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One of my hiking bucket list items is the historic Potkopinu Trail along the Natchez Trace in Mississippi. Over the last few years I haven’t had the chance but during my last trip road in West Mississippi I decided to check out the trail. I was almost able to check it off as completed.
The Potkopinu Trail – History
The Potkopinu (Pot-cop-i-new) Trail , is the southernmost section of National Scenic Trail, and is three miles long (6 miles round trip). This section of the Natchez Trace Trace is the longest remaining section of the original trail and longest stretch of “sunken” historic trace. And the trail was named after the Natchez Native American meaning “little valley”. The name is perfect for this trail. Sections of the trail have cut a 20+ feet deep path through the landscape.
The research I found was the Potkpinu Trail was created when travelers by foot, horse, and wagons by the 1000s traveled this trail over the years. The Potkopinu section of the trail is sandy and so over the years the trail slowly sunk into the ground.
Why and When?
During the 1700s and 1800s 1000s of men (Kaintucks) traveled the Mississippi river by flatboat and powered by push poles from Nashville to Natchez. The flatboats were then scrapped for timber. The Kaintucks would hike the 450 mile trail back to do the whole thing all over again.
The life of the Kaintucks was hard. The trail back to Nashville had to deal nature (storms that would destroy tents), cold river crossings, swamps, rival traders and more. Basically it was open season on the road. The land was lawless and they had to deal with highwaymen and might have to fight their way back to Nashville. More than 10,000 Kaintucks traveled the trail in 1810!
Source: Follow the Path of the Kaintucks on the Natchez Trace
Getting to the Potkopinu Trail
Getting to the Potkopinu Trail is difficult. I never found the northern trail head. Google Maps pointed me in the wrong direction. Once I find it (I explain why I didn’t find later) I will share it here and give GPS coordinates. The Southern Trail is difficult but I was able to find it. Its located at Natchez Trace Parkway Mile Market 17. You have to take a dirt road into the woods. You will see a t intersection and you will need to turn left. There should be signs pointing you to the trail. I will add some images next time I hike the trail. You will find a small parking area that can hold 4 or 5 cars. I haven’t driven the road, it was to muddy and I was in a two drive SUV. Along the road there should be extra room to park vehicles.
I got to the trail about an hour and half from dark. Because of timing, I decided to hike for about an hour and turn back before it got dark. I got back at sunset. Even at sunset those back roads are dark so plan accordingly.
From what I read, the southern trail head is the most scenic part of the trail so if you only plan to hike a mile or so, then start at the southern trail head. Its not all sunken. The pictures in the article are some of the more interesting parts of the trail.
Hiking the Potkopinu Trail along the Natchez Trace
I made the trip at the end of February after a night of rain and several previous weeks of rain. The trail was muddy but manageable. Its more sandy then anything. I found that walking on the fallen leaves helped. During this time of year, its a bit boring and not much wildlife around. I was disappointed to see that whole trail isn’t “sunken” just sections of the trail were.
For a trail that isn’t maintained, I didn’t find much trash or damaged along the trails. The only damage was horse damage. Someone was riding the trails (horses aren’t aloud on the trail) that should not have been. I found the trail to be very quiet with only the sound of birds and other small woodland creatures staying out of site. For most of the trail I traveled there trail signs that keep you on the trail. At some point, the trail crosses over the trail road that parallels the hiking trail. For the most part, the trail is under the trees with only a few patchy spots of sunlight gets through.
During the hike I did find a several trees that fell across the trail. I had to either climb over the trees or crawl under it to keep using the trail. During my hike, I made it about 1.20 miles before I had to turn back. This section did not have any water crossings. But I believe the first water crossing is about 2 miles in. Once I complete the trail I will update this article.
Recommendations For the Hike
This is an easy trail but it does have some decent elevation changes. I consider this trail to be an easy trail to slightly moderate due to length and water crossings. Its a good idea to wear a sturdy pair of hiking boots or trail shoes that are water proofed.
Keep in mind the Potkopinu Trail is in the middle of nowhere. Its about 6 miles to the nearest town and hospital. If you need to stop for food, toilet, or supplies then you will need to stop in Fayette or Natchez.
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- Make sure to bring plenty of water
- Fully charged cell phone – cell service isn’t the greatest but you can find service on a hill
- Portable charger if you plan to do the their and back
- Download a copy of the map. I would suggest using AllTrails so you can track hike
- Clean up supplies if you think might have to relieve yourself along the trail
- Bug Spray
- Walking pole/stick might be helpful (if anything you can wack a snake if needed)
- Leave a car at each end of the trail if you don’t want to walk back. Its 6 miles round trip
- During hunting season – Where a Blaze Orange (aff. link) vest or jacket
- Might want to bring an extra person
Final Thoughts
This is a great trail and I love it. But it was a bit boring in the winter months. It would have been nice to have a friend a long. I think in the spring when most of the landscaped has greened up there will be more to look at. I do plan on hiking this trail at least one more time and at least one more time with my wife. This is a cool trail but not that cool to keep revisiting. It might be a trail that I use for exercise and one of the closest long near where the family lives.
About the Images
The images were shot on a sunny late afternoon day. Due to the low light I had to do a lot of editing. I used my Samsung Galaxy Note 8 and Sony a6000 and my Sony SELP18105G E PZ 18-105mm F4 G OSS with a Gobe UV Filter by hand. I then edited the images with Adobe Lightroom CC and Topaz Labs Denoise AI and Topaz Labs Sharpen AI and DXO NIK Collection to clean up the image, remove noise, and recover the lost details.
About James
Thats neat and thanks