How long is the distance from memphis to new orleans along the mississippi river? -

Some friends and I are planning on building a raft and traveling down the mississippi river from memphis to new orleans this summer and I was wondering how long this would be in both miles and time

http://www.mapquest.com/maps?1c=Memphis ��This follows the river pretty closely, but I dont know about rafting time. This is an interesting site. Theyve done it and have a Contact Us page. It might be good to do that. http://www.bearnakedrafting.com/Have fun ! Search Mississippi River Rafting. Lots of good sites with valuable information. I was checking to see if there were dams/locks..but they seem to be in the Upper Mississippi.