Tishomingo State Park, MS-Part 4 of Natchez Trace Parkway Series

Tishomingo State Park in northeast Mississippi is right off the Parkway around mile post 305.  The really great things about this

park is the trails, the scenic beauty and the history of the park itself.  The downside is that there are not many good camping spots here.  We had visited this park before so we knew to reserve #14.  When we arrived around 4:20 in the afternoon, the person at the guard shack said they had been trying to keep people out of it all day.  The lake had a decent amount of water in it due to the heavy rains this area had received prior to our visit.  There had been a problem with water leaking out

and the water level was way low when we visited before. Most of the other campsites on this side of the lake have very narrow parking pads and steep drop-offs on each side.  There are several good camping sites along the back loop but in our opinion (and apparently many others), #14 is the best spot.

This site has a large backyard area that backs up to one end of the lake.  The sites are $18 per night for elec/water.  There is a dump station in the campground.  There were 2 bathhouses open while we were there.  Both were well lit and clean with hot showers.  


Here is a view of the lake from our campsite.




Many of the buildings in the park were built by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) during the Depression.  The trademark cut-stone buildings are all over the park.

No telling how long this sign has been out here.  I believe this may have been the original entrance and park sign.

There is all kinds of trees and vegetation at Tishomingo but I noticed a large number of tulip poplar trees.  I have always liked

this tree so I stopped and snapped a picture because you don't get to see the flowers most of the time.






This park is located in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains and contains massive rock formations throughout much of the park.  You can see some of these large rock outcroppings just driving through the park, but you really can't appreciate their massiveness until you walk some of the trails. These pictures are from a relatively easy loop trail just on the other side of a swinging bridge.

Here is the swinging bridge (built in 1939), shown with the massive tie-down cables, which goes across Bear Creek.

One of the prettiest areas is the restored 1840s log cabin in a natural setting which makes you think about what life was like back when the Trace was merely a Native American trail and passage for mail delivery between Nashville and Natchez.

We camped at Tishomingo State Park for 2 nights and we would go back again.  This is a very unique state park in the MS state park system.  I wish there was adequate funding to repair and overhaul some of the campsites that are in disrepair.  We camped here Sunday, May 5 and Monday, May 6, 2013.