Fontainebleau State Park in Louisiana

We had the opportunity to camp at Fontainebleau State Park in Mandeville, Louisiana on May 18 through May 21, 2018.  Fontainebleau State Park is on the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain.  This was the first time we could get away on a camping trip in 2018.  We had an unusually cold winter in north MS and then it rained and rained and rained.

.Living in Mississippi, we are used to high humidity levels, but the humidity we experienced in Louisiana was even more than we are accustomed to.  Once you get your mind wrapped around the fact that you are going to be in a perpetual state of wringing wet, you just get on with whatever you are doing.  One way I guess Louisianans deal with it is to consume "snowballs".  We saw shaved ice aka Snowball shops everywhere.

Fontainebleau State Park has history, walking trails, biking trails, swimming, playgrounds and beautiful live oaks with "Spanish moss".  This state park is a very popular place for day use swimmers.  We also saw the large pavillions being used for parties.

 We didn't have time to do everything we wanted to.  We were not able to explore many of the trails nor the nature areas close by; however, we did bike part of the Tammany Trace, visited the Mandeville Farmer's Market, the Mandeville Lakefront, rode across the Lake Pontchartrain Bridge, and picked up fresh shrimp from the Mandeville Seafood Market.

The Mandeville Lakefront is a large public park right on the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain.  

There is a paved trail throughout the park, large playground area, boat launch, and absolutely beautiful trees with Spanish moss.  Right across the street from the park are fantastic "southern" homes. 

We stayed at campsite #85 in Campground A.  This site is a pull through with  30/50 amp electric and water.  There is a picnic table, grill, fire ring and plenty of room on the living side of the camper.  We were happy with this site but would have liked a little more shade.  I think site #1 would be better for a hot weather visit as it had quite a bit of shade.

Some of the sites also had sewer hookups.  We were in Campground A, which I thought had more space between the sites than Campground B.

Both my phone (Sprint) and hubby's phone (CSpire) had good service.  Our over-the-air TV picked up quite a few stations from New Orleans.

There were 3 bath houses and 2 had washer/dryers.  One of the bath houses was very old and not air conditioned but the other 2 were clean, well-lit and air conditioned.

This was a nice park to stay in and I would possibly come back to explore more of the area when the temps are cooler.

The Way Home Back From Fall Creek Falls via Natchez Trace Parkway

On the way back home from our camping trip to Fall Creek Falls State Park, we decided to stray from the interstate and take the Natchez Trace Parkway home. 

Several years ago, we traveled the Natchez Trace Parkway from the north terminus to the south and stopped at campgrounds along the way.  

This trip, we just made a few stops to stretch our legs.  One of our stops was at Meriwether Lewis campground.  While we were there, we saw a caravan of antique cars.

If history interests you, I highly recommend the Natchez Trace Parkway.

Fall Creek Falls State Park Sept 2017 (part 2)

In Fall Creek Falls part 1, I reviewed the campground and gave some general information about the park and directions.  Part 2 will be about some of the things to do at the park.

Fall Creek Falls State Park is known for the falls for which they are named.  Depending on the season you go and the amount of rainfall during the year, the amount of water you see at the falls can be vastly different.  For instance, here is a picture of how the falls looked this year: 

and here is a picture of the falls when we went in 2010:

There are miles of hiking trails at Fall Creek Falls.  You can get a trail map at the Nature Center or camper check-in.  We hiked many of them on our trip here in 2010.  Most are quite rocky and can contain some steep sections.  I was glad that I picked this up

at the general store in the campground before we did any hiking.  My knees and ankles don't work quite as good as they used to.







Here are a few pictures of the trail that leads to the bottom of the Fall Creek Falls:

In addition to the main Fall Creek Falls trail, there are trails to other waterfalls (both an overlook view and to the bottom) and cascades. 

Sally Mae wasn't too sure about going across the swinging bridge on one of the trails.

There are also miles of paved bike trails.  One morning, we biked the trail that goes from the hotel to the Fall Creek Falls overlook and back.  This is a very

easy trail with just one short piece of steep incline.  Most of the trail follows the bank of the lake.

You can rent boats (jon, paddle, kayaks, canoes) at the boat dock or bring your own.  This is a small lake and no gas motors allowed.  There is also an 18-hole golf course, lots of picnic spots, campgrounds, cabins, and a hotel.

Rick and I joked that the hotel facade looked more like a prison or compound on the outside, but it is nice inside with friendly staff and a restaurant.  We ate there the night before we left and it was very popular.  They had a surf and turf buffet but we ordered from the menu.  It was good and a lot of food.

We had a great time at Fall Creek Falls State Park and will probably return for a 4th time.

Fall Creek Falls State Park September 2017

After spending a couple of days at Cedars of Lebanon State Park near Nashville to see family, we moved on to Fall Creek Falls State Park in Spencer, TN.  




This post will be a review of the campground and directions to get there.  I will have another post on some of the things to see and do while there.

This was the 3rd time we have visited this park.  The first time was back in 1997 or 98 when we tent camped.  The second time was in 2010 when we stayed at Piney Creek Cabins (outside of the park).  This time, we were pulling our fifth wheel.  

From Cookeville, TN on I-40, take the Hwy 111 S exit towards Sparta.  There is a Walmart right off Hwy 111 in Sparta, so if you need to stop for groceries you might want to stop there.  Stay on Hwy 111 S when you get to the split for McMinville.  After the split, you will encounter 2 hills, one with a 9% grade and the other with an 8% grade.  You will be going up on the way to the park and down on the way back.  The first Fall Creek Falls sign is to turn left on Hwy 30.  If you are pulling a camper or are in a motorhome, you probably will want to stay on Hwy 111 like we did.   Take the 2nd Fall Creek Falls exit which is Hwy 284.  This is actually an exit and not a left turn like it used to be.  This road will dog-leg once but it is a decent road, even when towing.  When you get in the park, veer left at the fork.  This route will take you to the camper check-in.

There is room to pull over at the camper-check in.  From here, you will be pointed in the right direction to get to the campground loops.





There are 5 campground loops (A-E).  We were in Campground B, site #86.  Most sites in campground B are full hookup with elec, water and sewer.  The reservation system at the park website has detailed information about the amenities at each site, the length, width, level or incline, as well as a picture.

The campground B road is a little narrow with lots of trees but we saw a huge

motorhome maneuver the tight spots just fine.  We loved our spot and would definitely camp here again but would also consider sites #92, #94 or #120.  Each campsite has a trash can, picnic table, fire ring, grill and lamp hanger.  There was a bath house in each of the 3 loops of campground B.  I did not use it but Rick did and said it was ok.  

They ask that you only burn heat treated firewood here which they sell at the camper check-in and the general store.  Buy it at the camper check-in, if possible as it is .50 cheaper per bundle and the bundles look a little bigger.  The general store has food, camping supplies, cleaning supplies and some toys and some souvenir items.  There is also an "outfitter" store with clothing and souvenirs.  In addition, there is a laundry mat building, but it is hit or miss finding machines that work.

I had no cell service (voice, text, or data) at this park.  But, apparently some TN State Parks have started offering wifi.  When we checked in, they gave us a code for wifi which was good for 4 days (or 200 MB).  Rick used it to check emails and check Fbook a couple of times.  We could pick up the local PBS stations out of Cookeville, TN on our antenna.  

Fall Creek Falls State Park is a very popular park and the campground can be booked up way in advance.  I imagine we will come back because it has so much of the stuff we like to do when we go camping.