Parking
Use the Hurricane Creek pull-off on the Natchez Trace Parkway at milepost 164.3; the trail starts beside the parking area.
Overview
About Hurricane Creek Nature Trail
Why go
- A compact ravine loop with a clear forest-soil story
- The gentler descent is short, paved, and railed
Heads up
- The creek-bottom stretch is brief before the return climb
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Natchez Trace map
Full mapElevation404–451 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
4 active Natchez Trace alerts
- ClosureParkway sections closed for bridge and road constructionTwo Natchez Trace Parkway sections are closed to through traffic; follow the signed detours.Official details
- ClosureMount Locust historic stand closedThe historic stand at Mount Locust Inn & Plantation (MP 15.5) is closed because of structural concerns.Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Natchez Trace Tour Guide
Your drive to Hurricane Creek Nature Trail, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Natchez Trace Parkway. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
Recorded for this trailhead
Hurricane Creek Nature Trail0:00 / 0:24
“You're approaching Hurricane Creek Nature Trail, a tiny loop that drops from a dry ridge into a damp ravine and climbs back through pines and hardwoods.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Natchez Trace Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Who Built That Ball of Leaves?
- The Rectangular Clue
- The Women Running the Stands
- The Small Voice in the Wet Woods
- 272 audio storiesacross Natchez Trace’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor American Alligator, White-tailed Deer, Wild Turkey, and 9 more
- Works offlinemaps, 26 trails, 62 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking Hurricane Creek Nature Trail
A quick forest loopHurricane Creek Nature Trail is an approximately 0.2-mile loop from milepost 164.
Hurricane Creek Nature Trail is an approximately 0.2-mile loop from milepost 164.3 on the Natchez Trace Parkway. It drops from the dry ridge into a damp creek-bottom hollow and climbs back through hardwood and pine forest. This is a short interpretive stop, not a destination hike; take it for a leg stretch and a quick look at how plants change with the soil.
Down to the creekThe path descends into a ravine beside Hurricane Creek, then turns uphill soon after reaching…
The path descends into a ravine beside Hurricane Creek, then turns uphill soon after reaching the damp bottom. An on-site account notes American beech and evergreen Christmas fern low down, with white oak, hickory, and southern pine higher on the slope. For the easier descent, go counterclockwise down the right-hand side: that short slope is paved and railed.
Make it workStart at the Hurricane Creek pull-off at milepost 164.
Start at the Hurricane Creek pull-off at milepost 164.3 and allow about 15 minutes for the loop and its interpretive signs. The walk is easy overall, though the slopes feel steep because they’re packed into a very short route.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Natchez Trace
39 sightingsAmerican AlligatorMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
35 sightingsWhite-tailed DeerMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
53 sightingsWild TurkeyMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
28 sightingsGreat Blue HeronMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
29 sightingsRed-headed WoodpeckerMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
32 sightingsTurkey VultureMost seen around noonSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Natchez Trace. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
