The Natchez Trace Trail is a National Scenic Trail (NST), designated in 1983, which trail is currently a fragmentary footpath of a total of just over 60 miles and generally follows the 444-mile Natchez Trace Parkway (NTP). The NTP connects Natchez, Mississippi to Nashville, Tennessee along a roadpath that traverses the states of Alabama, Mississippi, and Tennessee.

The Natchez Trace Trail is not a long, continuous footpath, as is the case with other national scenic trails (such as the Appalachian Trail, Pacific Crest Trail, Continental Divide Trail and others); rather, it has only a limited number of trail segments which are sporadically found along the route of the Natchez Trace Parkway.

The current total combined distance of this footpath, which has been developed for both hiking and horseback riding is about 62 miles (less than 100 km) of trail. To walk any more than these designated 62 miles of footpaths would amount to a very long road walk along the side of the Natchez Trace Parkway without very many locations where there is a place to set up a campsite.

Truth be told, some have endeavored to walk more than the current sixty-two miles of footpath, and to do so, must needs follow along the shoulder of the Natchez Trace Parkway, as well as along both county and state roads. The Footpath Journey was originally intended to be longer and follow most of the Natchez Trace Parkway, but only a small portion of the national scenic trail was ever built. This is primarily due to the fact unlike many other trails that rely heavily on volunteers for trail construction and maintenance, the Natchez Trace NST is managed and maintained entirely by the National Park Service (NPS), which after asking a Park Ranger, discovered that the NPS organization has absolutely no plans to ever extend the footpath portion of the National Scenic Trail.

The Natchez Trace Parkway and the Natchez Trace National Scenic Trail both commemorate the original path that had been used for countless centuries on which walked many indigenous people, as well as early European explorers and settlers, Kaintuck boatmen, post riders, Meriwether Lewis, military troops and likely others.

The National Parkway is measured with numbered mileposts which numbering begins at the southern terminus near Natchez, Mississippi and marked as Milepost 0 (zero). The northern terminus is near Nashville, Tennessee and is marked as Milepost 444. The National Scenic Trail uses these numbered milepost to designate both the location and access to the trail heads.

The current status of the national scenic trail is that there are only five sections of somewhat short length, which all five are only accessed from the Natchez Trace Parkway. These five segments are listed below using the the National Parkway mileposts in the order of of the northernmost segment at the top and proceeding southward.

Highland Rim Trail, Milepost 407.9 to 427.4

Footpath and equestrian only, no bicycles. No Camping in this section.

Blackland Praire Trail, Milepost 260 to 266

Footpath and equestrian only, no bicycles.

Yockanookany Trail, Milepost 107.9 to 130

Footpath and some equestian. No camping in this section.

Rocky Springs Trail, Milepost 52.4 to 59

Footpath and some equestrian. No camping in this section.

Potkopinu Trail, Milepost 17 to 20

Footpath only. No camping in this section.

alternately, the trail is marked with brown and white signs