodes. Further north along the parkway, at the Sunken Trace exhibit, you can walk the original Trace or ride along it at Rocky Springs. When you see it first hand you'll understand why the soil gave way beneath the migrating herds of Buffalo and countless numbers of human beings over the centuries.

"Next time we'll visit one of the Trace's earliest stands, Mount Locust. This is Frank Thomas, your guide along the Natchez Trace, A Road Through the Wilderness."

For more about Natchez Trace: A Road Through the Wilderness, visit eddieandfrank.com