New Mississippi Trail

“The Noxubee Crest Mountain Bike Trail is a network of trails for hiking and bicycling which has recently opened in the Ackerman Unit of the Tombigbee National Forest. The 26 mile pathway is a combination of single track trail, abandoned forest roads and gated roads in the National Forest lands of Choctaw and Winston Counties. It is designed with a large perimeter loop and several inner trails that all connect to the outer loop such that numerous configurations are possible.
From a mountain biking perspective the technical difficulty of the single track varies from easy to moderate however the region does offer many challenging hills to climb. For the hiker the area offers a view of a large beaver lodge, scenic hardwood forest with deep ravines and a number of creeks (bridges in place).
Two trailheads access the trail. The main trailhead is located at the spillway parking area of Choctaw Lake Recreation Area ($3.00 parking fee)and the Southern trailhead is located at the Noxubee Hill Cemetery on Sheep Ranch Road (directions at the end). Because this is such an isolated area it is highly recommended that one obtain a map before embarking on a ride or hike. Maps may be obtained from the Ranger Station on Highway 15, 3 miles south of Ackerman (662-285-3264) or from The Bicycle Shop in Starkville. The volunteers who have donated countless hours of labor to this project are excited about its potential and are anxious for other hikers and bicyclists to come and experience the hills and isolated scenic beauty it has to offer.
Directions from Starkville to the South trailhead: Take Highway 12 to Sturgis then turn LEFT on the Sturgis-Louisville Road. In 9.2 miles turn RIGHT on Poplar Flat Road and then in 1.4 miles turn RIGHT on Sheep Ranch Road. The Noxubee Hill Cemetery is 1 mile. The trail begins a few yards down Noxubee Hill Road from the cemetery.
For further information contact Charlotte Fuquay at 323-8106 or
cfuquay@hotmail.com.”

“Can you name a State so some of us have a better idea of the location?”

“I think it's in Mississippi...at least I know the Tombigbee runs through that state...”

“Look at the thread title.”

“You in MS? I'm down on the coast.
I went to Choctaw Lake many times while a student at MS State (a long time ago). It's great we are getting some trails built, sounds like bike trails mainly.”

“still going to school...almost done tho! I have only been to Choctaw once and that was just a few weeks ago while I was out geocaching. Haven't yet checked out the new trail, but plan to very soon!”

“there will be at least two hikers on that trail, not all bikes ;)”

“I was thinking of the RIVER.

By the way how'd you get to name the river that begins in Minnesota and ends a bit south of your State?




lol”

“Another hiker from MS. Woo Hoo.
That makes two of us, hee hee.

Hey, you are just a couple of hours away from the Sipsey Wilderness. Come join us next weekend.
Click on the "trips" page under "sections".”

“Cool. I think the kids and I will check it out after the Sipsey trip.

It sounds alot like the Piedmont region of GA. There's a mondo shortage of trails in the Piedmont, IMO.

Mebbe I'll do an overniter, then shoot south to the Black River(?) trail. I'll have the rest of the week after Sipsey...”

“but I have too much going on next weekend. I had planned on hiking some over there this past Christmas. We ended up doing the Black Creek Trail instead, mainly because of the weather, but also because we had several newbies going and didn't want to make them wade through any creeks in the middle of December. This is getting to be a common theme on all my trips. I'm one of the officers in a local hiking club here, so normally when we go on trips, I have to be very careful where we go because there are usually at least 2-3 who have never even been out like that. It's cool getting new people involved but gets kinda frustrating after awhile. Anyways, thanks for the invite, maybe some other time.”

“i'm in starkville and have been wanting to go on a quick weekend trip was thinking this would be a good place if anyone has any info i liked to here it, btw if any you guys in starkville ever wanna go somewhere give me hollar heres my email weg4@msstate.edu”

“I have been to Starkville a couple of times and it doesn't lend itself as a place to do much hiking.

Go to Sipsey in North Alabama.”

“Shows what you know.
Try walking from one end of campus to the other.”

“but its a little for away for me so noxubee will have to do”

“Hey yetti,

Im not too far from starkvegas... If you know of anywhere good around here to go, please let me know. Im at Delta State in Cleveland and there is not much backpacking opportunity here.”

“i cant find much either”

“Go NE young men.
Sipsey is calling.”

“From MSU to trailhead in ~2 hours. Let me know when (if) you are going and I'll try to join you.”

“http://www.thebackpacker.com/trailtalk/thread/37328,3.php

Sipsey THIS weekend!”

“Oh, thank God. There is a trail in Mississippi.”

“More than one in fact...did you want to come down for a hike chili?”

“As fate would have it, I am coming down for a lot of hikes. Sometime in the next couple weeks I am moving there.”

“Where exactly?”

“Not sure yet. Somewhere between Southaven and Vicksburg.

I expect it will be Greenville or Vicksburg.”

“Ugh...my condolences. Greenville might provide better access back to TN and to the Ozarks but living in the Delta would be a drag. I'd push for Vicksburg if given the choice...real close to Jackson (and the airport), pretty close to Natchez which can be a fun town and not very far from LA/New Orleans/Gulf Coast.”

“If we had a choice, we wouldn't be going to Mississippi...”

“Oops, thought this said "New Mississippi Troll". I wanted to see who Stovie's competition was.”

“http://www.thebackpacker.com/trails/ms/trails.php

did the Black Creek trail ever get cleaned up - last I had heard it was covered in blowdown?”

“Katrina pretty much destroyed it.
Parts of it are open.”

““If we had a choice, we wouldn't be going to Mississippi...”
Nurse Goodbody
7:44:29 AM
2/20/09

Beats going to North Dakota, I suppose.”

“< whew >   I thought it said 'New Mississippi Troll'.”

“For folks who enjoy hiking/backpacking, living in MS pretty much means at least a half day of driving to anything significant which flat out sucks (other than Sipsey but only if you live in NE MS). I'd advise getting a canoe and falling in love with sandbar camping on Black Creek, Wolf River and the Bogue Chitto. Good times...”

“If helps if you own a 'fish' camp on the Pascagoula River too.”

“The next question is.... is it circular?   or out and back?”

“Jealous?”

“Circular would be better.”