Loosen your tie, your belt, and your preconceptions: Mississippi has a lot more to offer than you thought.
By Jenny Adams
Day 1
Memphis to Oxford
(85 miles)
Pull over in Holly Springs to visit Paul MacLeod, owner of Graceland Too, a beaming pink bungalow devoted to the King. The walls are covered with clippings, life-size cutouts, and hundreds of 45s; the backyard has been turned into a “Jailhouse Rock” prison yard. MacLeod’s devotion is so profound, he named his son Elvis Aaron Presley MacLeod and lost his wife, his job at Cadillac, and four homes to his obsession. Not all of the collection is crazy kitsch; he also has a gold suit he plans to be buried in and a rare early cardboard Elvis 45 — one of only 12 in existence. Then hop Highway 7 to cultural epicenter Oxford, home of Ole Miss. Stay at The 5 Twelve B&B, a 101-year-old house co-owned by George McConnell, former guitarist of Widespread Panic, located near William Faulkner’s estate, Rowan Oak. Look for Faulkner’s first editions at nearby Square Books. Climb a stool at Ajax Diner for great cheese-stuffed meatloaf, chicken and dumplings, and the South’s best Bloody Mary. For dinner drive 15 minutes to the Taylor Grocery, open Thursday through Sunday for famous all-you-can-eat fresh catfish, breaded in cornmeal and fried crisp, and homemade pecan pie. Bluegrass twangs from a flatbed truck outside; bring a bottle of red wine or bourbon in a brown bag and make a few friends.
Day 2
Oxford to Clarksdale
(60 miles)
Highway 278 points west to Clarksdale and the “Crossroads” at the intersection of highways 61 and 49, where Robert Johnson sold his soul for a guitar tuned by the devil. Officially renamed the “Blues Highway,” Highway 61 is revered as a site of dark tragedy and divine inspiration: Singer Bessie Smith was killed in a car accident near the Crossroads in 1937, but it also inspired countless musical triumphs, including Bob Dylan’s “Highway 61 Revisited” and Cream’s cover of “Crossroads.” Stay at the Shack Up Inn. The sharecropping shacks are the real deal, but a cold Lazy Magnolia Southern Pecan Nut Brown Ale helps you smooth any rough edges. Join other travelers playing guitar on the porches at dusk, dine upscale on cider-brined pork tenderloin or buttermilk-fried quail at nearby Madidi restaurant, and catch a live show at Ground Zero Blues Club — Morgan Freeman co-owns both places and can sometimes be found hanging out there.
Day 3
Clarksdale to Greenwood
(55 miles)
Hit the Delta Blues Museum before taking Highway 49 to Greenwood, where rusty train tracks pass both the old Delta Feed and Seed and the elegant Alluvian Hotel, a boutique AAA four-diamond with full spa and a large southern library. Locals have celebrated the cuisine at Giardina’s since 1936, and the wine menu earned a 2008 Award of Excellence from Wine Spectator. Pay homage at Robert Johnson’s burial site at Little Zion Missionary Baptist Church, then take a class at the Viking Cooking School, where national chefs match cutting-edge culinary techniques with old-school creole recipes. In season this area also has some of the best waterfowl hunting in America.
Day 4
Greenwood to Biloxi
(355 miles)
Today’s a driving day, so start early. The other musical King, B.B., has a new hometown blues museum in Indianola. Highway 61 passes Vicksburg National Military Park, where you can get some Civil War history while hiking or biking through 1,800 acres (don’t miss the stunningly restored USS Cairo ironclad gunboat). Or stop in Port Gibson, shaded in centuries-old live oaks, to hike the Owens Creek Trail, a 2.5-mile trek that rewards a climb with two waterfalls. Snake south on highways 98 and 49 through cypress swamps to Biloxi. The Beau Rivage Resort & Casino has been completely redone since Katrina, with a second-floor deck pool that offers views over the Gulf of Mexico.
Day 5
Biloxi to Vancleave
(25 miles)
End your trip with a round at the Preserve Golf Club, which U.S. Open champ Jerry Pate designed in harmony with an adjacent 1,800-acre nature preserve. The par-71 course is one of 28 in the world certified a Silver Signature Sanctuary by Audubon International.
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