By:
Submission
Turn west off of I-4 0, Exit 66 onto U S 7 0. In Brownsville, turn right on State Highway 19. Follow Highway 19 into Ripley to State Highway 51. Turn South on Hwy 51 to Henning, turn west onto Highway 87. Turn right on State Highway 207 East onto Park Road.
Decent, but small and dated visitors center.
If you are visiting for the history, after the long, out of the way drive, get ready for an unecessarily long drive to the visitor center and fort path trailhead. Then get ready for an unnecessarily long and winding path to the fort site (which itself is well maintained and presented). The park should really have two entrances and more direct access. The walking trail goes along another road that did not have a dedicated trailhead or access to the visitor center.
We really enjoyed our camping trip here. The park was quiet and the campsites were beautiful. Watch out for the bandit raccoons at the campsites. They will rob you right in front of your eyes!
The bathrooms are clean, though I did find the setup a little odd. There is only one toilet and shower in the bathroom and they are in a shared room, meaning only one camper can be in there at a time. There were portable toilets outside the bathhouse, which is supposed to be a fix for this problem I’d assume.
There is NO ice on the premises so be prepared to make a trip to the store to replenish your ice if it’s really hot. It was about 100 degrees when we were there and we had to leave the park to buy ice. It’d be nice if there were some available on site to purchase. They have your back for firewood though. The bundles even come with little starters and it’s $5 a bundle. Just wave one of the staff members down while they’re driving by.
The lake/pond is a nice little area of the park. We took our kayaks out for a spin and enjoyed watching the wildlife.
I will say that we attempted to hike the Chickasaw Bluff Trail, but near the end it was overgrown with kudzu so we never got the reward of the view and did all that work for nothing. :-(
Jordan, the seasonal interpreter, was lovely to chat with. We went on one of her guided hikes and you can tell she really loves both learning and teaching. She shared lots of knowledge on our way to the fort.
All in all, we will definitely return. We loved camping here.
I've been camping here off and on for years. It's very nice park and well kept grounds but what separates this park from others is the staff. The staff is excellent, knowledgeable and just down right good folks. Everyone you come in contact with is nice and friendly and go out of their way to make sure your stay there is enjoyable. Can't say enough good things about the people who run this state park.
Nice museum and some challenging hiking trails. The main trail is 8 miles and has quite a bit of elevation change, would be tough for kids and beginners.
