Tishomingo State Park is tucked into the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains and is one of Mississippi’s most beautiful treasures. At 1530 acres Tishomingo is Mississippi’s largest state park. Located in the northeastern part of the state this park is full of history and beautiful scenery.
Also check out some other state parks we have visited:
History of Tishomingo State Park
Tishomingo State Park is named for Chief Tishu Miko, leader of the Chickasaw Nation. Chief Tishomingo (his modern name) was believed to have come here for hunting and fishing and was born not far from this area. Archaeological excavations in the park have also confirmed the presence of Paleo-Indians in the park as early as 7000 BC. They were able to use chert and limestone in making tools and they clay for ceramic pottery.
In April 1935 the Civilian Conservation Corps began work creating the park. The park opened in 1935. The structures built by these men were made from the stone that was readily available at the park and those structures are still in use today.
Things To Do
Rock Climbing
Our family has done some rock climbing here on one of our visits to the park. We were able to do some top rope climbing near Jean’s Overhang. Mountain Project’s website tells more about the many options for climbing, although while it does mention a guide for sale at the gate we did not see one. You will need to show your climbing helmet when getting your permits for climbing. The area we chose was near lots of trees, so while it would provide some decent shade from the summer sun, it also provided SOO many leaves that we were sure we would lose some gear in it all.
Hiking
Our family LOVES to hike, but we were not able to hit all the trails that are available here, yet. The trails we went on were well maintained, but there was significant amounts of poison ivy all over the park and some got close to the trail’s edge.
Google tells me there are 7 trails in the park, and four of them are on the All Trails app.
The CCC Camp Trail is one of the most beautiful trails, especially since it is so short. Less than a half mile it was surrounded by beautiful rocks, moss, ferns, flowers, and the cabin from the 1800s! This one doesn’t take much time at all and I highly recommend it.
The Bear Creek Outcropping Trail is another “can’t miss” trail. It has the swinging bridge after all. It is also a great trail for checking out the many boulder outcroppings. When we were there we were able to see a (small)waterfall on this trail.
Other things to do in Tishomingo State Park are playing disc golf, kayaking, or fishing in the lake. There is a swimming pool there, but it doesn’t look like it has been opened in several years. They are actively working to update the park, so fingers crossed it is on their “to-do” list as well.
Staying at Tishomingo State Park
Camping
There are 61 RV sites located around the lake. Some of them have recently been updated and have full hook-ups (sites number 38 and up) and more level updated sites, but some at the beginning of the road are still going to only have water/power hook-ups, and some fairly small and not quite so level sites. We have a 28 ft TT and it was quite a squeeze on some of the sites. There is a dump station next to the “chapel” pavilion. I’ve read it can get pretty stinky if you are staying near it.
We only visited one of the bathhouses and while it is older, it was clean and working perfectly fine. (It also had coin-operated laundry.)
Finding the online reservations system was a pain, but I found it.
Online Campground Reservations for Tishomingo State Park, Mississippi.
The primitive camping available at the park is only a term to mean no-frills. The sites are near the road and not at all tucked back in the woods. The road isn’t super busy, so don’t let it deter you, but it is not going to be a backwoods camping experience.
Tentrr
Tishomingo is one of Mississippi’s State Parks that can offer the Tentrr canvas tents. They look so cool and we were so excited to see them adding these to the park. It looks like these start at $75 a night and are pet-friendly.
Book online reservations for Tishomingo State Park Tentrr sites here.
Cabins
There are 6 cabins and 1 cottage at Tishomingo. I scanned through the dates and saw the price seems to range between 75-95 a night. There are no pets allowed in the cabins.
The cabins are older and more rustic. They are not going to be an elegant getaway. But if you are looking for a place to stay cool/warm and dry while you are enjoying this beautiful part of our state it is worth a try. The cottage does look like a much more modern upgraded stay. The cottage price seems to be the same nightly as the cabins.
Online reservations for Tishomingo State Park Cabins.
Getting There
Tishomingo State Park is located only 45 miles NE of Tupelo MS. It is in Northeast Mississippi and is close to Alabama and Tennessee state lines.
If you are traveling the Natchez Trace Parkway you will find Tishmingo at mile number 304 of The Trace.
The address is 105 Co Rd 90, Tishomingo, MS 38873
You can reach reservations by phone at 662-438-6914
What we didn’t love about Tishmingo
It was disappointing to see the state of the pool. I understand funds are low for the state parks in our state. But I also see they are working on making some improvements.
Some of the older cabins/cottages/whatever they are called are all in terrible shape. I do hope they can get some grant money and get those backup and available. They are a part of history and I hope improvements will bring the much-needed people/funds back to the park for continued improvements.
There is SO much poison ivy/oak. Even while hooking up the camper to power/water we had to be careful. And on the trails…. I know it isn’t something that can always be helped and it looks like the staff is fighting a never-ending battle with the stuff… I just want you to know so you can avoid it.
What we loved about Tishomingo State Park
We love to hike and were excited about rock climbing at the time so we were happy hanging (literally) around on the trails and rocks. There was plenty of walking to do and some beautiful rocks to enjoy on our hikes. So we did lots of walking/hiking.
The playground down near the pool/swinging bridge is new and was a hit with the kids.
We had a beautiful campsite at the lake so we enjoyed sitting around the campfire and enjoying the view.
This is such a beautiful part of our state and we loved getting to spend some time here and we will be back.
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