The Tanglefoot Trail® is a rails-to-trails project that preserves a 44.53-mile abandoned rail corridor and its right-of-way, now owned by the GM&O Rails-to-Trails Recreational District of North Mississippi. The rail-banked corridor now functions as a public multi-purpose recreational trail that could be reactivated, if needed, for future economic development.
Walkers, bikers, joggers, and nature lovers can enjoy the Tanglefoot Trail®, which extends from New Albany to Houston. Visitors will experience history as they pass through fields, forests, and meadows and traverse the path established by the Chickasaw Native Americans who once populated the area. Famed explorer Meriwether Lewis followed the path, which later became the route of the railroad built by Col. William C. Falkner, great-grandfather of Noble Prize-winning author, William Faulkner. The trail is named after the "Tanglefoot" engine, which performed admirably as the railroad became active.
Three Rivers Planning & Development District serves as the administrative and fiscal agent for the GM&O Rails-to-Trails Recreational District of North Mississippi, which is the governing authority over the Tanglefoot Trail®. The District’s Board of Directors includes a representative from Union, Pontotoc, and Chickasaw counties as well as a representative from New Albany, Ecru, Pontotoc, Algoma, New Houlka, and Houston.
If you would like additional information regarding the Tanglefoot Trail® and/or the GM&O Rails-to-Trails Recreational District of North Mississippi, you can click here to visit the Tanglefoot Trail® website.